Buildings
Let's talk about buildings.
Buildings in New York
Buildings in New York State are older than the national average, which means there are many opportunities to improve efficiency.
Weather, geography, and building sizes vary across the State, so efficient, cost-effective solutions must respond to these variations.
Due to the cost of fuel and existing inefficiencies in homes, people may spend a significant portion of their income on energy bills. In New York State, nearly half (48%) of the households are low-to-moderate income. For New Yorkers, energy affordability is important.
Buildings that are well-insulated and sealed are more efficient. High-efficiency appliances and clean technology upgrades like solar panels or heat pumps increase efficiency even more, and reduce emissions.
New York State's residential and commercial building sectors encompass:
Source: NYS Climate Action Council Scoping Plan
Direct emissions from buildings account for roughly 30% of greenhouse gas emissions in New York State, driven mainly by fossil fuel-based space and hot water heating. When adding the emissions from generating the electricity used in buildings, that figure rises to over 40%.
Building Solutions
Different Types of Buildings Require Different Solutions
Houses
Heat pumps were once considered to work well only in moderate climates. However, as technology has evolved, heat pumps can now keep homes comfortable year-round, even in colder climates. This technology can be up to four times more efficient than traditional heating systems.
How does a heat pump work? A heat pump pulls heat from the air (air source heat pump) or from underground (ground source heat pump) and uses it to heat your home in the colder months. In the summer, the process works in reverse. It moves the heat from within the building to the outside air or to underground. A refrigerant is used to move the heat from one location to another.
While manufacturers' capabilities vary, in the coldest regions of Upstate New York — where below-zero days can be expected — cold-climate air source heat pumps are an efficient, convenient solution for combined heating and cooling.
Hear Seth’s story, a Coxsackie, NY homeowner who installed heat pumps in 2017. Seth has reduced his family’s reliance on fuel oil (a fossil fuel) and saved money on his energy costs. He describes the heat pump installation process and what life has been like since his installation.
Source: 2023 NYS Clean Heat Annual Report
Apartments
Air source heat pumps can be installed in spaces with or without ductwork making them a great solution for many residences.
Gradient's highly efficient cold-climate heat pump for heating/cooling compact spaces received support from the 2022 Clean Heat for All Challenge. The initiative, spearheaded by multiple New York State agencies, supports the development of new electrification products that can better serve the heating and cooling needs of existing multifamily buildings and hasten the transition to fossil-free heating sources.
By leveraging New York City Housing Authority's portfolio, which includes more than 2,000 residential dwelling buildings, the Clean Heat for All Challenge is designed to spur innovation and growth of heat pump technology.
This video features heat pump technology being developed for public housing.
PROGRESS SPOTLIGHT: Multifamily Homes
The Map Tour below features six highlights of how clean, resilient, and low-carbon multifamily homes are being built and retrofitted across New York. Additional information about making homes more energy-efficient can be found at the end of this story.
Click on a project name or location to learn more about how it was built or retrofit to reduce emissions.
Village Grove
International Tailoring Co. Building
Saranac Lake mixed-use
Siano Building
Whitney Young Manor
Zero Place
Village Grove
Features of this 40-unit affordable multifamily rental building include: • passive house design • ground source heat pumps HVAC • heat pump hot water systems • energy recovery ventilators • induction stoves • ENERGY STAR appliances • off-site community solar
International Tailoring Co. Building
Features of this retrofitted 173-unit, 13-story co-op building include: • smart thermostats • upgraded hydronic loop system • updated condensing boilers • adiabatic dry cooler • centralized heating & cooling control • heat pumps • 38% annual energy reduction
Saranac Lake mixed-use
Features of this retrofitted 90+ year-old mixed-use commercial and residential building include: • an updated boiler • temperature controls • new domestic hot water system • upgraded lighting • high-quality windows • energy-efficient appliances • 27% annual energy reduction
Siano Building
Features of this retrofitted 12,600 square foot mixed-use building include: • ground source heat pump with a large loop field directly beneath the building • heat pump hot water heating
Whitney Young Manor
Features of these two affordable multifamily mixed-use buildings include: • exterior insulating façade system • new windows • new roof • centralized heat pump HVAC system • heat pump domestic hot water heating • energy recovery ventilation units
Zero Place
Features of this zero carbon, all-electric, mixed-use building include: • energy recovery ventilation • demand-controlled ventilation • heat pump hot water heating • central ground source heat pump • insulated concrete form • LED lighting • ENERGY STAR appliances • heat pump clothes dryers • induction stoves • solar electric generation
Community Networks
Also known as clean district energy or a thermal network, community heat pumps leverage different heat sources, including the heat beneath the Earth's surface, and move it through an underground distribution network to groups of buildings.
