Benchmarking
NEW YORK CITY ENERGY LAW
On December 9, 2009, the New York City Council and the mayor's office passed a set of four bills known as the "Greener, Greater Building Plan" that aims to reduce the energy consumption and carbon footprint of New York City's existing buildings. Electricity, heat and hot water represent 75% of the city's greenhouse gases. These laws affect buildings over 50,000 square feet, creates a stricter energy code and requires building owners to perform energy audits, lighting upgrades and annual energy and water use benchmarking.
SUMMARY OF FOUR (4) BILLS
Local Law 84: Energy and Water Efficiency Benchmarking
Applies to:
- Privately owned buildings over 50,000 square feet.
- Two buildings on the same lot with a combined area over 100,000 square feet.
- Condominiums owned by the same board with a combined area over 100,000 square feet.
- Buildings over 10,000 square feet where NYC pays an electric bill.
Requirements:
By May 1st each year, beginning in 2011, these buildings are required to collect and input building operations data including energy and water consumption into the EPA's online Energy Star Portfolio Manager.
Because of concern that the May 1st deadline was short notice, that enforcement will be delayed by 3 months and penalties will not be assessed.
After vetting numerous compliance companies, Charles H. Greenthal Management Corp. engaged Greenwich Energy Solutions (GES) to perform the benchmarking for Greenthal managed buildings. By law, the information is publicly reported. The report will include an overview, a mid-year review with monthly anomalies and alerts as necessary.
Local Law 85: Creation of New York City Energy Conservation Code (NYCECC)
Applies to:
All commercial and residential buildings.
Exemptions:
- State or National historic Buildings.
- Buildings designated by the Landmark Preservation Commission.
Requirement:
All addition, alternations, renovations, repairs to comply with NYCECC.
Schedule:
Beginning July 1, 2010, this law applies to all work requiring DOB construction document approval.
Local Law 87: Energy Audits, Retro-Commissioning & Retrofits
Applies to:
- Privately owned buildings over 50,000 square feet.
- Two buildings on the same lot with a combined area over 100,000 square feet.
- Condominiums owned by the same board with a combined area over 100,000 square feet.
- Buildings over 10,000 square feet. where NYC pays an electric bill.
Exemptions for Energy Audit:
- Energy Star label for 2 of the 3 years prior to the report
- LEED for existing building, certification within 4 years of report date.
- Energy efficiency at least 25 points higher than average building using LEED methodology.
Exemption from retro-commissioning:
- LEED EB certification within 2 years of report date.
Requirements:
- Complete energy audit.
- ASHRAE Level 2 energy audit of base building systems including HVAC, lighting, hot water and building envelope to identify potential energy efficiency improvements will be reported along with simple payback periods to prioritize recommended measures. Implementation of recommended measures is not required by this legislation for privately owned buildings.
Complete Retro-Recommissioning:
A qualified retro-commissioning agent will conduct on-site testing of all base building systems and perform recommended tuning and adjustments to optimize these systems.
File Energy Efficiency Reports:
Buildings must file the Energy Efficiency report with the DOB and include reports from the energy audit and retro-commissioning.
Scheduling:
Must be filed every 10 years starting by 12/31/13. Reports are due based upon the buildings real estate block number, with the first reports due in 2013 for block numbers ending in 3. Buildings that are less than 10 years old can defer reporting.
LOCAL LAW 88: LIGHTING UPGRADES AND SUBMETERING
Applies to:
- Privately owned buildings over 50,000 square feet.
- Two buildings on the same lot with a combined area over 100,000 square feet.
- Condominiums owned by the same board with a combined area over 100,000 square feet.
- Buildings over 10,000 square feet where the City pays part or all of the electricity bills.
Exemptions:
- Residential dwelling units
Requirements:
Upgrade lighting systems.
All lighting systems in commercial buildings, including common areas and tenant spaces, must be upgraded to comply with NYCEC energy code. Residential common area lighting systems must also be upgraded to comply.
Install sub-meters:
Upgrade lighting systems. All lighting systems in commercial buildings, including common areas and tenant spaces, must be upgraded to comply with NYCEC energy code. Residential common area lighting systems must also be upgraded to comply.
Issue Monthly Electrical Statements to Tenants:
Monthly statements must be issued to each tenant showing their electricity consumption and associated charges.
File a report with the DOB:
A registered design professional, a licensed master, or special electrician must file a report with the DOB certifying that sub-meters have been installed in all covered tenant spaces.
Schedule:
Lighting upgrades, sub-meter installations, DOB report filing must be completed by January 1, 2025.
Cost savings can be attained especially for LL 87/09 where audits are expected to start in the $10,000 range. Some of these savings involve Con-Edison rebates, and required inspections of the building envelope. This may help reduce the cost of LL 11. You should discuss possible benefits of early compliance with your Managing Agent.