What Happened?
The city of Boston recently launched efforts to reduce municipal greenhouse gas emissions and overall energy consumption resulting in $400,000 in saved expenditures. The city’s new municipal energy management system, along with investment in renewable energy sources, have offset the greenhouse gas emissions of 270 homes and build a foundation for continued reductions in the future.
The Goal
The city of Boston has set the goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020 and up to 80 percent by 2050. To make this a reality, Boston adopted an Enterprise Energy Management System to monitor the city’s energy consumption patterns and identify areas where significant cuts can be made through renewable energy sources or more efficient use of resources. The software will track the city’s energy and water use, allowing for changes to be made quickly. From there, the private sector can follow suit and optimize building energy efficiency as well. The technology monitors:
-253 city facilities
-850 intersection traffic lights
-64,000 street lights
-3,100 city vehicles and buses
City officials have also enacted 23 energy efficiency projects in the last year, while acquiring 28,000 wind-generated renewable energy credits which helps spur further development of alternative, clean energy resources throughout the city and during new construction projects. The 23 projects already in progress aim to:
-Cut electricity consumption by 2.5 million kilowatt hours
-Save 9,500 therms of natural gas
-Reduce energy costs by $400,000
-Eliminate 1,109 tons of greenhouse gas emissions
By setting high goals of energy reductions, Boston expects to spend $52.7 million in the 2014 fiscal year on electricity, natural gas, diesel fuel, and water-based heating. This is a significant reduction from the $55.5 million reported the year prior.
New Ordinance
Furthermore, the Boston City Council added the Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance to its Climate Action Plan to aid in meeting its energy goals by 2020 and 2050. The strategy calls for large and medium-sized building owners to report yearly water and energy consumption totals to the city, while educating the private sector on alternative energy options available to lower costs and improve building performance.
To engage the private sector in the city’s energy initiatives, Boston officials are disclosing energy and water use reports, as well as all successful efforts to implement greener technologies and strategies and reduce costs. Any building not making efficient use of energy must be assessed every five years to determine where improvements can be made. While the city cannot penalize owners for failing to act on the audit, there is a fine in place for those who fail to report energy usage. All data collected will be added to the energy management system to track patterns in high and low-performing buildings, and what efforts to reduce costs have been most successful.
Going Green
Gov1 has monitored many different strategies municipalities are taking to create sustainable operations and boost economic activity in the process.