New York City
City Scorecard Rank
5
New York City, NY
69.50Scored out of 100Updated 10/2020
Community-Wide Initiatives
Score: 6 out of 15 points
Community-Wide Climate Mitigation and Energy GoalsList All
Climate Mitigation Goal
OneNYC includes a goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. One City: Built to Last includes a goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 30% below 2005 levels by 2025. Based on ACEEE’s analysis of past years emissions data, ACEEE projects the city will not achieve its near-term community-wide GHG emissions reduction goal.
New York City also releases annual greenhouse gas inventories.
Energy Reduction Goal
We did not find information regarding a community-wide energy reduction goal for the city.
Renewable Energy Goal
The city is subsumed to New York State's commitment to 100% clean electricity by 2040. The OneNYC 2050 Plan includes a goal to achieve 100% clean energy by 2050. The One City: Built to Last includes a goal to install 250 MW of private sector solar capacity by 2025.
Last updated: August 2023
Equity-Driven Approaches to Clean Energy Planning, Implementation, and EvaluationList All
Equity-Driven Community Engagement
We were unable to determine whether relevant decision-makers have taken a unique and expanded approach in conducting engagement with multiple clean energy initiatives to marginalized groups compared to engagement with other city constituencies.
Equity-Driven Decision-Making
Local Laws 60 and 64 of 2017 required the city to establish an Environmental Justice Advisory Board, which has since been created. The Board consists of residents of environmental justice communities and environmental justice experts. The Board will work to create a citywide Environmental Justice Plan and will help the city incorporate environmental justice concerns into decision-making.
Equity Accountability Measures
Executive Order 45 (2019) requires city agencies to annually report on key equity indicators.
Intro. 886-A sets up an Interagency Working Group to create a citywide Environmental Justice Plan that provides guidance on incorporating environmental justice concerns into city decision-making, identifies possible citywide initiatives for promoting environmental justice, and provides specific recommendations for City agencies to bring their operations, programs and projects in line with these concerns.
Last updated: August 2023
Clean Distributed Energy ResourcesList All
New York City is currently building a district heating system and microgrid at the Red Hook East and West public housing complexes that integrate combined heat and power. The city is also pursuing a microgrid at the Hunts Point Distribution Center that includes solar and energy storage. The New York City Housing Authority also grants access to community solar subscriptions through its ACCESSolar program. New York City also requires city-supported community solar to provide direct bill discounts to low-income residents.
Last updated: August 2023
Mitigation of Heat Islands List All
Urban Heat Island Mitigation Policies and Programs
The city installs cool roofs at no cost to qualifying building owners through the NYC CoolRoofs Program. The city also provides cash and property tax incentives to property owners that agree to permanently protect undeveloped land through the city’s Conservation Easement Program.
Resilience Hubs
We were unable to determine if the city has supported the creation of resilience hubs that incorporate clean energy resources and are sited in disadvantaged communities.
Last updated: August 2023
Buildings Policies
Score: 24 out of 30 points
Building Energy CodesList All
Overview
The State of New York allows local jurisdictions to adopt building energy codes that are more stringent than the minimum state standards. The 2020 Energy Conservation Construction Code of New York (2020 ECCCNYS) is the minimum mandatory code for residential and commercial buildings. ECCCNYS 2020 is as stringent as the 2018 IECC for residential buildings and ASHRAE 90.1-2016 for commercial buildings. New York City Local Law 32 compels the city to pass a stretch code that is at least 20% more stringent than the state code. To learn more about the building energy codes required in the State of New York, please visit the State Policy Database.
Commercial
New York City has adopted the 2020 NYCECC. The city based the code on the 2020 New York State energy code with strengthening amendments. The city’s zEPI score for their commercial energy code is 44.88. New York City advocates for more stringent building codes at the state level through the NYC Green Codes Task Force, which recommends specific amendments to the state code.
