It seems to make sense that the higher the occupancy of a building (commercial or
residential), the higher the energy use. More people in a building means more activity.
Well, COVID taught us that this is not totally true. While office buildings were shut down
during pandemic lock-downs to near zero activity, building energy usage declined only
by 10-30%. In New York City, even when there was a partial return of activity
(commercial occupancy decline averaged 85%), electricity use was down only 20-40%.
Are electricity usage changes driven by tenant activities or common area requirements?
Studies indicate a little of both. Several buildings showed a reduction in electricity usage
in the upper 20’s to 40% in March and April 2020, compared to the year before, when
we had the virtual complete COVID lock-down. These buildings showed reductions in the
teens percent in October and November 2020 compared to one year before, as tenants
began to return to their offices.

Why? Because there are basic needs that use energy that must occur at all times, such
as heating and cooling. OK, without staff in an area, one can manipulate a thermostat to
a more beneficial setpoint, efficiency-wise. But not running one’s boiler or AC units is
not good for the building or business either. In the summer of 2020, I performed an
energy audit of an office building, and most offices were empty. One particular business
that was empty that I studied had turned off their cooling system totally to save costs. It
was a very hot day outside and the indoor temperature as I walked around was 86⁰F!
This is not good for the building or business. With humidity uncontrolled, this can cause
the growth and proliferation of mold and potentially damage equipment, adding to the
woes of the business when staff begin to return. While one can set a high summertime
setpoint to save on cooling if nobody is present. But you need some conditioning to
prevent these effects. Of course, all this becomes irrelevant if even one person returns
to the office. The thermostat must be set and equipment operated to keep that person
comfortable even if he/she is the only person in the office.

So, where do we go from here? This demonstrates that reduced activity does not result
in a similar reduction in energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions. While the first
year of the COVID pandemic led to a net decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, that
was short-lived. As we began to recover economically, “carbon” emissions grew greatly,
too. And it shows that neither landlord nor tenant is “at fault” on this matter. This shows
that site-specific smart planning for energy efficiency and tenant / landlord collaboration
can effectively reduce energy consumption and not just stopping an operation.
CCES has the experts to help your business create and implement smart, long-term
strategies to reduce your energy usage and costs that will stand the test of time.
Contact us today at karell@CCESworld.com or at 914-584-6720.

There has been lots of discussion and policy documents about Environment Social & Governance (ESG) disclosures made by public companies. While the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) has discussed the importance of accurate representations of ESG information to potential investors, one wondered how vigilant the SEC would enforce such requirements. On April 28, 2022, the SEC’s Climate and ESG Task Force brought its first action in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York against Vale S.A. (“Vale”), a large mining company, alleging violations of federal securities laws arising out of false and misleading statements in connection with the safety and stability of dams built to hold toxic waste produced in mining operations.

In January 2019, Vale’s Brumadinho Dam in Brazil collapsed and released millions of cubic tons of toxic waste, directly killing 270 people and contaminating a nearby river. Vale suffered significantly financially as a result. The SEC alleges that Vale knew that the dam did not meet internationally recognized dam safety standards, yet stated in its ESG disclosures that it adhered to the “strictest international practices” of dam safety and that 100% of its dams were certified to be in stable condition. Vale denies the charges and is challenging the action.

Vale manipulated dam safety audits, obtained fraudulent stability certificates, and regularly misled local governments, communities, and investors about the safety of the dam in its ESG disclosures, including sustainability reports. They found the ESG disclosures to be false and misleading by downplaying risks of disastrous financial consequences should any of its high-risk dams collapse.

This shows that the SEC is reading sustainability reports, as well as other ESG disclosures and is willing to use statements in such documents as bases for enforcement actions alleging misrepresentation. Companies should take note and review its own procedures to ensure accuracy and ability to defend and verify when preparing submissions, such as ESG-required disclosures.

Please note that this article, containing legal information, was prepared by a non-attorney. Therefore, before making any decisions on these matters retain and utilize experienced legal counsel in this area. CCES has the technical experts to help your environmental program. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@ccesworld.com.

5 Ways To Deal With High Energy Costs

You don’t need to be reminded. At the gasoline pump and with your utility bills, energy costs are going up at unprecedented rates, affecting your personal and company’s pocketbook. Most people get their energy bills (themselves or for business), curse a little, then shrug one’s shoulders and have Accounting pay it. But there are things you can do about high energy costs – and succeed. Energy costs won’t disappear, but you can do better – and get ahead of your competition.

