New York County: AN ENVIRONMENTAL DIAGNOSIS By: Liam Fitzgerald Sophomore, Tamarac High School Mentored by: Pedro de la Torre III

LOCATION Southern NYS Borough of Manhattan East, Hudson, and Harlem Rivers

TIMELINE OF NY COUNTY 1609: Columbus discovers and maps present day Manhattan Island 1524: French explorer Giovanni de Verrazano visits present day NYC 1624: New Amsterdam is established 1825: Opening of Erie Canal (Connected Atlantic Port to Midwest) 1857: Central Park opens 1898: Consolidation of 3 counties into NYC 1904: Establishment of NYC subway system 1925: Manhattan takes over as “world’s most popular city (previously London) 1990’s: Crime rates drop dramatically 2001: Terrorist Attacks on WTC 2001: Final landfill in NYC closes 2012: Hurricane Sandy Strikes NYC 2014: de Blasio elected as NYC mayor 2014: Brewer is elected as borough president

BACKGROUND Known as economic and cultural center of the United States Population: 1.6 million people (69,469 per square mile) Attracts more than 50 million tourists each year

GOVERNMENT Manhattan Borough President: Gale A. Brewer NYC Mayor: Bill de Blasio 59 community boards

ENVIRONMENTAL/OTHER CONCERNS Lead exposure (in children) Garbage disposal Storm readiness

LEAD EXPOSURE Used as indicator for environmental and financial health 1,425 children poisoned in 2012 (NYC.gov) Neighborhood housing apartments

POSSIBLE SOLUTION Enforcement of regulating paint Childhood Lead Prevention Act of 2003 Education of residents/landlords/business owners about the dangers of lead paint

“WEALTH GAP” 21.2% of residents below poverty line9 64.7% graduation rate in NYC schools 53,890 housing apartments -Connection to lead poisoning

GARBAGE DISPOSAL 36,200 tons of garbage produced every day All NYC landfills closed since 2001(6) “20 Year Plan” Transport trash to other state’s landfills via truck

POSSIBLE SOLUTION Barge garbage to other town’s in New York State Boost upstate’s economy Creates jobs

DISASTER READINESS NYC Office of Emergency Management Effects of Hurricane Sandy in 2012 53 total deaths of NYC residents Hundreds of homes destroyed Approx. 250,000 vehicles destroyed $18 billion loss Approx. 94,769 power outages in NY County (ConEdison Inc.)

POSSIBLE SOLUTION Storm walls New, anti-storm infrastructure Evacuation strategy

ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS Air Quality Type of Energy Used Greenhouse Gas Emissions

AIR QUALITY Improving, but continues to be significant environmental threat 6% of annual deaths accredited to air pollution (NYC.gov)4 PlaNYC

ENERGY Nuclear and gas energy make up 97% of energy used Large buildings (skyscrapers) account for 45% of NYC’s total energy use4

POWER USAGE IN TIMES SQUARE 161 megawatts (Bouey)3 Twice the amount of energy used to power all casinos in Las Vegas Enough power for approx 161,000 U.S. homes Three times amount of power consumed in Sierra Leone

SOLAR PANELS IN NYC 2/3 of the one million rooftops in NYC are suitable for solar panels (CNN)1 City could receive about half of total electricity from the panels Reduces chance of blackout (summer)

GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS 7.1 metric tons per capita(2) San Francisco=11.2 metric tons per capita Majority of residents (60-70%) do not own motor vehicles Mass transit (subways/taxis)

RECAP “Setting a standard” PlaNYC Enforcement of landlords “Clean Up!” Solar Panels

NOTABLE SOURCES 1) http://money.cnn.com/2011/07/25/technology/solar-new-york/ 2) http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/30/us-newyorkcity-climate-idUSBRE9BT0QN20131230 3) http://theworldbyroad.com/2013/07/the-power-to-light-up-times-square/ 4) NYC.gov 5) "Carbon Visuals." : New York's carbon emissions. http://www.carbonvisuals.com/work/new-yorks-carbon-emissions-in-real-time (accessed March 31, 2014). 6) Cohen. 2010. “Wasted: New York City’s Trouble with Disposal”, 8–5. 7) Environmental Protection Agency. "U.S. Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report." EPA. http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/ghgemissions/usinventoryreport.html (accessed April 15, 2014). 8) “Lead Posioning Prevention.” 2014.The Official Website of the City of New York. 1. 9) “National Poverty Rates.” 2013. U.S. Census Bureau 2012, 1. 10) Steve Hargreaves. 2013. “Solar Power in the Big Apple.”CNNMoney, 3–14. 11) Tatianna Morin. 2014. “Soil and Water Health in NYC.” 12) "The 2012 Statistical Abstract." - U.S. Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/ (accessed April 5, 2014). 13)Weaver, Terri. "NY Safe Act meeting with Cuomo." syracuse.com. http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2014/02/ny_safe_act_meeting_with_cuomo_yields_frank_talk_but_no_promises_of_changes_to_l.html (accessed March 31, 2014).