Funding High Performance Retrofits in NYC’s Affordable Housing

/
Funding High Performance Retrofits in NYC’s Affordable Housing

Among the many threats posed by climate change, residents of NYC’s affordable housing are particularly vulnerable to high energy costs due to outdated building systems and inefficient infrastructure. In contrast, high performance buildings feature low-carbon, energy-efficient systems that reduce both the building’s environmental footprint and tenants' energy bills. Since over 70% of New York City's carbon emissions come from its built environment, high performance building strategies are necessary to decarbonize the city (1).

Read More

NYC: Water Conservation, Cooling Inequity and an Argument for Heat Pumps

/
NYC: Water Conservation, Cooling Inequity and an Argument for Heat Pumps

If you talk about tap water with any New Yorker, they will likely boast about how New York City’s tap water is some of the best in the world. And it’s true; NYC gets more than 1 billion gallons of water delivered from pristine reservoirs in the Catskill Mountains every single day (1). With such an abundance of clean drinking water, it is not surprising that water conservation is not a priority for many New Yorkers.

Water consumption rates in the U.S. are some of the highest in the world; the average American family consumes more than 300 gallons of water per day at home (2). In NYC, the average person consumes 118 gallons of water per day (as of 2020) — that's almost 447 one-liter bottles of potable water (3)

Read More

Leading the Way in Fulton County GA: LEED Certified Libraries

/
Leading the Way in Fulton County GA: LEED Certified Libraries

For the past few years, 2M Design Consultants has provided LEED Administration Oversight for the Fulton County Library System (FCLS) in Georgia. The FCLS is the largest library system in the state, with 34 libraries in different districts and 2.5 million items. Each library serves as a cultural center with programs and resources tailored to the community. There are currently 32 FCLS projects administered by 2M; 31 including one LEED Platinum library, 17 LEED Gold libraries and 11 Silver libraries. This summer, two libraries will be completing their final construction review and are on track for LEED Silver. There are also two projects that will look at LEED Commercial Interior next year.

Read More

NYSERDA Case Study: Saving Energy Through Training

/
NYSERDA Case Study: Saving Energy Through Training

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and Urban Green Council recently completed GPRO@Work with the Weill Cornell Medicine Engineering & Maintenance Department. The Engineering & Maintenance department is responsible for a variety of buildings with diverse energy needs, including research, patient care, and educational spaces. These spaces can be highly energy-intensive due to process loads and stringent environment requirements, such as high ventilation rates and special pressurization needs.

Read More

Looking Back to Move Forward: Understanding NYC Energy Trends Through Benchmarking

/
Looking Back to Move Forward: Understanding NYC Energy Trends Through Benchmarking

Because large and midsize buildings are responsible for over half of New York City’s building emissions, understanding the benchmarked data provides necessary insight for how we will achieve a zero carbon future. On January 26, panelists from Urban Green Council and the NYC Mayor’s Office of Sustainability met for a virtual discussion, The Benchmarking Report: NYC’s Energy and Water Use. Panelists shared findings on NYC’s energy use trends and discussed whether buildings are on track to meet the city’s climate goals.

Read More

Designing for Tomorrow: Adapting Office Building Design to COVID

/
Designing for Tomorrow: Adapting Office Building Design to COVID

Given the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, buildings must adapt to provide safe and healthy spaces for workers. Adapting to COVID: Design, held on 11/10, was the final installment of a three-part virtual speaker series hosted by the Cross-Learning Alliance—a partnership between Urban Green, ASHRAE and AIA. Melissa Marsh, Principal and Founder of Plastarc, moderated the event and was joined by architects and designers to discuss the new safety features design teams are using and how they envision the building industry changing in the future. "Now the home is a mixed-use building," Dennis Weddlick (BarlisWedlick Architects LLC) stated, emphasizing the necessity to adapt our buildings to new needs and anticipate future change.

Read More