President Donald Trump's and son-in-law Jared Kushner's New York buildings are among a few luxury towers that are responsible for close to 50 percent of carbon dioxide pollution in the city, according to a new report.
Related: Trump Is 'Definitely Still Involved' in His Hotel Business, Employee Says
Trump Tower at 725 Fifth Avenue, Trump International Hotel & Tower at 1 Central Park West and Kushner family-owned 666 Fifth Avenue—along with other luxury skyscrapers including the Baccarat Hotel and Residences and 157 West 57th Street—were part of a group representing 2 percent of buildings in the city that emitted nearly 50 percent of the pollution, according to a report by local environmental nonprofits cited by HuffPost on Thursday.
New York Communities for Change, the People's Climate Movement NY, the Working Families Party and two other environmental organizations drew that conclusion by using public electricity and fossil fuel data to calculate each building's energy use based on 30-year average temperatures, in kilo British thermal units.
The median energy use for New York City multif amily homes came out to 125 kBtu per square foot, and for office buildings,186 kBtu per square foot.
But Kushner's 666 Fifth Avenue hit 285 kBtu per square foot, while Trump International Hotel & Tower logged 267 kBtu per square foot and Trump Tower reached 208 kBtu per square foot.
"It's the Trumps and the Kushners that are polluting this city," New York Communities for Change senior adviser Pete Sikora told HuffPost. "We're not a factory town in New York City, but if we were, our smokestacks would be buildings like Trump Tower."
.@realDonaldTrump is one of the biggest contributors to the city’s carbon footprint. We are calling out on @NYCSpeakerCoJo to lead NYC council to clean up #DirtyBuildings & create good jobs #GreenNewDeal https://t.co/jiASkXc3nR
— New York Communities for Change (@nychange) June 28, 2018
The building 157 West 57th Street used 287 kBtu per square foot, and the Baccarat Hotel and Residences used 386 kBtu per square foot, according to the report.
The environmental groups are demanding that New York City mandate an 80 percent reduction in emissions and energy use by 2050, which would entail drastic upgrades to building water heaters, boilers, windows and roofs. According to the city, buildings produce 70 percent of carbon dioxide emissions.
It is not the first time Trump and Kushner's buildings have been accused of being among New York's worst polluters.
Last year a coalition of labor and community groups called ALIGN released a report stating that Trump Tower used more energy than 93 percent of Manhattan's large residential structures, that Trump International Hotel & Tower used more energy than 70 percent of the city's big hotels, and that 666 Fifth Avenue used more energy than 85 percent of the city's sizable office buildings.
The Trump Organization, Kushner's family-owned real estate company Kushner Cos., and the New York mayor's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Newsweek.
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