Residential
Residential construction must comply with the 2020 NYCECC. The city’s zEPI score for their residential energy code is 50.52. New York City advocates for more stringent building codes at the state level through the NYC Green Codes Task Force, which recommends specific amendments to the state code.
Solar-readiness policies
In 2019, New York City passed complementary laws (Local Laws 92 and 94 of 2019) requiring all new buildings and those buildings undergoing major roof renovations to be covered with solar panels, green roofs, or some combination of the two. Requirements apply to new construction, vertical and horizontal extensions, and full roof decking replacements.
EV-readiness policies
The city’s building code requires newly constructed parking garages and lots to install the electric space and conduit at 20 percent of the parking spaces to install electric vehicle charging stations.
Low-energy use requirements
New York City Local Law Introduction No. 1253 was amended to limit greenhouse gas emissions for existing buildings.
Local Law 86 requires certain buildings that receive funding over certain threshold amounts from the City meet LEED Certification standards.
Electrification policies
In December 2021, the New York City Council passed Local Law 154, which sets CO2 limits for both new construction and the gut renovations of existing buildings. These new limits essentially prohibit the use of fossil fuel burning systems. The requirements will be phased in starting with lower rise (less than 7 stories) buildings in 2024 and taller (7 stories and up) buildings in 2027.
Last Update: September 2023
Building Energy Code Compliance and EnforcementList All
We were unable to determine the amount of staff effort dedicated to energy code enforcement. The city requires plan review, third-party site inspection, and performance testing to verify code compliance. New York City also provides upfront support on energy code compliance through training sessions and pre-permit consultations with plan reviewers. The City offers a free "Building Operator Training," which trains superintendents and staff on building energy systems and relevant laws.
Last Update: September 2023
Policies Targeting Existing BuildingsList All
Building performance standards
Local Law 97 (formerly Intro 1253) of 2019 sets emissions caps for buildings larger than 25,000 square feet, beginning in 2024, which will cut carbon emissions at least 40 percent by 2030 and over 80 percent by 2050 from the affected buildings. Buildings that do not comply will face fines set at $268 per ton of emissions that are in excess of the individual building’s cap in a given year. By 2030, this law is projected to reduce New York City’s carbon emissions by 6 million tons.
Retrocommissioning requirements
Local Law 87 of 2009 mandates that buildings 50,000 gross square feet or larger undergo periodic retrocommissioning measures.
Retrofit requirements
NYC Local Law 88 of 2009 requiring lighting retrofits to meet current NYCECC standards, and to install electric sub-meters for each tenant space.
Commercial and multifamily benchmarking
New York City’s Local Law 84 (LL84) requires commercial buildings larger than 50,000 square feet and groups of buildings on a single tax lot totaling 100,000 square feet or more to benchmark and disclose annual energy data through ENERGY STAR. Local Law 133 expanded LL84 to require buildings 25,000 square feet and greater to benchmark energy usage.
Energy audit requirements
In addition to retrocommissioning, Local Law 87 of 2009 mandates that buildings 50,000 gross square feet or larger undergo periodic energy audits.
Other requirements
Local Law 33 of 2018 requires building owners subject to the city’s benchmarking ordinance to display an “energy efficiency grade” at each public entrance of the building.
Incentives
The city established a property assessed clean energy (PACE) financing program for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. The city also offers a J-51 tax abatement and exemption for energy efficient upgrades in affordable housing projects. The city offers a Solar Electric Generating System (SEGS) tax abatement.
Program outcomes
We could not verify if the city collects data on incentive and financing programs to ensure equitable outcomes.
Voluntary programs
The city also offers a voluntary program, The Carbon Challenge, that is a public-private partnership between the Mayor's Office of Sustainability and leaders in the private, institutional, and non-profit sectors who have committed to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 30% or more over ten years. The Mayor's Office provides support, resources, and recognition as participants pursue different energy efficiency improvements, efficient on-site generation, and sustainability initiatives.
