New York City Carbon Challenge

The list of why I love being a New Yorker can go on and on-- no joke. And who can blame me!? After all, New York City is the capital of the world and there is no place like it on Earth! (If you know of someplace better, I urge you to share in the comments section below.)

Yet, although it is true that I love everything mentioned above, what really makes me proud to call myself a native New Yorker is our mentality. And no, I am not hinting at our bravery when crossing streets in the middle of the block or our creativeness in making up traffic laws that defy all laws of sanity.

No. What I am referring to is how environmentally conscious and responsible we are of our actions. When I hear or read about how the City is working toward reducing its carbon footprint and passing eco-friendly legislation, such as the recent ban on Styrofoam goods, I feel a tingle of pride inside. The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in our community made it very clear that climate change is no longer an issue that we can ignore, and so I feel good knowing that New Yorkers are taking the issue seriously and working to live greener and more sustainable lives.

One major way in which New York is combatting climate change is by reducing the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere (click here for information about the greenhouse effect). Since buildings contribute to 75% of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions and 85% of the current buildings are projected to still be here by 2030, the City is focusing on reducing energy consumption in buildings by investing in more energy efficient practices. In 2007, as a way to motivate the City and get people serious about saving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg launched the ambitious PlaNYC initiative, which intends to cut the City’s carbon emissions by 30% from its 2005 levels by 2030.

As the leader of this initiative, the City has stepped up to the plate and pledged to reduce its carbon emissions in city-owned buildings in ten years rather than thirty. However, even with such enthusiasm from the government, participation from other sectors of the City is needed in order to achieve the citywide 30% reduction goal by 2030.

To increase participation in PlaNYC, the City of New York partnered with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority in 2007 to jumpstart the New York City Carbon Challenge. This initiative encourages private and institutional sectors to follow the city’s lead by reducing their carbon emissions by 30% in ten years. The Challenge provides useful resources, such as plan templates and tool kits, to its participants so that they can develop individualized strategies to reduce their energy use. It also fosters an environment in which participants can share the ways they are going green. I applaud such exchange of ideas and enthusiasm, because it is only with collaboration and excitement that real change can be made.

Initially, the New York City Carbon Challenge reached out to the city’s colleges and universities- seventeen of which participate today. Together, they have control over more than 120 million square feet of city space, and according to 2005 data, are responsible for 3.5% of the City’s carbon emissions. If they all reduce their carbon emissions by 30%, they will be able to prevent 600,000 tons of carbon from being emitted.

Soon after the launch of the Challenge, it expanded to include other divisions of the city. In 2008, through collaboration with the Broadway Green Alliance, every Broadway theater took on the challenge; in 2009, eleven hospital systems signed up, which together encompass more than 50 hospitals, clinics, and medical offices; and in 2013, seventeen multifamily buildings and twelve global companies joined the challenge. Combined, the participants cover a substantial area of the city, and so through the implementation of sustainable energy consumption plans, they are truly helping the city get closer to achieving its citywide reduction goal by 2030. So far, the Challenge has proved to be very effective in reducing energy use, and carbon emissions have been cut by 19% from 2005 levels. This is close to 190,400 metric tons of carbon saved! Additionally, due to the new energy efficient practices that were put into place, the participants are now able to save a combined total of $174 million each year in energy costs. What a great investment for the planet and the people!

For the full list of participating universities and colleges, click here.

For the full list of participating multifamily buildings, click here.

For the full list of participating global companies, click here.

Cleaner Energy

Since buildings differ in design and function, the ways in which they can reduce their energy use, and hence their carbon emissions, vary. Because of this, different buildings have individualized plans that target their unique combination of energy inefficiencies.

Even so, one predominant technique that many participants found useful in decreasing their carbon emissions was by making the switch from coal and oil (such as No. 6 fuel oil, the dirtiest grade of oil) to natural gas and cleaner energy sources which emit less carbon when burned. This switch to cleaner energy sources, along with utility improvements, accounted for about 80% of the carbon emission reductions that were observed up to date. Additionally, the City invested in solar panels for its buildings.

