Page 8 - NY Cooperator October 2020

8 THE COOPERATOR — OCTOBER 2020 COOPERATOR.COM TRENDS In Part 1 of “Multifamily Energy Savings Energy Research and Development Authority Solutions,” we introduced some relatively (NYSERDA), he says. He is currently working existing well before the COVID crisis, the co- simple products and processes that individual with the Amalgamated Housing Coopera- owners or shareholders can adopt to reduce tive in the Bronx in an owner’s representative sionals to move to a new technology about energy consumption and emissions and to role as the 1,500-unit campus undertakes a two years ago. They discovered that a ground- save on their energy costs. Part 2 addresses the bigger picture: re- placement of entire systems; working with ers—the newest of its 11 buildings and home on the co-op’s board of directors, in terms of advocates, government, and utilities to move to about 300 of its families. toward greener energy; and, just as with the solutions mentioned in Part 1, achieving com- munity buy-in and widespread implementa- tion. Coupling with a Co-op Jay Egg knows a lot about educating con- sumers and developers on the path toward to the buildings have so much build-up that Climate Act”), says Yaker, it behooves them to energy efficiency. A former nuclear power en- gineer for the U.S. Navy, he became a leading and disruptive flooding to apartments. With goals, not only to avoid the potential penal- expert on ground coupling—the technology the supply pipes also at the end of their use- that allows for a non-fossil-burning alterna- tive for heating and cooling buildings—and in the buildings is compromised. Addition- now has a “practically evangelical zeal for ally, the current chiller system’s cooling pan, long time.” sharing this technology,” he tells The Coop- erator. Today he makes a living consulting and so much patching and emergency repair that things: one, money; two, HCR approval,” speaking on the subject with his business, Egg Zsebedics is not confident that it will survive continues Yaker. \\\[As a limited dividend co- Geo, and was happy to talk to us about how the year. What’s more, the concern over cool- geothermal technology is being implemented ing towers’ potential for spreading Legionella the New York State Homes and Community in multifamily buildings and communities. Even though he lives in Florida, where the ated diseases’ symptomatic similarities to CO- weather inspired him to pursue innovation in VID-19 and the propensity they all have for for major expenditures.\\\] Right now, he says, the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning exacerbating the already rampant respiratory they’re focusing on the money. It took a year (HVAC) sector, about 30% of Egg’s work is in illnesses that have been extensively brought for HCR to even authorize the issuance of an New York State—mostly because of the state’s about by the very emissions-heavy systems RFP for an energy consultant, notes Yaker, so progressive climate agenda and strong heating that the co-op is looking to replace. and cooling program with the New York State conversion from a steam-absorption chiller source geothermal heat pump offered the best to a geothermal heat pump for its two Tow- “Newest” is relative—the Towers were the aforementioned health and quality of life completed in 1968 and 1970, and many of the concerns. Even though the co-op, as a “Mitch- mechanical, electric, and plumbing (MEP) el- ements are at or nearing the end of their use- ful life. Long-time manager Charles Zsebedics ance with the emission-reduction standards relays that the galvanized drain pipes original prescribed by the city’s Local Law 97 (“The condensation can’t drain, resulting in costly go as far as possible toward the standard 2034 ful life, the entire heating and cooling system tion measures get more strict in the approach also original to the buildings, has undergone bacteria is especially pressing given the associ- With the urgency to replace these systems op began researching and procuring profes- “bang for the buck,” says Ed Yaker, treasurer emissions reductions as well as solving for ell-Lama equivalent,” can undertake what’s known as the ‘alternative path’ toward compli- ties that increase substantially as the reduc- to 2050, but also because “everything takes a “We can’t do anything until we have two operative, Amalgamated is regulated under Renewal (NYSHCR) program, which re- quires certain review and approval processes while they’ve requested a determination on their mortgage refinancing proposal, they do not expect a timely response. Zsebedics and Yaker agree that with a projected $13 million cost for the project, if they can overcome the financing hurdle, it is unlikely that HCR will end up standing in the way of a project that is so necessary—and so in line with the state’s mandated climate initiatives. With acceptance into NYSERDA’s Multi- family Performance Program (MPP), which offers specific incentives for affordable mul- tifamily properties based on the amount of energy savings that a project is assessed to achieve, Amalgamated also plans to under- take energy efficiency projects across the rest of its campus, including installing the Cozy radiator covers and management sys- tem mentioned in Part 1 of this story, as well as two new 600-horsepower Johnson boilers with combined heat and power (CHP)—an energy-efficient system that allows the heat produced by electric generation to be used as a thermal (heating and/or cooling) power source. The Legislation Depending on where you live, efforts to enhance energy efficiency and emissions reductions in your building or community might be helped or hindered by the laws and government or utility incentives in place. Ac- cording to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR), a national organization that builds partnerships to research and advocate for “an American economy driven by local priorities and accountable to people and the planet,” per its website, Massachusetts and New York lead the 50 states in local clean energy policy and implementation, with California and Il- linois also scoring well (especially relative to their regions). States like Florida, which lacks policy for renewable energy sharing and dis- tribution, ranked among the lowest. New York City, with its recently enacted Local Law 97, is putting much of the onus for climate action on buildings larger than 25,000 square feet, which produce 70% of the city’s emissions, according to data compiled by the Urban Green Council. Multifamily residences in this sector account for about 24% of these emissions—which might skew higher or lower as future data include the months when New Yorkers spent less time in commercial, office, and manufacturing buildings and more time in their residences … or fled the city al- together. Multifamily Energy Savings Solutions Part 2: The Bigger Picture BY DARCEY GERSTEIN continued on page 17