1.  You do have some control over costs. Understand what your energy bill is made of. Most utilities are regulated by a government entity because they are monopolies when it comes to delivering electricity or natural gas. Con Edison, the largest utility in the nation, just requested a fee raise of 10-15%, if approved by its overseeing agency, beginning in 2023. You, as the public, can certainly let your local commission know your thoughts about any proposed high rate hike. But that’s just delivery. Supplying electricity and natural gas is a different item, and that has gone up about 40% in the last year.

You, the user, can pick your supplier. Yes, you can. In fact, if you don’t pick a supplier for electricity and natural gas, the utility will pick one for you – and it’s not likely to be the cheapest! Take time to research suppliers. Many utilities have links on their website. Compare prices, and there is a good chance you’ll find firms who will supply electricity and/or natural gas at a lower rate than what was assigned to you. Saving $0.02 / kWh, seems small, but is a substantial savings. If you’re a large user (lots of refrigeration or a factory), the potential savings is greater; it would be worth it to retain an energy supply broker, who can get bids from many suppliers who would slash their price to supply a large user like you so much electricity or natural gas. You can save substantially. And you may have the opportunity to lock in a low rate for price security.

2.  Are you being billed properly?  Take some time to review your utility bill. Your utility sends out thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of bills monthly. Don’t you think some are in error? Review your latest bill. Are you classified correctly? Are the tariffs and other charges appropriate for you? It does not happen often, but utilities sometimes get it wrong. A religious institution was classified as a large industrial facility. Their office never noticed this and just paid the high bills for decades. When the error was brought to their attention, it was corrected for the future and they received a check from the utility for $78,000 for the historic overcharge. Now, that’s some donation!

3.  Are you being wasteful? We know it’s important to produce your product or service of high quality and reliably. But might your processes be wasteful? While redundancy is important in many industries, could operations be overdone? For example, a facility needing hot water for a process uses an appropriately-sized hot water tank, a backup tank, and a backup to the backup tank. It was calculated that they spend $50 / month to keep the water hot 24/7 in the backup to the backup tank. I suggested that they probably never use the hot water from the backup to the backup tank; the $50 / month was wasted. I suggested they turn off the heater for the backup to the backup and if it’s ever needed, then turn it back on for good. They did turn off the heater and never had to put it on again. Another example: lighting. We are concerned with dim areas; is there enough light to perform tasks well and safely. But might there be too much light in an area? This is not only wasteful, but may cause issues, such as glare and distractions. Remove lights from fixtures in overlit areas for a nice energy usage and cost savings.

4.  Renewable Energy.  Might you be a candidate for solar panels, geothermal, etc.? Get energy from a source that is free (the Sun, the stable temperature of air underground). There is an investment needed to set up and support the technology, but the source of power is free (unlike natural gas or oil), and thus, should be a useful way to reduce electricity or gas/oil usage in the future.

5.  Finally, an energy audit.  Simply stated, there has been a literal revolution in gains in energy efficiency in many products the last five years. If an energy audit has not been performed in that time, there will be opportunities. Gains in efficiency of space heating and cooling equipment; lighting; heat pumps; an electric fleet. Have an energy audit performed by an experienced professional. Look at the list of potential strategies and take them seriously. Yes, you’ll have to invest money upfront to procure and install the technology, but you will save handsomely and get your investment back and more. Remember, incentives probably exist from your utility or state government to possibly pay one-third, maybe half the cost for these energy-saving technologies (they want you to save, too). And low-cost loans exist if cash is not readily available. Banks will compete to lend you money because they know energy-saving projects are more reliable for them (the payback to you) than loans for other purposes.

Will these moves reduce your energy costs to zero? No, they won’t. Reduce them by 50% or more? Probably not. But they can definitely take the edge off the big increases in energy costs most are enduring and put you in a more competitive situation.

CCES has the experts to help you navigate through all of these ways to save energy costs as a hedge to inflation. We can work with you and find significant savings. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

New York City’s onerous Local Law 97 is believed to be the first law in the country requiring building owners to meet stringent greenhouse gas emission limits or else face major fines. Six-figure fines are likely – for many buildings!  LL 97 goes into effect in 2024 and is definitely being watched by other governments who may duplicate it.

