New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has set an ambitious goal of cutting the Big Apple’s carbon pollution by 80-percent within the next 34 years.

Old radiator

But achieving this goal means overcoming complicated challenges. For example, one hot-button issue is how to retrofit old, inefficient heating systems in apartment buildings across the city.

For example, leaving a window open while it’s snowing outside sounds crazy. But in many city buildings, steam boilers run on overdrive in order to heat a few cold apartments . . . leaving residents elsewhere in the building sweltering, even in the midst of winter.

The fix can be as simple as installing a small, metal plate into each radiator’s hand-valve to slow the release of steam, but there are challenges to getting this done.

The work requires access to every apartment, and the heating industry lacks experience installing these plates. Jonathan Flothow, a steam system specialist, also says the fix takes several years to pay for itself, and most building owners want a faster rate of return.

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So Flothow says residential heating systems can be improved, but it’s not as easy as it sounds. So the city may need to step in to motivate building owners to invest in the upgrades.

Reporting credit: ChavoBart Digital Media.
Photo: Old vintage radiator (copyright protected).

More Resources
The New York City Carbon Challenge
The NYC Carbon Challenge for Multifamily Buildings
Study Urges New York Buildings to Retrofit Radiators to Cut Emissions
Clanging Pipes and Open Windows: Upgrading N.Y.C. Steam Systems for the 21st Century

Bruce Lieberman, a long-time journalist, has covered climate change science, policy, and politics for nearly two decades. A newspaper reporter for 20 years, Bruce worked for The San Diego Union-Tribune...