Ten years ago, Superstorm Sandy forever changed New York. The storm ravaged our city, killing 43 New Yorkers, destroying thousands of homes, and leaving hundreds of thousands without power, with damages estimated at $19 billion in the five boroughs alone. We experienced pain and devastation, but not equally: 55% of storm surge victims were low-income renters, and Black and Brown working-class communities along the coastlines bore the brunt of the hurricane’s most severe damage. Sandy was a major wake-up call: The climate crisis was at our doorstep.
The road to recovery hasn’t been easy, and some communities are still rebuilding. In 2013, the city mounted Build it Back to help Sandy-affected families return to their homes and rebuild what was lost. ALIGN and the Alliance for a Just Rebuilding coalition ensured that this was done equitably, with jobs created by the city’s recovery efforts benefitting low-income and Sandy-affected New Yorkers and becoming career union jobs. When new Mayor Bill de Blasio took over the effort in 2014, he restructured the program to do just that, committing to recruit and train 100 city residents into union pre-apprenticeships. We exceeded that goal, placing 108 workers into career-track jobs while another 997 were hired for recovery efforts, with 221 from Sandy-impacted communities.
Robert Connolly, left, embraces his wife Laura as they survey the remains of the home owned by her parents that burned to the ground in the Breezy Point section of New York, Oct. 30, 2012. (Mark Lennihan/AP)
Now, a decade later, where are we? According to the state Department of Environmental Conservation, greenhouse gas emissions are speeding up rising sea levels along New York’s coastline, which could rise as much as six feet in the next century. Changing weather patterns like drought and floods are expected to continue, while extreme storms will become more and more frequent, ravaging communities with widespread damage to homes, power grids and transit systems that are costly and time-consuming to repair.
The infrastructure we invest in now to mitigate climate change will determine our city’s fate.
Inspired by the lessons of Sandy, labor unions, environmental justice groups and impacted communities and workers came together to take on the urgent climate solutions needed, creating a platform for the city’s new administration with clear goals and timelines. In 2019, we passed laws at the city and state levels that set nation-leading benchmarks to tackle the toughest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in one of the world’s largest economies.
The Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act set a mandate to reduce statewide emissions 40% by 2030 and 85% by 2050. And at the city level, Local Law 97 set the bar for buildings, which account for 70% of New York City’s emissions. As of 2024, public buildings, including affordable housing and schools, as well as commercial and residential buildings over 25,000 square feet, must become cleaner and more energy efficient. These laws will work in tandem to mitigate the worst impacts of climate change and create sustainable jobs in the public and private sectors, centering equity and environmental justice.
But in the last decade, the climate emergency has only worsened. Greenhouse gas emissions are speeding up rising sea levels along New York’s coastline, which could rise as much as six feet in the next century. Changing weather patterns like drought and floods are expected to continue, while extreme storms will become more and more frequent, ravaging communities with widespread damage to homes, power grids and transit systems that are costly and time-consuming to repair. In 2021 alone, climate change-induced heat waves across New York followed by Tropical Storm Henri and Hurricane Ida, exacerbated chronic diseases, compounded COVID-19 risks, and claimed lives — especially in Black, Brown and low-income communities. And if we don’t act, damages may cost as much as $90 billion.
The costs of climate inaction are clear. The infrastructure we invest in now will determine our city’s fate.
New York City must protect waterfront communities from the effects of the global climate crisis and ensure that any new development will prevent flooding. The city has established a climate resiliency plan to strengthen our coastlines, installing storm surge barriers, upgrading our sewage systems to prevent overflows, and protecting and maintaining our city’s wetlands. But we also must take action to mitigate climate change in our own backyard. The time for New York to deliver on its climate goals is now.
Our Climate Works for All coalition’s plan for Green, Healthy Schools invests in solar panels and energy efficiency for our public school buildings, helping us meet the goals of Local Law 97. And a new package of bills from NY Renews will hold corporate polluters accountable, raising the funds necessary to decarbonize our buildings while creating green, family-sustaining union jobs.
Build it Back is a model for the work left to do today. This is about green infrastructure and jobs, but it’s also about a fundamental shift in how we govern our communities, use our precious resources, and care for our environment.
We must act now to meet our state’s mandates to curb climate change, and it’s up to Gov. Hochul, Mayor Adams, and our state and city elected officials to make it happen. This moment demands courage because there is no time to wait, and all eyes are on New York to be a model for the country. We must prevent future Sandys by building green infrastructure for our city now so we never have to build it back again.
Silva-Farrell is the executive director of ALIGN, a climate and labor advocacy organization. Garrido is the executive director of District Council 37, NYC’s largest municipal employees union.
Copyright © 2022, New York Daily News
Copyright © 2022, New York Daily News