Apparently gas stove restrictions was not enough to control climate change. Now, historic New York City pizza establishments may soon find themselves facing a hefty financial burden due to a proposed city regulation targeting coal-and-wood-fired ovens.

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has formulated new guidelines aimed at reducing carbon emissions from these time-honored baking methods by up to 75%.

While the DEP claims that the rules are designed to improve air quality in neighborhoods with poor pollution levels, some pizzeria owners argue that the costly emission-control devices required would not only be a financial burden but also compromise the authentic taste of their beloved pies.

In a statement issued on Sunday, DEP spokesman Ted Timbers asserted, “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.”

“This common-sense rule, developed with restaurant and environmental justice groups, requires a professional review of whether installing emission controls is feasible,” he added.

One pizzeria owner, Paul Giannone of Paulie Gee’s in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, has already spent $20,000 on an air filter system in anticipation of the forthcoming mandate.

“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.”

He also noted the positive outcome of improved relations with his neighbors. “I had a guy coming in for years complaining that the smoke was, you know, going right into his apartment and I haven’t seen him since I got the scrubber installed,” Giannone said.

Among the iconic pizza joints potentially affected by the regulation are Lombardi’s in Little Italy, Arturo’s in Soho, John’s of Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village, Patsy’s in Turtle Bay and the Upper West Side, and Grimaldi’s near the Brooklyn Bridge. These establishments take pride in their traditional coal-and-wood-fired ovens, which are deeply intertwined with their culinary heritage.

According to city officials, fewer than 100 restaurants in total would be impacted.

In response to the proposed regulation, one anonymous pizza restaurateur urged politicians and bureaucrats to refrain from meddling with their time-tested methods.

He argued that altering the temperature in the oven would inevitably alter the taste and claimed that the distinct flavor of the pizzas hinged on maintaining the perfect updraft and preserving the char produced by the ovens.

Under the proposed mandate, pizzerias utilizing coal-and-wood-fired ovens would be required to engage an engineer or architect to evaluate the feasibility of emission control device installation, with a specific focus on achieving a 75% reduction in particulate emissions.

If this assessment determines that the desired reduction cannot be achieved or that emission controls are not feasible, alternative emission control measures providing at least a 25% reduction or an explanation for the impossibility of installation must be presented.

Establishments facing hardships may apply for a variance or waiver but must provide compelling evidence to support their case.

The proposed regulations are an extension of Local 38 of 2015, which was approved during the tenure of former Mayor Bill de Blasio. The DEP officials cited the complexity of formulating practical rules that do not unduly burden restaurants, along with the additional challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, as reasons for the delay in implementing the regulations.

Acknowledging the concerns raised by the pizzeria owners, the DEP stated that it had consulted with an advisory committee comprising restaurateurs to develop the rule.

“The advisory committee and DEP were unable to finalize a rule in that time frame due to the difficulty of crafting a rule to manage technical and cost concerns that are attendant to the installation of emission control devices,” department officials explained.

“For example, costs for controls for existing cook stoves can be difficult to manage as the spaces in which these cook stoves operate are often aging structures that were not designed to accommodate emission control devices,” the officials said. “In addition, many of the locations where existing cook stoves are used are not owned by the operators of the cook stoves, and changes required to install such devices require obtaining the landlord’s permission.”

Owners, pizza lovers, and concerned citizens expressed their disdain for the new rule, expressing doubt that regulating emissions from wood-fire stoves in pizzerias would have any impact climate.

Elon Musk chimed in right away, “This is utter bs.”

Others were a little more graphic.

One rightly pointed out New Yorkers will not be happy about this rule.

Will this rule drive people away from NYC? Time will tell.

At what point do Americans and business owners put their foot down and stop this madness?