White Plains to Require Phasing Out of Heating Fuel No. 6 and No. 4
The White Plains Common Council was expected to pass legislation Monday night that would require building owners in the city who currently use No. 6 Heating Oil and No. 4 Heavy Oil to phase out their old burners in favor of cleaner No. 2 Heating Oil and Natural Gas.
Both No. 6 and No. 4 oils have a severe effect on air quality as shown by their black smoke, which contains noxious gases. Both products fail EPA standards when it comes to emissions.
No. 6, the more viscous and most toxic, would be disallowed in White Plains by 2016 and No. 4 by 2020.
Commenting that this was something the city had been looking at for a while, Mayor Tom Roach said: “The black smoke was unnecessary and harmful. There already is a natural migration off use of these older heating oils, but White Plains is putting a time line on it.”
The new law would amend Title III of the White Plains Municipal Code by repealing Chapter 3 titled Air Pollution and replacing it with an updated version.
Similar legislation has already been adopted by New York City and Westchester County is looking into changing its codes as well, according to Building Commissioner Damon Amadeo.
Amadeo told the Council at a meeting April 30th that approximately 15 buildings in White Plains are now using No.6 and another 40 use No. 4.
“Most are the larger scale (six to 10 story multi-family) pre-war co-ops on Old Mamaroneck Road and North Broadway. There are some institutional and corporate buildings on the list as well,” Amadeo said.
Packets of information will be sent to each noncompliant building and Amadeo noted he would talk to owners and co-op boards about the intention to help make the conversions manageable.
It was observed that a conversion to No. 2 heating Oil would be less costly and more straightforward, although reconfiguring to natural gas was preferred.
Con Edison and NYSERDA have energy incentive programs that would be investigated as well as an EIC financing alternative that might be available for building owners that can demonstrate energy savings in their plan.