Last Update: September 2023
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Workforce DevelopmentList All
Workforce development for disadvantaged workers
We could not determine if city has partnered with a local education institution, labor union, or community-based organization to create, support, and/or incentivize the development of clean energy workforce development initiatives that target training and support services for potential or existing workers from disadvantaged communities to obtain and keep in-demand jobs.
Workforce development for the broader community
The City University of New York offers course credit to participants in a high-performance green building program coordinated by local chapter 94 of the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE), a trade union for construction workers. This program complements the city’s Local Law 87.
The NYC Department of Education offers several sustainability education and workforce programs. Through their Career and Technical Education programs, over 700 hundreds of teachers have been trained in green construction and solar, reaching over 15,000 students. In addition, the Department of Education ran a pilot to use solar installations on their own roofs to employ students as solar summer interns.
The New York City Mayor’s Office of Sustainability launched an internship program with the City University of New York to train students and place them in building energy management roles in both public and private sector organizations.
Outcomes tracking
We could not determine if the city has instituted a mechanism to measure the performance and/or success of equitable workforce development initiatives focused on the clean energy sector.
Last updated: August 2023
Transportation
Score: 22 out of 30 points
Sustainable Transportation Planning List All
Sustainable Transportation Plan
PlaNYC was released in 2023 and includes sustainable transportation strategies. It also includes strategies specifically benefitting disadvantaged communities.
VMT/GHG Targets and Stringency
PlaNYC contains a goal to reduce GHG emissions from transportation 50% by 2030. Due to insufficient data on the target’s baseline, we were unable to calculate a required per-capita annual reduction for achieving this goal. Therefore, New York City did not earn points for the stringency of its target.
Progress Achieved Toward VMT/GHG Targets
Given that the city's transportation GHG emissions target was set in 2023, it is too early to assess progress toward the goal.
Last Updated: September 2023
Location Efficiency List All
Location Efficient Zoning Codes
We were unable to find information indicating that New York City has made changes to its zoning code in the past 10 years to facilitate more residential density, mixed-use development, or transit-oriented development.
Parking Requirement
New York City has eliminated parking minimums in the Manhattan Core. Additionally, the city has established parking maximums of 0.2 spaces per housing unit in the Manhattan Core.
Location Efficiency Incentives and Disclosure
New York City does not have location-efficient development incentives or disclosure policies.
Affordable Housing around Transit
New York City does not require, preserve, or incentivize the development of affordable housing near transit.
Last Updated: September 2023
Mode Shift List All
Mode Shift Targets
According to the OneNYC Plan, released in 2015, the City has a goal of 80% of all trips being made by sustainable modes, including walking, biking, and transit, by 2050.
Progress Achieved Toward Mode Shift Targets
According to data from the City and PlaNYC, the city’s walking, biking, and transit mode share increased from 64% in 2020 to 65% in 2022. Therefore, New York City earned points for this metric.
Subsidized Access to Efficient Transportation Options
Citi Bike, the bike share program for New York City, offers discounted memberships, which provide unlimited 45-minute bike rides, for qualifying individuals. Low-income members of certain credit unions and those participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or NYC Housing Authority are eligible. Additionally, New York City offers discounted transit fare to those at or below the federal poverty level.
Last Updated: September 2023
Public Transit List All
Transit Funding
The transit entities that serve New York City have received $1,876,479,204.20 on average annually between 2017 and 2021 from local sources. That equates to roughly $243.50 per capita between 2017 and 2021 within the service area.
Access to Transit Services
The AllTransit Performance Score measures a given community's transit access and performance. The score considers connections to other routes, access to jobs, service frequency, and the percent of commuters who ride transit to work. New York City's AllTransit Performance Score is 9.6, scoring the full 4 points in the City Scorecard.
