Calling it the “most ambitious programme of its kind in the nation”, the plan will require landlords of the 14,500 of the city’s worst-performing buildings with a surface area of 2,300 square metres to make sharp reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Measures will include modernizing boilers, water heaters, roofs and windows, the mayor’s office said in a statement.

“Time is not on our side,” said Mayor de Blasio. “We must shed our buildings’ reliance on fossil fuels here and now,” adding that the plan will help “honour the goals of the Paris Agreement”.

To compel building owners to meet the ambitious standards, the legislation will set annual penalties that increase with building size and the amount the buildings exceed the fossil fuel use targets, according to the mayor’s office.

For example, a skyscraper of around 158,000 square metres, such as the iconic Chrysler Building, could incur an annual fine of some $2 million if its energy use significantly exceeds the city’s efficiency targets, reported AFP.