On December 28, 2009, Mayor Michael Bloomberg signed into law four bills that together comprise New York City’s Greener, Greater Buildings Plan. The legislation, which the Mayor described as “the most significant action to date” to achieving the City’s PlaNYC emissions goals—30 percent reduction of annual greenhouse gas emissions below 2005 levels by 2030—is designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 4.75 percent.
The first of the four bills, Intro 476-A, requires private buildings that exceed 50,000 square feet and City buildings that exceed 10,000 square feet to track and asses their energy and water use by utilizing an internet “benchmarking tool” developed by the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Energy and water use will be reported on an annual basis, and the City will make such information available to the public.
Intro 564-A amends the City’s administrative code to establish an energy conservation construction code for the City. The new energy code sets energy performance standards for covered residential and commercial buildings and applies to all renovations to such buildings. This legislation represents a more stringent approach than that of the New York State Energy Code, the standards of which apply to renovation projects only if such projects entail the replacement of at least fifty percent of a particular building system.
Intro 967-A amends the City’s administrative code to require the performance of energy efficiency audits and the submission of energy efficiency reports for buildings that exceed 50,000 square feet. An energy audit must identify all reasonable energy efficiency and retrofit measures that would reduce energy use and the costs and savings of such measures. Building owners must implement energy efficient maintenance practices prior to the filing of the energy efficiency report for their building. Intro 967-A also amends the New York City Charter to require City buildings to implement those retrofits that have been recommended in the buildings’ energy audits that will pay for themselves in seven years in energy savings.
The fourth bill, Intro 973, calls for the upgrade of lighting systems in commercial buildings exceeding 50,000 square feet before 2025. The legislation also requires that electrical consumption by certain commercial tenants be measured by sub-meters.
In addition to the new legislation, the City’s Greener, Greater Buildings Plan establishes a working group designed to assess green workforce training needs and a revolving loan fund to help finance energy efficient retrofits.