Last Updated: September 2023
Efficient VehiclesList All
Efficient Vehicle Purchase Incentives
Neither New York City nor the local utility provide incentives for purchasing efficient vehicles.
Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Incentives
Neither New York City nor the local utility provide incentives for the installation of EV charging stations.
Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Requirements
New York City requires all new parking lots and garages to include EV charging stations.
EV Charging Ports
New York City has 3.9 vehicle charging ports per 100,000 people available for public use.
Electric School Bus Goal
The State of New York set a goal in 2022 of transitioning all school buses to electric by 2035. Therefore, New York City earned points for this metric. School bus operators in NYC plan to prioritize communities with a high exposure to air pollution from diesel engines as they transition to electric buses.
Electric Transit Bus Goal
The MTA, the primary transit agency serving New York City, set a goal of transitioning 100% of its bus fleet to zero emissions by 2040. The MTA developed an Environmental Justice Score, which considers air pollution and community equity metrics like race and vehicle ownership, to assign to bus routes and depots. The MTA plans to prioritize routes serving communities with high Environmental Justice Scores as it transitions to zero-emission buses.
Last Updated: September 2023
Freight System EfficiencyList All
Sustainable Freight Plans
Freight NYC, the city's freight plan, contains several sustainable freight strategies, including developing barge terminals in New York Harbor to shift truck miles to barge miles, constructing new transloading facilities to expand businesses' access to the rail network, and supporting the deployment of EV charging infrastructure in freight hubs. New York City is also piloting a last-mile delivery program with over 200 cargo bikes.
Open Data Portals
The Port of New York and New Jersey hosts an open data portal displaying a real-time map of vessels' locations in the port.
Last Updated: September 2023
Community Energy Infrastructure
Score: 12.5 out of 15 points
Community Energy Infrastructure Summary List All
Consolidated Edison (ConEd), an investor-owned utility (IOU), is the primary electric utility serving New York City. National Grid, an IOU, is the primary natural gas utility serving New York City. The New York State Energy Research and Development Agency (NYSERDA) is the state-wide agency that administers energy-efficiency programs. To help ConEd and National Grid reach the EERS target, New York City is an active promoter of all efficiency programs. On the state level, New York City strongly advocates for additional spending requirements for energy efficiency projects for all of its utilities. The State of New York requires spending and savings targets for its utilities through an EERS and efficiency requirements in utility EEPSs. To learn more about the state requirements for electric and gas efficiency, please visit the New York page of the State Database.
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection is the municipally-run utility responsible for providing drinking water, treating wastewater, and managing stormwater for New York City.
Last Updated: June 2021
Electricity and Natural Gas Efficiency SavingsList All
In 2019, according to EIA and NYSERDA, they achieved 227,033 MWh in total net incremental savings, representing 1.32% of retail sales. In 2019, ConEd spent $126,846,876 on energy efficiency programs, which represents 1.90% of its retail revenue. These savings figures cover the entire New York service territory, not just New York City. We were unable to determine spending from NYSERDA.
In 2019, National Grid NY and NYSERDA reported 29.35 MMtherms of total net natural gas savings at the meter, which represents 1.88% of retail sales across the utility’s service territory. In 2019, National Grid spent $49,124,544 on energy efficiency, which equates to $27.38 per residential customer. These savings figures cover the entire New York service territory, not just New York City. We were unable to determine spending from NYSERDA.
ConEd offers electric efficiency incentives and technical assistance to residential and commercial/industrial customers. National Grid similarly offers natural gas efficiency programs to residential and business customers.
