NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) — In a far-reaching effort to limit its impact on the environment, the nation’s biggest city marked Earth Day by announcing a plan to reduce its waste output by 90 percent by 2030.
The “OneNYC” plan includes an overhaul of the city’s recycling program, incentives to reduce waste and tacit support for the City Council’s plan to dramatically reduce the use of plastic shopping bags. It was announced by Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio.
“This is the blueprint for the future of New York City,” de Blasio said.
New York, with about 8.5 million residents, would be the largest city in the Western Hemisphere to adopt such a plan, which aims to reduce the amount of its waste by more than 3 million tons from its 2005 level of about 3.6 million tons.
“The average New Yorker throws out nearly 15 pounds of waste a week, adding up to millions upon millions of tons a year,” de Blasio said. “To be a truly sustainable city, we need to tackle this challenge head on.”
more story on CBSNewYork