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Regulators in New York City are proposing costly new regulations that would force pizzeria owners to drastically reduce their carbon emissions. The proposed rules apply to any pizzeria that uses coal or wood-fired ovens installed before 2016.
According to the New York Post, restaurant owners would have to install an air filtration system and then hire an engineer to track the restaurant's carbon emissions.
"All New Yorkers deserve to breathe healthy air, and wood and coal-fired stoves are among the largest contributors of harmful pollutants in neighborhoods with poor air quality," New York City Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Ted Timbers said in a statement.
One business owner told The Post it cost $20,000 to install the system, so he is in compliance with the rules.
"Oh yeah, it's a big expense!" said Paul Giannone, the owner of Paulie Gee's in Greenpoint. "It's not just the expense of having it installed. It's the maintenance. I got to pay somebody to do it, to go up there every couple of weeks and hose it down and, you know, do the maintenance."
One pizzamaker told The Post he is concerned that the new rules will impact the taste of New York's iconic pizzas.
"If you f*** around with the temperature in the oven, you change the taste. That pipe, that chimney, it's that size to create the perfect updraft, keeps the temp perfect, it's an art as much as a science. You take away the char, the thing that makes the pizza taste great, you kill it," he said.
"And for what? You really think that you're changing the environment with these eight or nine pizza ovens?!"
Officials will hold a public hearing in July before deciding whether to finalize the rule.