The City of New York actively partners with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and the local utility companies, Con Edison and National Grid, to increase demand for energy efficiency programs across all building sectors. All three entities collaborate with the NYC Mayor’s Office of Sustainability to develop a coordinated strategy for NYC’s efficiency programs, including NYC Accelerator, which offers free, personalized advisory services to streamline building retrofits throughout the city. In April 2019, the New York State Utilities issued a joint filing with the Public Service Commission to establish energy efficiency targets and budgets for 2021 through 2025. These targets and budgets facilitate the achievement of New York’s 2025 goals. The City also partnered with Con Ed and National Grid on a holistic technical analysis that evaluated NYC’s energy system and pathways for decarbonization
Last Updated: August 2021
Low-Income & Multifamily EE Programs List All
Low-Income Programs
NYSERDA offers the EmPower New York program to qualified low-income residential customers in both ConEd and National Grid service territories. This program addresses both electric and natural gas end uses, while providing no-cost energy efficiency solutions including air sealing, insulation, replacement of inefficient refrigerators and freezers, water efficiency measures, thermostats, and new energy-efficient lighting in order to reduce energy consumption. Additionally, the EmPower program includes health and safety checks of smoke detectors and appliances. Households that receive HEAP benefits, utility bill payment assistance, or participate in the federal Weatherization Assistance Program are automatically eligible.
NYSERDA also offers the Multifamily Performance Program provides incentives for owners to incorporate energy efficiency into affordable buildings. A Multifamily Building Solutions Provider will work with the owner to evaluate the building’s systems holistically, creating a customized plan aimed at generating a minimum of 20% source energy savings along with reduced energy bills. ConEd also runs an independent Multifamily Low-Income Efficiency Program that addresses only natural gas end uses. This program provides an energy audit, followed by direct install measures in apartments and common areas, as well as prescriptive incentives for larger-scale HVAC upgrades.
NYSERDA’s low-income programs achieved 4,036 MWh savings while serving 6,605 ConEd customers. In addition, NYSERDA’s low-income programs achieved 0.85 MMtherms savings while serving 4,555 National Grid customers. Additional data on ConEd and National Grid, savings, spending and customers served were not available.
Multifamily Programs
Con Edison offers the Equipment Rebates for Multifamily Buildings in the Multifamily Energy Efficiency Program (MFEEP). This comprehensive program provides prescriptive and direct install rebates for lighting, high-efficiency water measures, HVAC maintenance and weatherization, in-unit appliances, occupancy sensors, boilers, control systems, and insulation. The MFEEP offers increased incentives for affordable rate customers. Con Edison partners with local food banks to distribute LEDs through the food banks’ distribution networks.
National Grid offers a multifamily program that provides no cost direct install of high-efficiency showerheads, faucet aerators and thermostatic radiator valves. It also provides rebates for high-efficiency natural gas heating and water heating, insulation, programmable thermostats, boiler reset controls, steam traps and custom efficiency measures.
NYSERDA’s Multifamily Performance Program provides incentives for owners to incorporate energy efficiency into affordable buildings for ConEd and National Grid customers. A Multifamily Building Solutions Provider will work with the owner to evaluate the building’s systems holistically, creating a customized plan aimed at generating a minimum of 20% source energy savings along with reduced energy bills. For projects that could reach deeper energy savings, the High-Performance Component targets a minimum of 40% source energy savings with a maximum post-construction source energy use intensity (EUI) of 100 kBtu/sq ft./yr.
In 2018, NYSERDA launched the RetrofitNY initiative. The goal of this program is to drive market transformation by industrializing and standardizing the design and construction processes to achieve deep levels of cost compression, which will drive large scale adoption of deep energy and net zero retrofits in multifamily buildings. RetrofitNY approaches retrofits from a whole building perspective and targets multiple health and resiliency benefits as associated outcomes of building work-scope. NYSERDA funds are used in conjunction with other subsidy and financing offered from local, state and federal sources as a financing package coordinated through relevant affordable housing agencies.
In 2018, ConEd’s multifamily program achieved 42,162 MWh savings, while spending $25,000,000 and serving 3,510 customers. National Grid’s multifamily program achieved 0.77 MMtherms, while spending $2,658,767 and serving 3,416 customers. NYSERDA’s multifamily program achieved 13,602 MWh savings for ConEd customers and 0.4 MMtherms savings in 2018 for National Grid customers. Customers and spending for NYSERDA’s programs in 2018 were not available.
