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QUESTION
Council Member Alexa Aviles Probes EDC on Health Impact Efforts and Future Mitigation Strategies
0:57:55
ยท
6 min
Council Member Alexa Aviles inquires about significant action or strategy from the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) to directly improve health indicators in impacted communities over the past three years. The EDC's response outlines lack of direct health improvements but mentions efforts in job creation, air quality monitoring, and long-term agreements to enhance environmental benefits. The discussion also touches on global efforts to address ship emissions and the city's commitment to a green economy and decarbonization.
Speaker 2
0:57:55
So can you speak to I mean, what has EDC with these partner agencies know the health impacts of this industry.
0:58:02
Again, noting it was used to justify the the implementation of shore power back in the day and knowing it's not fully functional.
0:58:13
What has EDC tangibly done around health impacts?
0:58:18
With the partner agencies in let let's just say the past 3 years.
Speaker 8
0:58:26
Thank you for the question.
0:58:27
I I would not be able to say to you that we have, you know, done anything specifically that is improving health indicators in these communities.
0:58:40
Aside from the, you know, sort of less tangible impacts of, you know, having a working waterfront job creation and and those pieces that are more loosely connected to health improvements across our neighborhoods.
0:58:56
What I can say is that We have initiated those discussions to look at opportunities for air quality monitoring, thinking about how can we be transparent about that data and that we will are very committed to working with you council member, AbbViella, and council member, Batcher, and your constituents in having that information be a guiding force and how decisions are made.
0:59:25
In the communities.
0:59:26
But if you're asking me to say, have we specifically invested in a a health clinic in Redhook or something along those lines.
0:59:37
I wouldn't be able to answer affirmatively on that.
0:59:41
What I can also say though is that as part of the long term agreements that that Sabrina highlighted, because we have included language about environmental benefits, emissions, reductions, requiring shore power connectivity, we see ourselves as part of the broader strategy to improve air quality across the city.
1:00:12
Actually, council member, I should say, I'm I thought of one more thing that I do wanna hand over hand over to Andrew again to speak to, which is our work on the blue highway and working to reduce traffic in our neighborhoods, as you mentioned in your your opening remarks, being able to use our waterfront more holistically, to move goods, to move people, is a critical strategy in getting vehicle emissions down and getting cars off the road.
1:00:45
And so in terms of your question about tangible things that we are participating in.
1:00:50
I I would like Andrew to to speak to that work.
Speaker 6
1:00:52
Thank thank you, McAllen.
1:00:54
Council member, I I before I go into that, I do wanna stress that across the globe, the issue of fuels burned by ships at sea has been a address through treaties, through the international a maritime organization, which is the United Nations Agency.
1:01:14
And what that has done in Port cities across the world has established environmental control areas where the ships have to change the fuels that they burn to cleaner, low sulfur, low nitrous oxide fuels when they enter a port, and that is true for all the ships and vessels, both freight and passenger that come into New York Harbor.
1:01:40
And that's closely regulated by the coast guard.
1:01:43
So that's one global improvement ahead of shore power.
1:01:47
But as we move forward, there's more and more pressure to convert vessels to liquefied natural gas, to hydrogen, to other cleaner fuel sources in addition to shore power.
1:01:59
No.
1:02:01
And I and I understand.
1:02:03
I understand.
1:02:04
One one to to to get to Mikael's point, EDC and the city, the administration is committed to green the green economy, which is sustainable economic growth.
1:02:17
And key to that is chain is decarbonization and reducing carbon that's burned in our supply chains and that includes using waterways and using electric vehicles wherever possible to literally transform, you know, how the city how how both passenger and freight moves into out of and through the city.
1:02:41
So that That is something that we're, you know, we'll you'll hear more about.
1:02:46
Thank you.
Speaker 2
1:02:46
Yes.
1:02:47
We talk a lot about it.
1:02:48
These are all related compounding issues that we we face.
1:02:53
And certainly, I know you have been working on materializing a blue highway.
1:02:58
However, we're talking specifically about the cruise terminal today and the fact that the cruise industry itself we are well aware of what the emissions, the impacts, the polluting impacts of this industry.
1:03:14
Well aware, the data is irrefutable.
1:03:17
It's a global issue.
1:03:19
We face it here.
1:03:20
So to hear that, We are signing agreements with future for future benefit or future mitigation plans.
1:03:29
When we have been doing this for years and have not planted a tree, have not invested in any real on the ground immediate mitigation strategies.
1:03:41
Is just unconscionable.
1:03:46
We don't know what's in the agreements, and I know Legally, EDC has responded that they cannot share those agreements for whatever legalese doesn't allow that.
1:03:57
Nevertheless, we are added to service here because we don't know what is happening in those agreements.
1:04:04
Just you and the cruise agency and You're not an actual city agency.
1:04:10
You're a nonprofit corporation.
1:04:13
We have a real problem with this.
1:04:16
So I guess, I I just wanna say, I think I think I'm gonna take a quick pause here and certainly turn it over to my council member because we engage in so much conversation, and there are other questions that I wanna dig into, but I'd like provide some courtesy to council member, Badger.