A new study has found that the least efficient buildings in New York use three to five times the energy of more efficient buildings. The study has implications for cities around the What Happened?
A major benchmarking study of buildings in New York found that the least efficient buildings use literally three to five times the energy of more efficient buildings.
Who Cares?
Large buildings, like those covered in the study, are responsible for 45 percent of all citywide carbon emissions. And in New York City, buildings account for 75 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions. Improvements in efficiency could have a major impact on energy consumption
The Study
The benchmarking report, which was actually mandated under a local law, analyzed energy and water use in nearly 2 billion square feet of properties. Among the interesting findings highlighted in the executive summary and a city press release:
- Efficiency: New York City’s buildings are generally less energy intensive than the national average. According to the report, the discrepancy could be weather-related; energy efficiency in NYC was actually on par with the rest of the Northeast.
- Old vs. New: Older buildings tend to be more efficient than newer ones. This is due to many factors, some related to construction, and others related to the fact that tenants in newer buildings are typically more energy intensive.
- Improvements: No surprises here, but there is “significant opportunity to improve the energy performance of large buildings.”
- Asthma: Asthma rates correlate with energy efficiency. In other words, neighborhoods with more energy intensive buildings tend to have higher asthma rates in general; according to the study, “This correlation deserves more analysis.”
Effect on Your City?
The high-profile report is likely to accelerate the momentum of similar benchmarking studies in cities around the country. In fact, the NYC benchmarking data will form the foundation of a national energy efficiency database with the U.S. Department of Energy called the Standard Energy Efficiency Data Platform. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency already has an online Portfolio Manager where property managers can report, track, compare, and improve energy and water consumption.
The report declaratively stated that, “We strongly encourage other cities and states to adopt benchmarking and disclosure ordinances, to provide robust information on the national scale.”
Seattle, for example, has an Energy Benchmarking and Reporting Program, as does Washington, D.C., and others.
Improvement
The study advocated five actions to improve the quality of energy benchmarking:
- Uploading: The city will work with third parties to enable building owners to automatically upload whole-building energy data, which will streamline the data collection process.
- Incentives: The city will work with third-parties to provide incentives to help offset the cost of installing necessary meters, especially for properties with multiple buildings.
- Accuracy: The city will explore the use of certain technologies that might reduce costs and improve the accuracy of certain calculations, including calculations of “above-grade square footage.”
- Extraneous: The city will clarify its benchmarking law to remove requirements that are no longer necessary.
- Funding: The city will seek funding of the “Benchmarking Help Center” for another three years.
Next Steps
The complete report on New York City is available for download.
To learn more about the DOE’s SEED Platform, or if you’d like to participate in beta testing, contact Cody Taylor.