In 2019, National Grid’s multifamily program achieved 1.22 MMtherms, while spending $3,887,665 and serving 5,319 housing units. Spending, savings, and customer data was not available for National Grid and NYSERDA.
Last Updated: June 2021
Provision of Energy Data by UtilitiesList All
ConEdison developed software to aggregate electric energy usage by building address for automated entry into ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager and for use by building managers to better help commercial and multifamily customers with benchmarking and compliance with Local Law 84.
The city of New York provides community wide energy usage information for planning and evaluation purposes through their Inventory of New York City Greenhouse Gas Emissions website. The website includes data on stationary energy (i.e., energy used by buildings and other stationary sources, as well as fugitive emission from natural gas distribution within city limits), transportation (i.e., on-road transportation, railways, marine navigation, and aviation within city limits), and waste (i.e., wastewater treatment within city limits and solid waste generated within the city).
The Mayor's Office of Sustainability has advocated for data access in filings submitted to the Public Service Commission and Joint Utilities. The efforts have resulted in the 4/50 threshold, where tenant waivers are required if a building has 4 accounts or fewer of if any one account makes up 50% or more of total energy consumption in that building. The city recently submitted comments to the Public Service Commission on the creation of a statewide Integrated Energy Data Resource to provide a solution to data access needs.
Last Updated: August 2021
Decarbonization and Climate Change Mitigation Efforts of Cities and Energy UtilitiesList All
Utility Climate Mitigation Goal
In 2019, ConEdison adopted a goal to transition to 100% carbon-free energy sources by 2040. To achieve this goal, ConEd will need to reduce emissions by 4.76% annually from 2019 levels.
City-Led Efforts to Decarbonize the Electric Grid
New York City participates in utility rate cases and PSC proceedings related to clean and renewable energy, such as on hydropower, public policy transmission planning, value of distributed energy resources, offshore wind, and on specific policies that impact renewable energy such as Reforming the Energy Vision, the Clean Energy Fund, and the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. New York City has also been involved in capacity valuation proceedings at the NYISO and pushing for fair treatment of energy storage resources. In its Roadmap to 80 x 50, New York City states that it “will continue to look to ConEdison as a partner in achieving 80 x 50, and will continue to advocate for utilities to build upon these improvements and accelerate the transformation necessary for a 2050 grid that is renewables-based, affordable and reliable.” In addition, the City has been involved in the development of Con Edison's Climate Change Vulnerability Study and related efforts to integrate resiliency in the utility's near- and long-term planning.
New York City also engages with NYSERDA on the structure and implementation of renewable energy programs and advocates for transmission of large-scale renewables directly into the City’s electric utility territory. The City is currently undertaking a Community Choice Aggregation feasibility study, as required by Local Law 182 of 2019. The study was delayed due to COVID-19 and is expected to be completed in late 2021.
Clean Distributed Energy Resources
New York City is currently building a district heating system and microgrid at the Red Hook East and West public housing complexes that integrate combined heat and power. The city is also pursuing a microgrid at the Hunts Point Distribution Center that includes solar and energy storage. The New York City Housing Authority also grants access to community solar subscriptions through its ACCESSolar program. New York City also requires city-supported community solar to provide direct bill discounts to low-income residents.
Municipal Renewable Energy Procurement
In the One City, Building to Last plan, New York committed to installing 100 MW of solar capacity on city-owned buildings by 2025. The city currently has 16.2 MW of solar installed on city-owned buildings.
City Renewable Energy Incentive and Financing Programs
The city established a property assessed clean energy (PACE) financing program for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. The city offers a Solar Electric Generating System (SEGS) tax abatement.
