>>> WE ARE 12 STORIES UP ATOP

ONE OF THESE SOLAR ROOFS HERE AT

STUY TOWN, WHERE THERE IS A

MASSIVE PROJECT UNDER WAY TO

TURN ROOFTOP SPACE GREEN, USING

WHITE PAINT.

AS PART OF OUR SERIES ON THE

HUMAN IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE,

WE'RE GOING TO STUY TOWN IN THE

EAST VILLAGE, ONE OF THE CITY'S

LARGEST RESIDENTIAL COMMUNITIES.

WE'LL LOOK AT HOW THEY'RE

LOOKING TO REDUCE THEIR CARBON

FOOTPRINT.

ONE OF THE RESIDENTS AT THE

COMPLEX EXPLAINS WHAT'S

HAPPENING UP THERE.

WHAT DO WE HAVE OUT HERE ON THE

ROOF?

>> ALL THE ROOFS ARE WHITE.

THAT'S INTENTIONAL.

WE'VE GOT AND IMPLEMENTED THE

COOL ROOFS PROJECT.

WE PAINT THEM WHITE.

THAT MAKES IT EASIER FOR US TO

CONTROL THE THERMAL TEMPERATURES

OF THE BUILDING.

HERE YOU SEE THE TRACKS HAVE

ALREADY BEEN LAID ON THE ROOFS.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT IS THE

WIRING WILL BE LAID DOWN AND

WE'LL LAYER IN THE SOLAR PANELS

THAT EVERYBODY KNOWS.

THE WHITE ROOFS AND SOLAR PANELS

ARE A VERY EFFICIENT OPERATION.

>> THE PROGRAM HELPS NEW YORK

CITY BUILDING OWNERS TO PAINT

THEIR ROOFS WHITE, LOWERING

BUILDING TEMPERATURES BY AS MUCH

AS 30% AND CUTTING AIR

CONDITIONING COSTS.

STARTING IN NOVEMBER OF 2017,

PROJECT SOLAR BEGAN TO TURN THE

ROOFS INTO A SUN-SOAKING OASIS.

THIS IS THE CEO OF STUY TOWN.

>> WE HAD THE ABILITY TO MAKE AN

IMPACT PRETTY QUICK.

RESIDENTS HAVE EXPRESSED TO US

SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS, I'M

PROUD TO LIVE HERE BECAUSE OF

WHAT YOU'RE DOING.

>> STUY TOWN AND PETER COOPER

VILLAGE ARE 110 ADDRESSES BUT 56

STRUCTURES WITH 22 ACRES OF

ROOFTOP.

TO DATE, AND WE'VE BEEN AT THIS

FOR ABOUT ACSEVEN MONTHS, WE HA

50% OF THOSE BUILDINGS

INSTALLED.

ALL OF STUYVESANT TOWN, BETWEEN

20th AND 14th STREET, HAS ALL

THE MATERIAL ON THE ROOFTOPS

TODAY.

WE HAVE ABOUT 35% OF THOSE

ROOFTOPS ACTIVE AND TAKING IN

SOLAR ENERGY.

>> THE TEAM EXPECTS ALL 9,671

SOLAR PANELS TO BE INSTALLED ON

ALL 22 ACRES OF ROOFTOP SPACE BY

NEXT YEAR.

>> SO THIS IS A 3.8 MEGAWATT

INSTALLATION.

THAT MEANS NOTHING TO THE

LAYMAN, BUT WHAT IT REALLY

EQUATES TO IS ABOUT 500 CARS PER

YEAR REMOVED OFF OF THE ROAD.

ALSO IT POWERS THE EQUIVALENT OF

1,100 NEW YORK CITY APARTMENTS.

OVER THE LIFE OF THE PROJECT,

WHICH IS ABOUT 25 YEARS, IT WILL

REMOVE ABOUT 12,000 CARS OR

PLANT THE EQUIVALENT OF 10,000

TREES.

>> THEY COME WITH A LITTLE BIT

OF THEIR OWN BAGGAGE.

THE OWNERS ACQUIRED THE PROPERTY

IN 2015 FOR $5.3 BILLION WITH A

PROMISE TO KEEP AFFORDABLE

HOUSING FOR YEARS TO COME.

IF YOU THINK THIS PROJECT IS

JUST A PR CAMPAIGN --

>> I WOULD SAY THAT'S AN

UNFORTUNATE APPROACH.

WE HAD AN OPPORTUNITY IN

MULTIFAMILY TO BE ABLE TO MAKE A

STATEMENT WHICH AT THE SAME TIME

IS DOING THE RIGHT THING.

>> THE OWNERS DON'T EXPECT TO

SEE A RETURN ON THEIR

MULTIMILLION DOLLAR INVESTMENT

FOR AT LEAST TEN YEARS.

PROJECT SOLAR IS PART OF A WIDER

COMMITMENT TO MAKE STUY TOWN AND

PETER COOPER VILLAGE MORE

SUSTAINABLE.

IT'S SOMETHING THE RESIDENTS ARE

VOCAL ABOUT.

THIS MAN HAS LIVED HERE FOR 20

YEARS.

>> LOTS OF FLAT ROOFS, ALL THIS

SPACE, IT MAKES SUCH SENSE.

IT'S AN INCREDIBLE COMMON SENSE

ENTITY.

IT'S IN THE OWNER'S BEST

INTERESTS BECAUSE THEY HAVE A

SOURCE OF ELECTRICITY FOR BOTH

EMERGENCIES AND THEY'RE ALSO

REDUCING THE AMOUNT OF POLLUTION

THAT THE COMPLEX GENERATES

THROUGH THE USE OF HEAT,

ELECTRICITY, AND, YOU KNOW, THE

HOT WATER AND SO FORTH.

IT MAKE MAKES COMMON SENSE.

PLACES AROUND THE COUNTRY, WHERE

THEY'RE USING LAND AS SOLAR

FARMS.

THIS IS A ROOFTOP SOLAR FARM.

>> THE COMPLEX'S MASSIVE SCALE

IS TAKING ITS ENVIRONMENTAL

IMPACT FAR BEYOND SOLAR PANELS.

STUY TOWN AND PETER COOPER

VILLAGE HAVE ONE OF THE LARGEST

COMPOSTING PROGRAMS IN THE CITY.

>> THAT ACCOUNTS FOR 17% OF ALL

ORGANIC MATERIAL COLLECTED IN

MANHATTAN, THAT'S RESIDENTIAL

ORGANIC MATERIAL.

>> FOR EVERY FIVE POUNDS OF

COMPOST COLLECTED IN MANHATTAN,

ABOUT A POUND OF THAT COMES FROM

STUY TOWN AND THOSE THOUSANDS OF

POUNDS OF COMPOST ARE TURNED

INTO FERTILIZER OR USED AS

NATURAL GAS.

>> WE TAKE THE APPROACH OF

BUILDING THIS COMMUNITY UP IN SO

MANY DIFFERENT FACETS AND

EMPLOYING RENEWABLE ENERGY IS

JUST A WAY TO DO THAT.

WE'RE ABLE TO SHOW BUILDING

OWNERS THAT DOING THE RIGHT

THING COULD ALSO BE THE RIGHT

THING TO DO FOR THE ENVIRONMENT.