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Newsletter, March 2007
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Contents

  • Center Organizes the New York City Solar Summit set for June 21, 2007
  • Solar New York 2007: Conference and Exhibition, Monday, May 14, Albany, NY
  • Solar Energy Can Help City Go Green, CUNY Study Finds
  • Center’s PV Courses expanded to Queens and Brooklyn
  • Tips: Job Announcement, Campaign Organizer; and Climate Change Action
  • Readings: Feed-in Tariffs and RPS; Electric-Drive Vehicle Report; Diesel Idling Reduction; Carbon Emissions Reductions From Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; Greenest and Meanest Vehicles of 2007; Plug in for 100-mpg Hybrids
  • Kudos: Hybrid Truck Project Launched on Long Island; First Alternative Fuels Station in the Region
  • Events of Interest in the Region: March 29 through June 21

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Center Organizes the New York City Solar Summit set for June 21, 2007

The New York City Solar Summit is a gathering of renewable energy policy makers and stakeholders who are focused on unlocking New York City’s vast solar energy potential. Solar energy is New York City’s largest available resource. Concerns over energy security, climate change, economic development, and environmental justice make the time right for a new city energy strategy. The New York City Solar Summit will convene New York City’s energy community to take stock of the progress made toward New York’s solar energy future, discuss the barriers to large-scale solar energy development, and map out strategies for moving forward.

The City University of New York began the Million Solar Roofs Initiative (MSRI) in partnership with the US Department of Energy’s Million Solar Roofs program in summer 2005. Under the MSRI, The City University of New York has conducted an outreach and education campaign that includes an assessment of the solar energy market in New York City, the identification of barriers to solar energy development, and the facilitation of solar projects throughout the City. The CUNY MSRI is being managed by The Center for Sustainable Energy at Bronx Community College. Sponsors for the event include the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, FJC Foundation, New York Power Authority, John Controls, Inc., altPower, Inc., and ConEdison Solutions.

Registration for the Summit is now open but seating is limited. Please call 718-289-5332, email mail@csebcc.org or register online at: http://www.bcc.cuny.edu/InstitutionalDevelopment/CSE/SollarSummitRegForm.cfm

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Solar New York 2007: Conference and Exhibition, Monday, May 14

This new, exciting one-day conference and trade show will feature the wide range of solar companies doing business in New York State and the solar electricity, space heating, and water heating products and services available from them. Emerging new solar technologies and products currently under development will also be featured. The substantive conference sessions will feature national and state solar industry, policy, and regulatory experts sharing strategies for greatly increasing deployment and use of solar technologies throughout New York State.

This is the first time ever the solar industry - and solar supporters - will convene in Albany. The conference is deliberately scheduled while the legislature is in session. A special reception will be held Monday evening for conference attendees, exhibitors, legislators, and legislative staff. A complete conference brochure can be downloaded at http://www.nyseia.org/. Receive registration discounts before April 15:

Conference registration for NYSEIA Members (postmarked by April 15): $95
For non-members (postmarked by April 15): $135

Conference registration for NYSEIA Members (postmarked after April 15): $125
For non-members (postmarked after April 15): $160

For further information, contact Christine Donovan ctdonovan@nyseia.org , Executive Vice President, New York Solar Energy Industries Association, 518-495-1454 www.nyseia.org

The Center for Sustainable Energy is an “outreach partner” for this event.

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Solar Energy Can Help City Go Green, CUNY Study Finds

[excerpted from CUNY Newswire] Solar energy is a viable solution to the city’s energy crisis and could supply more than 10 percent of its power by 2030 if the city, state and federal government work to find new sources of funding and incentives and remove barriers, according to a study by The City University of New York.

The two-part study offers the first comprehensive look at how the city can go green by transitioning to a solar energy future, according to Tria Case, Executive Director of the Center for Sustainable Energy at Bronx Community College and co-author of the report.