Last Updated: September 2023
Efficiency Efforts in Water ServicesList All
City-wide water efficiency and goals
While the City of New York, which is a municipal water utility, does not jointly administer energy and water efficiency programs with private energy utilities, the energy utilities themselves offer water efficiency programs as a way to reduce both water and energy usage. Consolidated Edison provides energy-efficient and low-flow devices through their energy efficiency programs. National Grid has a Commercial Direct Install Program, which offers commercial customers no-cost installation of high-efficiency water and energy savings measures.
In 2019, NYC Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) released the updated Water Demand Management Plan, a citywide program targeting a 5% overall reduction in water consumption citywide by October 2022. The plan consists of multiple strategies and more than 21 initiatives to achieve a target reduction of approximately 50 million gallons per day.
Water plant efficiency and self-generation
DEP completed energy audits at all 14 in-city wastewater treatment plants and has accepted over 130 energy conservation measures (ECMs) that have the potential to reduce energy use by 2.9 MMBTU per year. While there is no set annual “target” for energy efficiency, the Agency is currently working on an integration study to align those ECMs with State of Good Repair (SOGR) plans and projects so that ECMs are completed concurrently with ongoing, necessary maintenance and repair work at the 14 in-city plants. Additionally, DEP had a target to beneficially use 60% its anaerobic digester gas for thermal and/or electric energy by 2017. DEP currently produces over 3.5 billion cubic feet of anaerobic digester gas (ADG) per year, approximately 60% of which is made of methane. DEP beneficially uses approximately 40% of the produced anaerobic digester gas (ADG). These efforts support the reduction target set by PlaNYC, where city government buildings are to reduce their GHG emissions by 30% by 2017 from a 2005 baseline. Internally, DEP has implemented a Standard Operating Procedure to govern energy conservation and GHG reduction design considerations during the project design lifecycle, from the selection of the designer to commissioning of the installed equipment. Energy design guidelines for unit processes or equipment accompany the SOP and provide guidance on how to increase energy efficiency with any new facility construction or reconstruction projects.
At the Owl’s Head WWTP, there are three 1.6 MW dual fuel engines to generate electricity at the plant which offset approximately 40% of the plant’s electric needs. Moreover, The Coney Island WWTP has four 1.6 MW engine generators. These cogeneration units have been in service for over 30 years. The plant is generating over 80% of total electric power from these engines and utilizes nearly 100% digester gas production at plant. Looking ahead, DEP is designing a 16 MW cogeneration system at the North River WWTP which will be operated at an average of 10 MW and will use ADG and utility natural gas. The system, which will be in operation by 2020, will meet the plant’s base electrical demand and all thermal heating needs.
Last Updated: March 2020
Local Government Score:
5 out of 10 points
Local Government Climate and Energy Goals List All
New York City’s One City, Built to Last: Transforming New York City’s Buildings for a Low-Carbon Future plan drives citywide climate and energy action. The city also released the 80x50 Roadmap to guide long-term climate and energy planning.
Climate Mitigation Goal
New York City’s government is subsumed by its city-wide goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. Local Law 97 of 2019 established interim targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from municipal operations 40% by 2025 and 50% by 2030, relative to a 2005 baseline. Based on ACEEE’s analysis of past years emissions data, ACEEE projects that the city will not meet its near-term GHG emissions reduction goal for municipal operations.
Energy Reduction Goal
We did not find information regarding a municipal energy reduction goal.
Renewable Energy Goal
In the One City, Built to Last plan, New York City commits to installing 100 megawatts of solar capacity on city-owned rooftops by 2025. The City also commits to 100% clean electricity by 2040, including for local government consumption.