When initially promulgated in 2019, most building owners ignored it. Its provisions were 5 years away. Now that we are less than 2 years away and, it seems, many building owners seem to be panicking. I was in a Zoom meeting where attorneys were discussing how to modify leases to require the tenants to pay part of any LL 97-caused fines, since tenant energy usage is part of the equation. OK. But wouldn’t it make more sense to spend time first seeing where your building fits in? Is it a likely candidate for non-compliance in 2024 based on current energy usage? Or is the building on safer ground? LL 97 was designed by NYC such that – they believed – 80% of existing buildings would not have to make modifications (or only minor ones) to comply in 2024. Even if that assessment was wrong, it is probable that your building is one of the majority that will comply with the 2024 GHG emission standards. Determine that.

How? Take the total energy usage of the building for last year; that is, total electricity (common areas and tenants), natural gas (boiler and kitchens), oil, and purchased steam. Note what they were in total in 2021. Convert them to GHG emissions, divide by the square footage and compare it to the rate appropriate for your building (there are 10 unique building categories). If your actual 2021 GHG emissions per square foot exceeds the 2024 standard, you have a potential problem. Even if that value meets the 2024 standard, but barely, you have a potential problem, too. What if 2024 has a very hot summer or cold winter and you have to use more energy for comfort? What if your tenant stock changes between the years and they need more energy? So you not only want to meet your 2024 standard, but meet it with a nice buffer for these contingencies.

For each building that appears to not be in compliance by 2024 or does not have much of a buffer, you need to do something now. Not in a few weeks or a month. But act now! The things you may have to do to comply or lower potential fines can take a year or more to have in place and may not be ready by the beginning of 2024 (you know, supply chain issues).

So, what should you do if you have to do something for LL 97? Don’t deny the issue and don’t delay. Have an energy audit performed by an experienced professional to determine smart and site-specific strategies to reduce energy usage. Look through the report; study the options. Then don’t sit on it. Take action (!) on one or more options to get your energy usage down to acceptable levels. Yes, you can start with “low hanging fruit”, but don’t delay bigger projects because of the time it may take for equipment to be procured, assembled, and installed. For example, building envelope upgrades are not “sexy”, like shiny new equipment and may be expensive upfront. But such upgrades will reduce energy use (i.e., lose less heat that you burn fuel to make) significantly and, with that, GHG emissions.

Also, when working with a contractor or energy engineer, don’t forget to take advantage of rebates and other incentives (typically 30 – 50% of the cost) available from your utility or State government for the upgrades. They want it done, too. And if you do not have money upfront, PACE financing offers competitive rates and easy payback terms specifically for energy upgrade projects.

OK, New York City building owner or property manager: you have been warned. LL 97 is coming very soon and the time to assess where you stand and act, if you need to, is NOW!

CCES has the experts to help you assess where your buildings stand vis-à-vis LL 97 and to project manager any series of energy upgrades to comply or lessen fines. Contact us today at karell@ccesworld.com or at 914-584-6720.

One problem area in energy efficiency is with landlord-tenant situations. The tenant is not motivated to cut back on energy because when the company leaves the space they normally cannot take the change they invested in with them (lights, windows, etc.). On the other hand, landlords are also not motivated to reduce energy usage, as either the tenant pays for its own usage anyway (sub-metered) or it just passes on the cost along whether high or low. Neither side is motivated, this is a lost opportunity. On the other hand, leases that are “green” or aligned with tenant energy usage have the potential to motivate both sides to invest and cost-share in energy efficiency projects.

A green lease addresses this problem by providing financial incentives to both the owner and the tenant to better realize the benefits of investing in energy efficiency.

Some advantages of a green lease include:

• Faster savings for the landlord, who can choose to avoid amortization, allowing the landlord to recoup all operational savings resulting from an energy efficiency project.
• Energy-efficiency tenant goals written in the lease, requiring tenants to meet basic sustainability goals, can ensure that these spaces add value to building.
• Installing submeters is a direct way for a landlord to make tenants aware of their actual energy consumption and bill tenants according to actual energy use. Instead of charging on a per square foot basis, but not knowing what they use, now the landlord can know what each tenant uses and have them pay accordingly. This will resolve disagreements before they get out of control.
• Side story: a mall owner used a single electric meter and charged all of their diverse tenants based on square footage. Nobody knew what was used and everyone was wasteful (air conditioning, leaving on lights and plug load, etc.). Then the manager realized that the two restaurants in the mall were likely using much more electricity than the other tenants given the considerable refrigeration needs and long hours. Meanwhile, the little family accounting law, and insurance offices were only open 9 to 5 and only used certain simple equipment (personal computers, lights, printers) and realized this was not fair. He had a comprehensive energy audit done and changed the rules to require the restaurants to pay more for electricity and the offices less due to usage. Eventually, he installed sub-meters.