The report, which is part of CUNY’s Million Solar Roofs Initiative that sets a goal of aiding in the installation of 500 solar roofs in the city by 2010, makes several recommendations. They include:

  • Getting the city to promote a voluntary market for photovoltaic power similar to the “solar stock exchanges” being implemented in several European cities. Under this green pricing program for photovoltaic systems, voluntary green power buyers are matched with solar-system owners.
  • Exploring funding sources for photovoltaic systems on public buildings for New York Power Authority customers.
  • Getting the state to make a more long-term and substantial policy commitment to photovoltaic technology by offering upfront rebates, performance-based incentives or government-led bulk purchases.
  • Reducing or eliminating New York Power Authority’s management fee on the installation of photovoltaic systems.
  • Establishing a network with the New York Public Service Commission, Con Ed and CUNY to track and eliminate interconnection problems.
  • Removing the requirement that photovoltaic systems be tested on site.
  • Considering higher rebates for city projects.
  • Raising the net metering cap and making net metering available to all users.
  • Giving tax credit and sales-tax exemptions to non-residential customers as well as residential ones.
  • Amending Local Law 86 to require that new city construction projects include a solar component.
  • Integrating photovoltaic systems into the city’s emergency planning to reduce peak demand like the one that caused last year’s nine-day Queens blackout.

The recommendations of “ New York City’s Solar Energy Future” come at a crucial time: Although the city’s solar market has grown 25 percent to 45 percent since 2002, and although the city has some of the world’s most innovative building-integrated solar-energy installations, the outlook for continued growth is limited.

“The city has unique technical barriers that will constrain the market,” Case says. “Commercial photovoltaic systems, for example, are not allowed to export power to the city’s electricity grid and must buy expensive reverse power relays to interconnect. And the city now requires that photovoltaic systems be tested after installation, which is costly. No other city in the nation requires this.”

What’s more, the market is largely dependent on state incentives, but they target only small systems. “We need incentives to target big systems on big buildings,” Case added. “If these barriers were removed, the city could install some 6,000 to 8,000 megawatts of photovoltaic systems on rooftops and facades.”

“We have developed a set of potential solutions that we think have a chance of being implemented, and we’re looking forward to working with our city partners to get the photovoltaic market back on track and unlock New York’s solar energy potential. With the right policies, there’s no reason why New York City couldn’t be the world’s solar capital by the middle of the next decade,” she concluded.

Contact: Tria Case, Executive Director
The Center for Sustainable Energy at Bronx Community College, CUNY
Phone: (718) 289-5332

See New York City’s Solar Energy Future reports:

Part I: The Market for Photovoltaic Systems in New York City, January 2006

Part II: Solar Energy Policies and Barriers in New York City, January 2007

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Center’s PV Courses expanded to Queens and Brooklyn

The Center for Sustainable Energy has conducted a series of PV (photovoltaic, or sunlight-to-electricity) installation trainings over the past several years. More than 140 students have made their way through introductory and advanced courses at Bronx. The Center, on behalf of CUNY, has been leading an effort supported by NYSERDA to attain certification from the Institute for Sustainable Power for several instructors and the institution as a whole. Recently, the Center collaborated with LaGuardia Community College’s New York Designs Program to hold PV training at their Long Island City campus in Queens. An introductory course, instructed by Alt Power’s Anthony Pereira, is being held this month at LaGuardia while an advanced course was instructed by Quad State Solar’s Jonathan Lane at Bronx Community College last month. A similar effort is underway by the Center to organize a course at the New York City College of Technology campus in Brooklyn in June. That schedule will be announced shortly. Check back with the Center’s website: www.csebcc.org

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Tips:

Job Announcement: Campaign Organizer

Urban Agenda is an action-oriented, public policy, research and advocacy organization dedicated to building a socially, environmentally and economically just New York City. Urban Agenda provides a base and staff support to the NYC Apollo Alliance, a city-wide coalition of unions, businesses, environmental justice organizations, advocates and community-based groups working for public policies that improve the City’s environmental sustainability, increase opportunities for “green” business, and promote development of high-quality jobs for local residents. For a description of job responsibilities and application requirements, contact Kate Pfordresher kate@urbanagenda.org, Acting Director, Urban Agenda via email, fax or by postal service. Urban Agenda, 275 Seventh Ave. 20th Floor, NY, NY 10001 fax: 646-486-6885