Going above and beyond

Not only have the participants reduced their carbon emissions, but in 2013 (just six years after the start of the program!), New York Hospital Queens and five of the participating universities exceeded the 30% goal: Barnard College, the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York University, the Rockefeller University, and Weill Cornell Medical College. In addition to decreasing their carbon footprints, these institutions are now able to save money due to their new energy efficient plans. Per year, New York Hospital Queens saves over $2.5 million, NYU saves over $11 million, Weill Cornell Medical College saves over $2.5 million, and Rockefeller University, the Fashion Institute of Technology, and Barnard save about $1 million each.

Spotlight on Barnard College

Barnard is on fire when it comes to reducing energy use and cutting down on its carbon emissions. To make the most out of the Challenge and pinpoint the specific energy inefficiencies on campus, Barnard underwent retro-commissioning, which is an energy audit that finds the problems and then fixes them. This provided for an individualized plan on going green and allowed Barnard to make specific changes to be more energy efficient. As part of this initiative, Barnard installed low thermal emissivity glass, which reduces heat transfer; invested in online management systems to control campus appliances more effectively; installed pipe insulation, energy efficient boilers, lighting, and timers; and regulated the building temperatures more carefully to prevent unneeded energy use. In just five years, due to all these adjustments,Barnard has reduced its emissions by over 34% from its 2005 levels.

To be fair, the other four colleges that have achieved the 30% reduction goal also had some pretty awesome projects. The Fashion Institute of Technology and Weil Cornell Medical College installed new energy efficient chiller plants to cool their buildings; New York University installed a $125 million energy efficient heat and power plant, which is projected to save the university up to $8 million annually and decrease its greenhouse gas emissions by 20% per year; and the Rockefeller University engineered energy efficient laboratories.

What I think is absolutely wonderful about this challenge is that it is completely voluntary. The participants who pledged to reduce their carbon emissions did so not because they were forced to by law, but because they were educated about the good that can come out of their actions and they wanted to make a positive difference in their community and the world by combatting climate change. Hopefully, cities around the globe will look to New York City as a role model and start their very own challenges. They truly are a great way to create friendly competition, get people excited about sustainable practices, and elicit change.

What are your views on the New York City Carbon Challenge? Due to the Challenge’s success so far, New York City is considering starting other sustainable initiatives, such as challenges to reduce water use and solid waste. Do you think these can be as successful as the Carbon Challenge?

As a side note, the Di Blasio administration plans to take the Challenge to a new level by reducing the City’s carbon emissions by 80% from its 2005 levels by 2050, creating one “One City: Built to Last.” This new plan will be the subject of a future blog post.

Picture Credits:

Barnard College: Aubri Juhasz

Brooklyn Bridge: Marcio Oshiro (via flickr and available for use under the CC license)

Sources:

“Barnard Takes Action” Barnard College. n.d

“Heating Oil Regulations” The City of New York: PlaNYC n.d

La Vorgna, Marc & Passalacqua, Lauren. “Mayor Bloomberg Announces Leading Global Companies Join the “Carbon Challenge,” A PlaNYC Initiative to Cut Greenhouse Gases, Improve Air Quality and Fight Climate Change” The City of New York. 18 April 2013

“NYC Carbon Challenge for Commercial Offices” The City of New York. n.d

“One City: Built to Last” The City of New York, Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability. 2014. PDF file

“PlaNYC-About” The City of New York. n.d.

“PlaNYC: Progress Report 2014 “ The City of New York. 2014

Tatum, Jenna “PlaNYC: New York City Mayor’s Carbon Challenge” The City of New York. April 2013. PDF File

“The Broadway Challenge” The City of New York. n.d

“The New York City Carbon Challenge” The City of New York. n.d

“The NYC Carbon Challenge for Multifamily Buildings” The City of New York. n.d