A large geothermal residential development in New York will serve 5 interconnected buildings, including a 37-story and a 20-story tower, with a vertical closed-loop geo-exchange system. Watch this video to learn more:
.
A variety of municipal and campus-level community networks are being assessed for feasibility across the State.
Click on the interactive map to learn more.
New York supports the detailed design and engineering of innovative thermal energy projects through a new Large-scale Thermal Program .
Competitively selected sites will develop designs that will accommodate their heating, cooling, and hot water needs by utilizing thermal sources such as ground heat, wastewater, waste heat recovery from industrial processes, and thermal energy storage.
Commercial Buildings
Energy efficiency and electrification will play a dominant role in putting New York State buildings on a course to decarbonization while creating better working spaces for New Yorkers. Decarbonization will also drive economic opportunity by growing clean energy jobs and businesses.
Investing in building energy efficiency and designing for flexible building energy loads can also reduce the amount of electric grid investments needed for a reliable and resilient grid.
PROGRESS SPOTLIGHT: On-site Energy Manager Program
The case studies featured on the Map Tour below highlight energy savings at a variety of facilities utilizing the services of an On-site Energy Manager.
Click on a site name or location to learn more.
Byrne Dairy
55 Water Street
Albany Medical Center
Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority
Corning Incorporated
Jefferson Community College
Byrne Dairy
Total Square Feet: 140,000 Annual Electric Savings: 684,054 kWh Annual Cost Savings: $131,575 • 41 energy projects identified • 11 projects installed • Total capital investment: $324,096.32
Ancillary benefits include: product, O&M, water, and boiler chemical savings.
55 Water Street
Total Square Feet: 3,652,582 Annual Electric Savings: 1,671,330 kWh, with another 16,000,000 kWh in progress Annual Fossil Fuel Savings: 41,839 MMBtu, with another 60,000 MMBtu in progress (via steam) Annual Cost Savings: $1,363,862, with another $4,000,000 in various states of progress
Completed office building projects include: • building automation system upgrade • LED lighting upgrades • retro-commissioning and electrification analysis • steam trap repairs • domestic hot water leak repairs • using the ice storage plant to supplement heating
Albany Medical Center
Total Square Feet: 2,000,000 Annual Electric Savings: 8,500,000 kWh Annual Cost Savings: $640,000
Completed projects include: • high-efficiency chillers • adding variable speed drives to pumps • modification of operating sequences • lighting upgrades • new fixtures
To reduce utility expenses, the main account enrolled in a community solar project, where the medical center will be the anchor tenant. With no up-front costs, the delivery portion of the electric bill will be reduced by approximately 13%.
Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority
Total Square Feet: 1,740,593 Annual Electric Savings: 7,647,866 kWh Annual Natural Gas Savings: 31,929 MMBtu 15 energy projects identified, including: • lighting upgrades • controls upgrades • building envelope improvements • equipment upgrades
Corning Incorporated
Annual Electric Savings: 466,573 kWh Annual Natural Gas Savings: 29,081 MMBtu Energy use per unit of production was reduced by: • capital improvements • operation and maintenance measures • process improvements • coordination of resources • tracking goals • best practice sharing
Jefferson Community College
Total Square Feet: 285,297 Annual Energy Savings: 14.8% Annual Cost Savings: $68,800 annually
Energy audits, retro-commissioning of building automation systems, and other conservation measures yielded: • 41% greenhouse gas emissions reduction (five years ahead of schedule) • 271 metric tons of CO2 emissions reduction • 23% reduction overall for electricity and gas
Summing It Up
Buildings
Meeting New York’s building decarbonization and energy efficiency goals requires transforming how we design, heat, and power our homes, workplaces, schools, and industrial facilities.
Our building decarbonization and energy efficiency efforts will advance the health and well-being of New Yorkers, enhance affordability and increase resilience to extreme temperatures, while cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