April 14, 2007 – Climate Change Action

Noted author and environmentalist Bill McKibben has issued a national invitation to “help start a movement -- to take one spring day and use it to reshape the future. Those of us who know that climate change is the greatest threat civilization now faces have science on our side; we have economists and policy specialists, courageous mayors and governors, engineers with cool new technology. A few of us are trying to organize a nationwide day of hundreds and hundreds of rallies on April 14. We hope to have gatherings in every state.” More than 800 events are already scheduled nationwide. Organizers in New York City are planning a “ Sea of People Mass Rally” that will kick off at noon at Castle Clinton in Battery Park. See: www.seaofpeople.org and http://events.stepitup2007.org/events/show/103

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Recommended Reading:

The Debate over Fixed Price Incentives for Renewable Electricity in Europe and the United States: Fallout and Future Directions

Wilson Rickerson, Policy Advisor to the Center for Sustainable Energy, and Bob Grace, President of Sustainable Energy Advantage, LLC, recently completed a paper on the policy debate between feed-in tariffs and renewable portfolio standard policies in Europe and in the US. The paper examines whether feed-in tariffs can be adapted to work in concert with existing and proposed US state-level policies and electricity market structures. The paper reviews policy development in the US and Europe and discusses the implications of the European policy debate for US audiences. The paper also reviews US concerns over feed-in tariffs, discusses US experience with feed-in tariffs to date, and explores future directions for US renewable energy policy. The paper was sponsored by the The Heinrich Böll Foundation's Washington D.C. office and is posted on the Foundation's website at: http://www.boell.org/Pubs_read.cfm?read=161 The paper builds off of research conducted by the Center for Sustainable Energy and presented at the American Wind Energy Conference in Pittsburgh in 2006. See the complete report at: http://www.boell.org/docs/Rickerson_Grace_FINAL.pdf

New York Power Authority’s 2006 Electric-Drive Vehicle Report

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) reported that for the second year in a row customer electric vehicle usage averaged a million miles annually, resulting in more than 6.5 million miles traveled since the inception of its electric-drive transportation program. Overall, NYPA claims to have reduced CO2 emissions by more than 3,000 tons and saved over 21,000 barrels of crude oil which translates to almost 400,000 gallons of fuel savings. NYPA reiterated its commitment to reduce New York State’s reliance on foreign oil and to provide a cleaner environment for the residents of New York State. See http://www.nypa.gov/ev/2006Summary/2006%20Electric%20Drive%20Vehicle%20Report%202007-01-31.pdf

A Municipal Official's Guide to Diesel Idling Reduction in New York State

With the support of NYSERDA and the US EPA SmartWay Transport Partnership, the New York Planning Federation (NYPF) has recently published an idling reduction guidance document for the various local, regional and metropolitan planning commissions across the state. The guidebook presents basic information and practical solutions for consideration in land use planning and zoning. It is hoped that the document can assist state and local officials in understanding the issues, alternative technologies and approaches, and in making sound decisions that can proactively reduce the occurrence and impact of diesel idling. Contact Joseph D. Tario, PE, Sr. Project Manager at 518-862-1090 ext 3215, jdt@nyserda.org, or NYSERDA, 17 Columbia Circle, Albany, NY 12203
See: http://www.nyserda.org/publications/09-06GuidetoDieselIdlingReduction.pdf

Tackling Climate Change in the US --
Potential Carbon Emissions Reductions From Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy by 2030

According to the American Solar Energy Association (ASES), “it seems like you can’t pick up a newspaper or magazine today without seeing more alarming news about global warming. Global warming isn’t just something that’s going to happen. It’s something that already is happening. While it’s too late to prevent all environmental damage, it’s not too late to avoid the worst consequences if we begin to act now. The question is, “What exactly can we do about it?” Read their report to see their recommended course of action at http://www.ases.org/climatechange/

The Greenest and Meanest Vehicles of 2007

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy has listed on its “green Cars” website the fuel economy ratings for available production vehicles in this model year. The dozen cleanest cars are compared with the dirtiest dozen on a miles-per-gallon basis. See: http://www.greenercars.com/12green.html and http://www.greenercars.com/12mean.html