Another area where green leases will be important is in New York City, involving enforcement of their Local Law 97 bill, which contains greenhouse gas emission limits. Building owners must meet a limit and pay a high fine for exceeding it. The owner must calculate using total energy usage, including from tenants, even though the owner does not control tenant operations. LL 97 goes into effect in 2024, and many building owners face high fines, in part, due to their tenants’ energy usage. In anticipation of problems, many new leases contain clauses which apportion part of any future potential LL 97 fine on particular tenants or limits their usage or hours of operation. It is unknown how effective this will be to get tenants to cut down on energy usage to help the owner comply with the law.

CCES has the experts to help you determine tenant and common area energy usage in a wide variety of building types. CCES cannot provide legal advice on green leases but can provide technical expertise in reviewing and complying with them. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

Several studies show not only environmental benefits but also direct financial benefits of “greening” one’s offices, such as having a positive impact on worker productivity. One study showed a 1% increase in sick days costs a business about $2,000 per employee per year. Losing an employee could cost a business even more between finding a replacement, hoping he/she is as good as the one that left, and training.

Here are seven key areas where green features in offices and work places have been shown to improve occupant productivity or health: 

1. Indoor Air Quality. The quality of workplace air is a significant driver of productivity, given the cocophony of compounds that workers are potentially breathing in, between off-gases from carpeting, furniture, walls, and operating equipment. Studies show that improved ventilation can increase productivity by as much as 11%. 

2. Thermal Comfort. Thermal comfort is also crucial to productivity, with performance dropping 4% when the room is too cool and 6% when it’s too warm. An issue of concern is how to get workers with different temperature preferences to agree on a thermostat setting. Studies have also shown that by giving occupants some control over workspace temperature results in a greater willingness to accept a wider temperature range.

3. Windows. Windows are the worst part of the building envelope when it comes to insulation and energy efficiency. On the other hand, studies have found that worker satisfaction increases when they have access to windows. Therefore, it is important to balance out these factors in designing office space.

4.  Plants. Offices that install and maintain plants near workspaces and even views of nature from windows results in higher productivity than depriving workers of a connection to nature. 

5. Noise. Possibly the greatest driver of productivity is noise and acoustics, with studies showing up to a 66% drop in productivity when workers are exposed to various types of distracting background noise. Installing physical design features and providing reminders to building occupants can be effective at reducing background noise in workplaces. In addition, consider window film or additions which better block the noise from outside the workplace, such as traffic.

6. Exercise. This appears quite difficult. How can a company get people to move or exercise when they are doing a job that involves sitting or standing by machines? There are ways. One – for multi-level businesses – is to do away with elevators and require workers to go up and down stairs to meet with each other. Another is to put the kitchenette or other places to meet a certain distance away from worker’s desks, making them do a little more walking to get that coffee. Or have fewer general printers and place them strategically to make workers travel to get their printouts. This is all for the sake of getting people out of their seats and to move a little every day. 

7. Location. What’s the old joke about the three most important factors for a facility is “location, location, location.” Well, that’s true for productivity, too. The presence of convenient amenities such as childcare centers, shops, gyms, and drug stores have an impact on occupant productivity.

CCES has the experts to help your facility maximize your indoor air quality and amenities to improve comfort and productivity. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

On March 22, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted to propose rules requiring companies to provide additional climate-related information in their registration statements and annual reports, including in their financial statements. The intention of the new rules would be to provide consistent and reliable information to investors to help them make judgments about the impact of climate risks on current and potential future investments. The proposed amendments are modeled in large part on the recommendations from the Greenhouse Gas Protocol.

The SEC vote provides that the proposed amendments would supplement (rather than replace) the disclosures already required in SEC filings and that companies should thus continue to assess whether disclosure of climate risks is still required per applicable guidance.

