New York's Pataki Signs Landmark Executive Order

On June 11, Governor George Pataki signed an executive order that has the potential to make New York State facilities among the greenest in the country over the next decade. Executive Order No. 111, “Green and Clean State Buildings and Vehicles,” affects buildings owned, leased, or operated by state agencies. Its requirements include reducing energy consumption and peak loads, purchasing electricity from renewable sources, and following green building practices in new building procurement and operation. The actual impact of this Order will only be known over time. “It’s early, but the question is how it will be implemented,” says Ashok Gupta, Air and Energy Program Director at the Natural Resources Defense Council, noting that Executive Orders can be reversed or ignored by future administrations.

In terms of renewable energy, the Order requires that state facilities “seek to purchase” energy from “wind, solar thermal, photovoltaics, sustainably managed biomass, tidal, geothermal, methane waste and fuel cells.” By 2005, state buildings are to obtain at least 10% of their annual electricity requirements from these sources, and 20% by 2010. While this roughly 100-megawatt commitment is significant for State buildings, the overall impact on the renewable energy market is not huge, notes Gupta: “Even Texas, with its renewable portfolio requirement, has a bigger commitment to renewables.”

Also notable is the Order’s green building requirement. Although it does not set a specific threshold, it requires that new State facilities be designed, built, and operated “to the maximum extent practicable” according to green building guidelines. Both the State’s Green Buildings Tax Credit law and the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED™ Rating System are referenced as sources of these guidelines. Specific directives addressing energy efficiency in State facilities include: a 35% reduction in energy use of existing buildings by 2010 relative to 1990 levels; a 20% improvement over the State’s energy code for new buildings; and a 10% margin over code in substantial renovations.