AGI/AIPG SUMMER INTERNS The PlaNYC Initiative
Mayor Bloomberg created PlaNYC in 2007 as an ongoing initiative to make New York City more sustainable. Originally, PlaNYC focused on lowering greenhouse gas emissions, clean- ing up contaminated land, and creating sustainable housing.5 After Hurricane Sandy, however, the initiative now includes more coastal resiliency efforts.
Since Hurricane Sandy, PlaNYC has produced a new report, A Stronger, More Resilient New York (
http://www.nyc.gov/ html/sirr/html/report/
report.shtml), which recommends 257 initiatives to increase coastal resiliency and combat rising seas.
The report recommends adopting new guidelines that take into account sea level rise for critical infrastructure such as wastewater facilities, the passage of the Flood Resilience Text Amendment that would help buildings become retrofit- ted based on updated FEMA maps, the creation of cheaper flood insurance for vulnerable residents, and the establishment of a program to help local busi- nesses improve resiliency.6 Furthermore, studies are being done to protect property and residents from flooding that will lead to the construction of levees, floodwalls, and storm surge barriers in all five boroughs.6
New York City is a leader in new approaches to coastal resiliency. The New York City Panel on Climate Change is a team of climate scientists, social scientists, and risk management experts that was first convened in 2008 to develop climate-related projections for the city. The Panel became an ongoing body in 2012 under Local Law 42, which also created a climate change adapta- tion task force to coordinate the city’s response to risks identified by the Panel.4 Local Law 42 is the first bill of its kind to be passed by any local gov- ernment in the country. Furthermore, in March 2014, Mayor Bloomberg’s successor, Mayor Bill de Blasio, announced the establishment of the Mayor’s Office of Recovery and Resiliency, which spearheads efforts to implement strategies in A Stronger, More Resilient New York: the first city office ever to be created for climate resiliency.
The Arctic Environment Poses Unique Challenges For Offshore Drilling Efforts and Oil Spill Response
By Meg Freiberger
The proposed Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program currently includes three Arctic leases: one sale each in the Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea and Cook Inlet offshore areas (Figure 1). Before any resource devel- opment takes place, however, the unique
conditions of the Arctic environment must be considered and oil spill response technologies evaluated to ensure environmental and human safety.
Figure 1. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management 2017-2022 Oil and Gas Leasing Proposed Program Areas for the Alaska Region of the Outer Continental Shelf. Source: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
Why drilling in the Arctic?
Cities face many challenges when developing efficient coastal resiliency strategies. Differences in resources, infor- mation, expertise, and perception of the city’s needs have lead to many disparate strategies.7 Director of the Mayor’s Special Initiative for Rebuilding and Resiliency and leader of a Stronger, More Resilient New York, Seth Pinsky, stated, “In the 21st century, it is the cities that confront climate change head-on that will be best positioned to survive and thrive.”8 In the future, New York City’s long-term resiliency plans can possibly be used as a model to help other vulnerable cities adapt to a changing climate.
The U.S. Arctic OCS contains large amounts of economically recoverable oil and natural gas. For example, the Chukchi Sea is estimated to hold 11 billion barrels (bbl) of economically recoverable oil and 38 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas and estimates for the Beaufort Sea include 6 bbl oil and 11 Tcf of natural gas.1*
Recognizing this enormous resource potential, ARCO and Standard Oil drilled a well in the Prudhoe Bay oil field in 1968, and production began in 1977 after the Trans-Alaska Pipeline from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez, AK, was completed.2 Over the next decade, twenty more exploratory wells were drilled in the Chukchi and Beaufort Sea regions. However, high production
*These figures represent economically recoverable quantities at $110/barrel and $7.83/thousand cubic feet of gas and are readjusted as market prices fluctuate.1
5. PlaNYC: Progress Report 2010: The City of New York 6. PlaNYC: Progress Report 2014: The City of New York 7. Adaptation and Implementation Planning: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report 8. City Solutions – A Stronger, More Resilient New York – National Geographic
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