N.Y.C. Admin. Code § L.L. 1989/039: L.L. 1989/039

Enactment date: 6/28/1989

Int. No. 977-B

By Council Member Leffler; also Council Members Alter, Castaneira-Colon, Dryfoos, Friedlander, Greitzer, Harrison, Lisa, Maloney, McCaffrey, Messinger, Michels, Pinkett, Rivera and Eisland

A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York in relation to prohibiting privately-operated apartment building incinerators

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section one. Declaration of legislative intent and findings. In the 1960's and 1970's, the council enacted legislation regulating the operation of existing privately-operated incinerators and prohibiting the installation of any additional privately-operated incinerators. The approximately 2,500 incinerators that are now operating in apartment buildings, account for nearly all the privately-operated incinerators currently in use in the city. The council finds that these incinerators continue to pose a severe threat to the health, safety, welfare and comfort of New Yorkers. Reliable scientific evidence establishes that because nearly all these incinerators lack effective emissions and/or combustion controls, they emit unacceptable levels of various toxic gases and substances, including particulates, heavy metals, acid gases, dioxins and furans. These incinerators are operated by personnel who lack adequate training in the principles of combustion and who are incapable of effectively monitoring and controlling the operation of the incinerator. As a result, combustion efficiencies are often low, causing incomplete burning and the creation of polluting by-products. Moreover, because these incinerators' stacks rise only ten to fifteen feet above roof level, emissions are poorly dispersed. Finally, these incinerators are not equipped with state-of-the-art pollution control devices to control the wide-range of pollutants that may be emitted.

The council finds that with the institution of the mandatory citywide recycling program and the resource recovery program, the elimination of privately-operated incinerators will not overburden the city's solid waste disposal system. Moreover, the elimination of these facilities is not intended to result in a reduction of services requiring a rent reduction under the rent and rehabilitation law or the rent stabilization law. Accordingly, in order to protect the health and welfare of the public, the council finds it appropriate to ban all existing privately-operated incinerators.

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[Consolidated provisions are not included in this Appendix A]

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§ 5. This local law shall take effect immediately upon its enactment into law.