Unlike most auto-dependent cities, the majority of New York City’s CO2 emissions come from buildings. Heating, cooling, lighting, and general operations can use a tremendous amount of energy. In an effort to reduce carbon emissions by 30% before 2030, New York City is targeting energy reduction in the city’s largest buildings. Since 2010, buildings 50,000 sq. ft. and over have been required to benchmark their energy and water use as part of Local Law 84.
The Energy Locus map was created in collaboration with Mappler and the Community Mapping Initiative, a student interest group at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, Rutgers. The map includes the 2011 EPA Energy Star score for hundreds of commercials buildings in New York City that were required to comply with Local Law 84.
We didn’t want this information hidden in a policy memo or spreadsheet so we brought the data to you in an easy-to-interpret, simple-to-navigate form. This map allows users to quickly search for addresses and determine a listing’s Energy Star Score. Buildings with a score of 75 and higher indicate the facility performs better than at least 75% of similar buildings nationwide when accounting for weather and operating conditions. The release of this information marks the first time a municipality has publicly disclosed private building benchmarking data and it has huge implications for the way we manage, market, and occupy these properties. We hope you use this tool to look up your office, school, or apartment and see how you stack up to your neighbors. Who doesn’t like neighborly competition?