Association of Energy Engineers
New York Chapter www.aeeny.org
February 2008 Newsletter Part 1
February Meeting Announcement
Topic:
/ How New York City Will Achieve Its Energy & Carbon Reduction Goals in Municipal BuildingsUnder PlaNYC2030, NYC has committed to aggressive energy and carbon reduction goals. It is leading with action in its own municipal facilities, with a promised annual budget allocation of $80 million, 10% of the city’s own energy budget. In our February meeting we will examine
· How the City’s municipal program is being planned
· What processes are being used for project evaluation and procurement
· What technologies are under consideration
In public discussions of PlaNYC2030, repeated reference has been made to Retro-commissioning, a relatively new methodology that applies a structured and instrumented approach to O&M opportunities with dramatic documented results. Because of its newness, we will consider issues of RCx integration into the process, including its impact on program outcomes, on energy audit analyses and on requirements for special skills, procedure, and timeframes.
Speakers: Susan Cohen, NYC Dept of Citywide Administrative Services
Mark Miller, Strategic Building Solutions LLC.
Michael Bobker, CUNY Building Performance Lab
When: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm
(sandwiches & networking 5:30-6:00, presentations begin at 6:00)
Where: Cornell Cooperative Extension,
16 East 34th Street, 8th floor
Reminders: Entry Fee: $20 for chapter members, $25 for non-members
P.E.’s will earn 1 Professional Development Hour (PDH) at this session
2008 AEE-NY Advance Planning Calendar (Third Tuesdays)
Mar 18th / Update on Renewables & RPSApril 15th / New Energy Technologies
May 20th / Hoaxes & Gizmos & Ideas That Work
June 17th / Annual Awards Gala at Tavern on the Green
AEE-NY is pleased to present this program with the
Environmental Business Association of New York and the EBA Energy Task Force
January Chapter Meeting Summary
By Dave Westman
MORE AMERICANS THAN EVER BEFORE want to reduce their impact on the climate by decreasing their carbon (CO2) emissions, and they want the businesses and corporations of tomorrow to provide them solutions for how to do so. January’s AEENY meeting presented the latest thinking from industry experts on ‘why and how’ American corporations are reducing the carbon impact not only of their company, but of their customers too. Speaking with us were Carrie Cullen Hitt, VP of Renewable Products for Constellation Energy; Chris Hunter, Senior Associate for Green Order; and Tony Campbell, VP of Utilities & Telecom for Vornado Realty Trust. These three companies have all embarked on adopting a “corporate social responsibility” business model, (sometimes also referred to as the “triple bottom line”) which puts social and environmental concerns on equal footing with fiscal performance.
Companies who embrace this kinder gentler business model hope that by promoting social responsibility and smaller carbon footprints to their customers, they will improve their market share. Hitt and Cambell both recognized that their company’s primary driver to “go green” was driven largely by consumer demand. Constellation Energy customers, for instance, wanted renewable energy, and Vornado customers wanted energy efficient buildings. But it remains unclear what the market penetration for these products will look like, especially given that governmental legislation on climate change, energy efficiency, and renewable energy credits will have the effect of expanding or contracting certain markets once the new Presidential administration takes office in January 2009.
Undergoing a corporate carbon mitigation strategy can be an expensive procedure, often requiring that entire product chains and management systems be realigned to new priorities. Luckily, a few pioneer consultant groups, like Green Order, are available to guide this transition, and to help avoid costly mistakes. Missing opportunities, and taking the wrong path can often be costly, and put companies at a competitive disadvantage. Hunter told the story of Ford Motor Company, who spent many thousands of dollars installing “green” architecture at their facilities, but who did little to improve the fuel efficiency of their fleet. Consumers ignored Ford’s attempt to “go green,” and instead flocked to Toyota to buy the fuel-efficient hybrid Prius. The story was illuminating for showing how Ford had miscalculated. Instead of spending time and money to “green” its manufacturing facility, it should have been developing fuel-efficient vehicles, which could then be sold at a premium to consumers clamoring for low-carbon alternatives to the gas-guzzling SUVs that had flooded the marketplace.
Companies looking to cut bottom-line costs while also reducing their carbon footprint can look at more traditional carbon-mitigation strategies like energy efficiency. Hunter says that most energy efficiency projects that decrease O&M costs will still have low returns on investment that are unimpressive to Senior Management, but their longevity and low volatility make them akin to investing in bonds, and therefore should remain a prudent choice for conservative business managers. In other words, with the increasing price of energy, efficiency upgrades are a less risky investment than say, building a new facility or launching a new product line – even if it is a “green” product.
From our three presenters in January, it is clear to see that there is no one-size-fits-all carbon mitigation strategy. But nonetheless, demands from stakeholders paired with compelling cost/benefit analysis, and a myriad of carbon reduction strategies are giving American businesses the green light for going “green.”
For copies of the presentations given in January, please visit the AEENY website: http://www.aeeny.org/
Current NY Chapter AEE Sponsors:
Association for Energy Affordability Con Ed Solutions Energy Curtailment Specialists EME Group Con Edison M-Core Credit Corporation PB Power Syska Hennessy Group Trystate Mechanical Inc.
Lack of January Snow Is a First in 75 Years
By Jared Irmas, Special to the Sun, Jan 30 08
THIS MONTH is set to become the first January in 75 years that New York City has been without any measurable snowfall, according to the National Weather Service.
