Local Law 95 and Energy Grades in CUIMC Buildings

The city created local law 95 due to the Climate Mobilization Act, a groundbreaking package of bills that designed to combat the existential threat of climate change. The package's centerpiece is a bill that will require large and medium-sized buildings, which account for nearly a third of all greenhouse gas emissions in the city, to reduce their emissions 40% by 2030 and 80% by 2050.

Local Law 95 is a part of a series of multiple bills and resolutions under the Climate Mobilization Act.    

The ENERGY STAR score, expressed as a number on a simple 1 - 100 scale, rates performance on a percentile basis.  Buildings with a score of 50 perform better than 50% of their peers; buildings earning a score of 75 or higher are in the top quartile of energy performance. Not everyone can get a score of 100.

Yes, the scores' percentile-based nature means that only 15% of the buildings can qualify for "A" and 30% of the buildings can qualify for a grade of 'B' or above. The normal distribution of EPA scores requires that the average building have a score falling between C and D grades.  Do not confuse this with restaurant-style grades, which in many cases, everyone who does well can get A if they do well.  

Based on the information we enter in US department of Energy’s Energy Star Portfolio Manager about our building, such as its size, location, number of occupants, number of PCs, etc., the score's algorithm estimates how much energy the building would use. It then compares the actual energy data we entered to determine where our building ranks, relative to its peers.

Our buildings are not compared to the other buildings in Portfolio Manager. Our buildings are compared to other buildings nationwide that have the same primary use. 

Every four years, the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration conducts a national survey to gather data on building characteristics and energy use from thousands of buildings across the United States. This Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS) is the only national-level source of data on commercial buildings' characteristics and energy use. For most property types located in the United States, your building's peer group consists of those buildings in the CBECS survey that are like yours.

Since all the data is self-reported in the energy star portfolio manager, there is no real way to ensure that our peers are all inputting accurate, clean data. We are not just being compared with other buildings in New York City, but we are being compared throughout the nation. 

Section 28-309.12.5 of local law 95 does states that "The department shall, from time to time, audit information submitted for buildings in connection with energy efficiency grades and energy efficiency scores. Such audits shall occur at least annually and shall involve an appropriate sample size of buildings, as determined by the department".

But this is not enough because auditing a fraction of the data at the local level does not necessarily guarantee that the data at the national level is accurate. The scores are based on national data only.

Yes, absolutely. Since our primary function at CUIMC is research, our labs are much more energy-intensive than a traditional office space. A commercial office space may use more energy between 8 a.m. and 6.p.m. during the day than at night, for example, because more occupants are present. At CUIMC, however, many of our buildings and labs operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.  

According to New York City’s 2017 Energy and Water Use Report medical research centers - which fall under the category of hospitals - have the highest energy intensity across any sector. Read the complete report(link is external and opens in a new window).

Yes, we have been buying green power since 2018 for 100% of our electrical energy use. The energy star scores are not affected by purchasing green power. 

An easy way to answer is "by reducing our energy consumption". 

The complexities arrive when we must analyze and identify several pieces of equipment that work independently, in unison, or with the building operator's input and benchmark them against a performance standard. This strategy will allow us to identify where we can increase our equipment's efficiency and reduce our energy consumption. It is incumbent upon all occupants of the building to use energy wisely.

We have been reducing our energy consumption since 2010. To comply with local 95 and 97, CUIMC created a released request for a proposal that would engage consultants to study our buildings, identify strategies and generate cost estimates that would put us towards a path of compliance with local law 97 and boost our grades for local law 95. 

MMBTU/SQFT – Energy Intensity/Sqft while Lbs of CO2 per sqft – Carbon emissions associated with the use of electricity, steam, natural gas, oil, and chilled waters.

CUIMC is working on an a multiyear energy management plan for all the buildings under its portfolio that will engage consultants to study our buildings, identify strategies and generate cost estimates that would put us towards a path of compliance with local law 97. If the identified strategies are implemented in the future, it will boost our grades for local law 95. The results from the study will be available on April 2022.

As an individual, you are the key to improving our energy grades. Some example of activities that can help us reduce energy consumption include;

• shutting down the stash when not in use
• turning of any lights at the end of the day
• unplugging appliances before you leave for the weekend or extended holiday

If you’re still not sure where to start, consider joining our Sustainable Workspace Program.

To know more about the Climate Mobilization Act and the associated legislation such as local law 95 (local law 33 of 2018), please visit https://www1.nyc.gov/site/sustainability/legislation/legislation.page (link is external and opens in a new window)

Feel free to reach out to Jeet Viswanathan, director for energy management and sustainability, at iv2223@cumc.columbia.edu(link sends e-mail) or 202-320-3419.