The Release sets forth proposed rules dealing with Climate-Related Disclosure, Climate-Related Impacts, Governance, Risk Management, Financial Statement Metrics, GHG Emissions, Attestation of Scope 1 and Scope 2 Emissions Disclosures, and Targets and Goals.

The proposed climate-related disclosures would apply to a registrant with Exchange Act reporting obligations and companies filing a Securities Act or Exchange Act registration statement. These climate-related disclosures and other metrics would be required in appropriate registration statements and Exchange Act annual reports. The proposed rules would also require registrants to disclose any material change to the climate-related disclosure provided in a registration statement or annual report.

The proposed rules would require a registrant to disclose any climate-related risks reasonably likely to have a material impact on the business or financial statements, which may arise over the short and long term. “Climate-related risks” is defined to mean the actual or potential negative impacts of climate-related conditions and events on a registrant’s operations, financial statements or value chains, as a whole. “Value chain” means the upstream and downstream activities related to a registrant’s operations. “Upstream activities” are defined to include activities – even by a third party – that relate to the initial stages of the product (supply chain and fabrication). “Downstream activities” are defined – again, even by a third party – related to the fabrication to make the finished product and its delivery of the good or service to the end user. The entire sequence from supply chain to end of use need be evaluated. Thus, the SEC is defining climate-related risks extend beyond a registrant’s own operations to those of its suppliers and distributors.

The proposed rules would require a registrant to identify the type of climate-related risk (physical or financial), its details (for example, for a physical risk, specifically, what and where it is (i.e., flooding or hurricane zone), and the material (bottomline) risk), and the registrant’s plan to mitigate it.

The proposed SEC rule permits, but does not require a registrant to disclose information about any “climate-related opportunities” it may be considering to pursue.

Please note that this is not a legal interpretation of the proposed SEC rule. If you want more information on it and its impacts on your company, please engage a legal professional with experience in this area. CCES has the technical experts to help your firm identify physical and other risks and opportunities of climate change. Contact us today at karell@CCESworld.com or 914-584-6720.

Although this newsletter emphasizes Climate Change and air pollution, we should not forget that plastic pollution of our oceans and waterways costs us greatly. As of 2021:

• Over 300 million tons of plastic are produced every year for use in a wide variety of applications.
• Over 14 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean every year. Plastics make up 80% of all marine debris found in surface waters and deep-sea sediments.
• Marine animals ingest or are entangled by plastic debris, which causes a huge number of deaths.
• For humans, plastic pollution threatens food safety and quality, health, and tourism. The continual manufacturing of plastic (fossil fuels) contributes to climate change.

Therefore, there is an urgent need to explore new and existing legally binding agreements to address marine plastic pollution. This means developing disincentives and regulation against single-use plastic, such as to tax retailers who sell items packaged in single-use plastic or ban or discourage the manufacturing of goods packaged in it.

The EU implemented a Directive on single-use plastics, which aims to prevent and reduce the impact of certain plastic products on the environment. Single-use plastic products cannot be placed on the markets of EU Member States if sustainable alternatives are available and affordable. This applies to single-use plastic products, such as cotton swabs, cutlery, and straws.

Private enterprise is contributing, too, with over 70 leading businesses and financial institutions calling for a legally binding UN treaty on plastic pollution, presented to the UN Environmental Assembly (UNEA 5.2) on March 2, 2022. A committee has been formed to develop global binding regulations to discourage plastic pollution that:

• Sets a clear direction to align governments and businesses behind a common understanding of the causes of plastic pollution and the danger of such pollution to all societies and a shared approach to address them. Because ocean plastic pollution is a global problem, there should not be a patchwork of rules and solutions, but consistent standards achievable by reasonable practice and cost;
• Includes both upstream and downstream policies, aiming to keep plastics in the economy, where necessary, but out of the environment and reduce virgin plastic production and use; and
• Provides a clear, robust structure to ensure participation and compliance by all.

The goal of the effort is to encourage research and investment to scale innovations and improve implementation in the countries and industries most in need of change.

While CCES does not work in the area of plastic pollution, we can help you in other environmental areas meet and comply with current rules and look for economical ways to be more “green” to impress clients and customers. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

The cooling season is winding down, which means you may forget about your boiler for the next 5 or 6 months. Well, hopefully you will hire an HVAC to clean and test your boiler and you’ll re-insulate any pipes whose insulation has gotten frayed or fallen off. Good. But there is another area that is often overlooked but can lead to a major cost savings during the heating season when fuels are highest in cost: steam traps.