Prepare to Plug in for 100-mpg Hybrids

A new strain of gas/electric hybrid vehicles called plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, represent the latest wave of fuel-efficiency-boosting technology being explored by carmakers and third-party firms. They promise to boost gas mileage to 100 mpg and beyond by running only on rechargeable electric batteries for limited distances. As the name suggests, they can be plugged in to recharge. http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center-article_42/

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Kudos:

Hybrid Truck Project Launched on Long Island

Congratulations are in order to Nassau Suffolk Heavy Truck, Odyne Corporation, and The Town of Hempstead for the introduction of a promising new project on Long Island, the nation’s first plug-in, heavy-duty, hybrid-electric refuse-collection truck. At a gala reception held at Rockefeller Plaza’s Rainbow Room, New York City Department of Sanitation Deputy Commissioner Rocco DiRico had these words: “Projects like this exemplify how the private and public sector can successfully work together to design and develop a pre-production vehicle that will pave the way for other fleets and aid in accelerating the commercialization of heavy-duty hybrid-electric vehicles. We applaud your hard work and efforts to a very important cause.” The truck design dramatically reduces fuel consumption, air pollution, and operating costs.

A Philly First: Freedom to Fuel Our Future

The first alternative fuels station in the region to offer E85 (ethanol) and B20 (biodiesel) along with conventional gasoline and diesel is now open in Philadelphia at Center City Shell Station located at 12th and Vine Streets. Contact Brinda Shetty of the Greater Philadelphia Clean Cities Program 215-413-2122 coordinator@phillycleancities.org or http://www.phillycleancities.org

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EVENTS OF INTEREST IN THE REGION:

NYSERDA and Con Edison Demand Management Workshop
Thursday, March 29, 2007, 8 AM, New York, NY

At 4 Irving Place, New York, NY 10003. Registration and Continental Breakfast begin at 8 AM. Learn how to take advantage of millions of dollars in financial and technical assistance for energy management projects available to companies that receive electric service from Con Edison. Register by March 23 at www.RSVPpage.com/NYSERDA

Sea of People Mass Rally
Saturday, April 14, 2007, 12 noon, New York, NY

To raise awareness of global climate change and how to abate it that will kick off at noon at Castle Clinton in Battery Park. See: www.seaofpeople.org and http://events.stepitup2007.org/events/show/103

Science Barge to Launch at Pier 84
Saturday, May 8, 2007, New York, NY

New York Sun Works’ launches its Science Barge at Manhattan’s Pier 84 in the Hudson located in Hudson River Park at the end of West 44th Street. For more information call 212-757-7560 or email info@nysunworks.org

Low-Income Forum on Energy
Tuesday, May 15, 2007, New York, NY

Saving Energy, Saving Dollars, sponsored by the New York State Public Service Commission and underwritten by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. Registration fee is $35 per person and includes lunch, breaks and materials. Call 1-877-NY-SMART for more information. CUNY is a co-sponsor of this event.

Annual Vehicle & Equipment Show
Tuesday, May 22, 2007, 9 AM - 3 PM, New York, NY

New York City Parks & Recreation 19 th Annual Vehicle & Equipment Show on Randalls Island. Over 100 vendors, rain or shine. RSVP to 212-410-8384. See also: www.nyc.gov/parks

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The mission of the Center for Sustainable Energy is to promote the use of renewable and efficient energy technologies in urban communities through education, training, workforce development, research, and project facilitation. The Center supports clean energy development and energy conservation as the means to protect the environment, enhance public health, and position New York City to capture emerging economic development opportunities in the energy sector.

The Center, established in 2003 at Bronx Community College, City University of New York, was initially funded with a Congressional appropriation sponsored by The Honorable Jośe E. Serrano, and administered through the U.S. Department of Energy.  

Tax deductible contributions to the Center may be sent to the address below. Checks should be made payable to “ Bronx Community College Foundation/ Center for Sustainable Energy.”  

Center for Sustainable Energy
Bronx Community College , CUNY
Hall of Fame Terrace, GML 102
Bronx , NY10453

Call the Center at: 718-289-5332
Email the Center at: mail@csebcc.org
Visit the Center website at: http://www.csebcc.org

For links to past newsletters of the Center, see: http://www.bcc.cuny.edu/InstitutionalDevelopment/CSE/News_Publications.cfm
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City University of New York