Last updated: May 2021
Procurement and Construction Policies List All
Fleet Policies and Composition
New York City has legislated fuel efficiency for public fleet vehicles, Local Law 38 of 2005 requires that the most fuel efficient vehicles in class for light and medium duty units be purchased; Local Law 76 of 2013 requires the City to achieve specific benchmarks in improving the fuel economy of City owned vehicles; Local Law 73 of 2013 requires that biodiesel be used in City fleet trucks and also that the City retrofit or replace fleet trucks without diesel particulate filters; and Local Law 75 of 2013 requires the City to report on actual fuel economy for City vehicles, as opposed to the manufacturer’s list fuel economy. Additionally, as part of the NYC Clean Fleet initiative to reduce GHG emissions by 50% by 2025, this city is planned to operate the largest EV fleet in the country at 2,000+ vehicles. The city has already purchased over 500 EV municipal vehicles. Furthermore, this city implemented a Clean Fleet Transition Policy (CFTP) as part of its published Fleet Management Manual and rules. The CFTP requires that all vehicle replacements be as or more fuel efficient than the vehicle they will replace and that the Chief Fleet Officer approves any requests to replace any vehicle with a less fuel-efficient version. The City now operates over 1,750 on-road electric vehicles, the largest network for any municipal government. Light-duty fleet vehicles purchased during the most recent fiscal year achieved an average fuel economy equivalent of 100 miles per gallon. Additionally, the city met its goal of having 2,000 electric vehicles in its fleet by 2025 in 2019. The goal has now been adjusted to own 4,000 electric vehicles by 2025. New York City’s municipal fleet is currently composed of 24.99% efficient vehicles, including hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery electric vehicles.
Public Lighting
We could not confirm if New York City has adopted a policy requiring efficient outdoor lighting, such as the International Dark-Sky Association’s Model Lighting Ordinance. However, the city publishes a Street Design Manual, which includes a Lighting Catalogue, outlining options for both new and replacement street and pedestrian lighting for New York City. Additionally, the City of New York provides significant funding for lighting upgrades, including occupancy sensors, daylighting and other controls at City buildings. To date over $63 million has been allocated for lighting-related upgrades at municipal buildings. The Department of Transportation is currently retrofitting all of New York's streetlights with LEDs. New York has upgraded almost all of their streetlights to LEDs.
Inclusive procurement
New York has established a Minority- and Women-owned Business Enterprise program. The city set a goal of having $25 billion go toward M/WBEs by 2025 and raised the M/WBE discretionary spending limits to $500,000. Current energy efficiency and clean energy projects coordinated through the Division of Energy Management have been assigned M/WBE goals. New York's most recent disparity study was released in 2018. New York City participates in PLAs and screens contracts to ensure they meet labor requirements.
Last updated: September 2023
Asset Management List All
Building Benchmarking
In December 2009, the city council passed four laws, collectively known as the Greener, Greater Buildings Plan, that require energy efficiency upgrades to and energy transparency in large existing buildings. In compliance with Local Law 84 of 2009, benchmarking results are reported for all city buildings that are more than 10,000 gross square feet that are owned by the city or for which the city pays all or part of the annual energy bill. In 2015, there was a total of 3,649 benchmarked facilities (288 million square feet). As a result, 95% of local government building square footage is benchmarked in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. As the city benchmarks additional properties beyond the requirements of the law, nearly 99% of New York City buildings are benchmarked.
Comprehensive Retrofit Strategy
The city conducts energy audits and retro-commissioning studies to measure the energy performance of its portfolio and identify opportunities for retrofits. The city then prioritizes buildings with the greatest opportunity for energy savings through a comprehensive retrofit targeting city buildings with the largest energy demands and most complex energy consuming systems. The city’s building retrofit program has completed over 190 comprehensive building energy efficiency retrofit projects to date, with annual energy cost reductions of nearly $10.5 million. Through the City’s Accelerated Conservation & Efficiency (ACE) program, the City invests in high-value energy efficiency retrofit projects in all its buildings. Since it launched in June 2013, ACE has awarded over $140 million for energy efficiency projects that are projected. These projects yield $20 million in avoided energy costs and approximately 45,900 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions reduced.
Last updated: May 2021