If you have them, steam traps represent a potential source of energy loss. Steam traps are there to keep steam in your radiators where the latent heat can effectively warm a space and prevent it from leaving and returning with condensate. If steam leaves a radiator, that is wasted heat or, to put it more accurately, wasted natural gas or oil to produce that heat and wasted expense for you. Fortunately, steam releases most of its latent heat in a radiator. But a failed steam trap can let through significant steam (say, 20% of what enters), raising your energy bill by 20% more than you are already paying.

Steam traps can fail for a variety of reasons, mainly age. After all, they are working in a very hot environment. A rule of thumb is that a steam trap is effective for about 5 years. There are many exceptions to this rule, but something to keep in mind. If your steam traps have not been tested in several years, there is a good chance that a significant percentage is not operating ideally and allowing steam to leave the radiator, and as stated above, causing you to waste energy and expense.

The problem is that one does not know which steam traps are failing because heating is a closed system. Steam traps do not “announce” themselves operating or failing! Thus, periodically it is important to test your steam traps by using an ultrasonic leak detector, which can detect and inform you of steam leaking through traps. A good leak detector will enable a user to hear the rushing sound of a leak to determine the need to replace. Testing can save significant energy costs, especially in this age of high fuel costs!

If energy cost savings is not enough to convince you to implement a steam trap testing protocol, think about safety, security, and longer lasting equipment. Steam going into the condensate can potentially shorten the life of piping and storage tanks of your system, costing quite a bit to repair or replace. And, of course, being able to use less natural gas or oil to heat your space also means lower greenhouse gas emissions.

When is a good time to perform the steam trap testing? Now or very soon, as the heating season is winding down. Inventory and test your existing steam traps while your boiler is still producing steam for space heating. After testing, you will have a list of which steam traps have passed and which have failed. Now you have the summer to properly procure and replace the failed steam traps and you are assured of a much more efficient heating system in the fall when space heating is needed again. And with fuel prices at record highs, any effort to reduce energy waste is very beneficial.

CCES has the experts to perform, recommend and/or oversee the maintenance of your boiler system, including testing and conditioning your boiler, installing new insulation, and performing steam trap testing. Now is the time to start the effort so you have an efficient system in the fall. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

New York is working to meet its aggressive Climate goals of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 40% by 2030 and by 85% by 2050 from a 1990 baseline; 100% zero-emission electricity by 2040, with 70% renewable energy use by 2030. The latter is a challenge as NY State currently gets only 27% of its power from renewable sources.
To achieve these goals, New York must both manage their current energy usage and work to green the energy systems of its two major emitting sectors, buildings and transportation. This effort is being led by the NY State Energy Research & Development Agency (NYSERDA), which coordinates efforts and works with private sector firms to implement relevant projects, such as two planned pipeline projects to bring clean energy from where it is being developed, upstate NY or Canada to the area where most energy is used, the New York City area.

NYSERDA’s analysis shows that in 20 years New York’s peak energy demand will shift from the summer months (air conditioning) to the winter months, as electricity-using heat pumps are projected to replace many fossil fuel-combusting boilers. As a result, New York must increase wintertime electricity production, such as using peaker plants in the winter. New York City passed legislation, banning gas hook-ups of new buildings starting in 2026, and New York State is considering extending this as a statewide requirement. By reducing and eliminating natural gas and gasoline and replacing them (in autos and in buildings) with electrification, renewable power can supply the electricity making energy cleaner in NY State.

What is motivating New York’s move to cleaner energy? Being on the right path concerning Climate Change is certainly one factor. However, the Governor points to clean air and long-term reliability (not being dependent on oil or gas wells) as being another reason to move toward using renewable energy sources.

Something to look forward to, in terms of practices and incentives, given these policies and approaches, New York State and its utilities will offer robust incentives for projects that encourage the move away from fossil fuels toward electrification (such as heat pumps) and perhaps will emphasize less improvements in energy efficiency (such as LED lighting incentives), as any energy efficiency upgrade should pay for itself well and does not need incentives.

CCES has the experts to help you plan and succeed with an energy upgrade program (cleaner fuels, electrification, energy efficiency or a combination) that is best for your long-term operations and costs and obtain the maximum available rebates and incentives from NYSERDA and local utilities. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.