Less than one-tenth of an inch has fallen in a month that usually produces more than eight inches of snow in the city, according to the National Weather Service.
The phenomenon can be traced to the lack of offshore storms, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, Joseph Pollina, said.
"We've had a number of systems move up the East Coast in not a favorable track for snow," Mr. Pollina said. "Most of the storms have been inland, west of New York City. We haven't really had too much cold air, but when we do, it hasn't coincided with precipitation."
A climate scientist with the federal government's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Gavin Schmidt, said the lack of snowfall this month cannot be attributed to global warming.
"Any one season, there's a huge amount of variability," Mr. Schmidt said. "You're talking about one month alone. These things can be unusual, but you can't take them in isolation as proof of global warming."
The National Weather Service monitoring station located at the Central Park Zoo has recorded only two other Januaries since records began in 1869 where no measurable amount of snow has fallen on the city — 1890 and 1933. Since the start of winter, 2.9 inches of snow have fallen, a low that was met or exceeded in 13 previous recorded years.
Local businesses that thrive on white winters are feeling the crunch. The owner of Garber Hardware, Nathaniel Garber, said he has sold only four bags this month of salt, an essential commodity for homeowners, shopkeepers, and apartment building superintendents with snow or ice to melt on the curb.
Orange County Opens Recycled-Water Plant
Grist Magazine, Jan 29 08
A SEWAGE RECLAMATION PLANT officially opened today in Orange County, Calif., and will, sure enough, reclaim treated effluent and turn it into drinking water. Recognizing that its growing population -- currently 2.3 million -- is likely to outpace its supply of fresh water, O.C. is relying on the facility to turn 70 million gallons of water from disgusting to drinkable every day. Officials hope that the plant could eventually churn out up to 130 million gallons per day of water sans bacteria, viruses, carcinogens, hormones, chemicals, heavy metals, fertilizers, pesticides, and pharmaceutical remnants. The reclamation process uses less energy than transporting water to the country from elsewhere in the state. "All of Southern California should be doing these projects," says Connor Everts of green group Southern California Watershed Alliance. "They represent an efficient use of local resources. They are cost-effective and one of the most environmentally friendly things you can do."
©2007. Grist Magazine, Inc.
Architects and Designers Propose Creation of New NationalAcademy
By Scott Carlson, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Jan 29 08
A COALITION of eight architecture, landscape-architecture, and design organizations is pushing to create a new National Academy of Environmental Design. As a new part of the National Academies, the National Academy of Environmental Design would focus on the built environment, and how buildings and cities could produce less waste, consume less energy, and contribute to healthier living and work spaces.
The creation of a National Academy of Environmental Design is supported by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning, the American Institute of Architects, the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture, the Environmental Design Research Association, and other organizations.
A news release for the national academy, put out by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture, notes that the built environment produces half of the world’s greenhouse gases and consumes 40 percent of the world’s energy. Those figures are much higher when applied to sectors of American society. For example, a recent report by the National Wildlife Federation on the business case for climate neutrality estimated that 70 percent to 90 percent of the greenhouse gases emitted on a college campus come from buildings.
Green building has become extremely popular in recent years, and silver, gold, and platinum ratings in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program have become a standard way of building on campuses. Yet many have said that the LEED program is just a start. After all, “net-zero buildings,” or buildings that produce more energy than they use, are still novel. So are buildings that deal with wastewater in unconventional ways. So are buildings made of some natural and recycled materials.
A proposal for the creation of the new national academy, distributed in November at a joint conference for the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture and the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture, called for an academy that would “serve the world by providing expert advice and assistance in the sustainable design and maintenance of landscapes, cities, and buildings, including their relationship to environmental effects on life-support systems of planet Earth.” New ideas in the environmental design and construction of cities and landscapes are always under way, the proposal said. “To deliver this knowledge in the most timely and powerful way to colleagues in allied disciplines and, more importantly, to the public, it is necessary to create a multiprofessional, multidisciplinary organization responsible only to the public.”
The proposal also said that the National Academy of Environmental Design would be a “parallel structure to the existing National Academies,” with members who are internationally recognized experts in their fields doing pro bono work for the public.
Advertisements follow; then, more articles
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68º Day Is One for the Books
By Tom Liddy and Hasani Gittens, The New York Post
February 7, 2008 -- The Big Apple baked yesterday as temps hit a record-high of 68 degrees - surprising New Yorkers who thought February was supposed to be the coldest month of the year.
"I was [mad] that I had my big jacket on," said Heather Mockeridge, 27, who was sweating in Columbus Circle. "I left the house this morning thinking it was going to be cold. I couldn't enjoy it because I had my big coat on."
Suzanne Katz, 60, a doctoral student from the Upper West Side, said, "It's crazy - you get all dressed up warm, and then you get sick. I like it because it's warm, but I'm wearing the wrong coat."
Meteorologist Alan Reppert, with AccuWeather, said the record-breaking temp - the previous high for Feb. 6 was 58 degrees in 1991 and 1938 - was caused by an upswing of warm air from the Gulf of Mexico.
But don't get used to it. He said it will be in the 40s today and "highs will be struggling to hit 30 degrees by Sunday."
Copyright 2008 NYP Holdings, Inc.
A Flood with No Rain
Though Opinions Differ On the Cause, Rising Water Becoming An Issue In Queens