Well-written and well-documented report on the types of jobs created by demand for energy efficiency in NYC. Good blend of description of energy efficiency improvements, descriptions of jobs created, information from and on people/organizaions working in these sectors. Very conscious of need to blend job requirements with energy efficiency legislation.
- Focus on NYC
- First report in a series
- Must ensure that jobs created by PlaNYC are "green collar jobs": "A green collar job is more than simply a job in an environmental field. It also provides a family sustaining wage, safe working conditions, and chances for career advancement" (3)
- Two definitions of environmental justice: Environmental justice is the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of background or status, in the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. The environmental justice movement responds to the reality that power plants, landfills and other environmental hazards are often sited in low-income communities and communities of color without their participation in the decision-making process.14 Environmental justice has also come to mean the equitable distribution of the benefits of the green economy: green collar jobs, community reinvestment, and clean technology.15 Organizations like the Ella Baker Center in Oakland, Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education (SCOPE) in LA, Sustainable South Bronx, the United Puerto Rican Organization of Sunset Park (UPROSE), and Urban Agenda recognize that green collar jobs can help redress past injustice while creating economic opportunity.16
- Includes profiles: Miroslav (maintainance supervisor of a green apt building), Buddy (electrician who installs meters and wiring), Meghan (operating engineer), Bill (building superintendent, trainer, and unionmember),
- 10 The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) projects that its statewide energy efficiency and alternative energy programs will create and sustain, on average, more than 8,600 jobs over a 19-year period.34 Governor Eliot Spitzer, in his April 2007 address launching the 15 x 15 energy efficiency initiative, predicted that this initiative will create 41,000 jobs statewide.35
- List of tasks/projects involved in energy upgrades
- 10-11 Quite detailed description of knowledge needed by energy auditor
- 11 The creation of standardized job titles and skill requirements is in progress as the auditing field develops. At the moment, NYSERDA is leading the process. NYSERDA has developed a suite of energy efficiency incentive programs for existing buildings, and requires building owners to hire NYSERDAapproved auditors in order to receive incentives under the Multifamily Building Performance Program.
- 15 An extensive study of municipal building retrofits in Canada, conducted by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, estimated that every $1 million invested in building retrofits creates 20 person-years of employment, mainly in the construction phase.57
- 17 A lack of projects has slowed the adoption of energy efficiency skills by workforce development programs. The slow development of the energy efficiency workforce, especially in more specialized areas like auditing and energy engineering, has in turn reinforced the slow growth of energy efficiency projects.
- Reviews roadblocks to realizing efficiency gains; similar to Joel Rogers COWS paper
- 18 The median Standard Payback Time (SPT) for the average retrofit is now seven years for institutional facilities, four years for hospitals, and just three years for commercial, industrial, and office buildings.66
- 35 Statewide, low-income people spend, on average, up to 15 percent of their monthly income on energy. Eighty percent of these expenditures leave low-income communities, going to power companies rather than local businesses.81
- 36 The New York City Housing Authority administers the City’s public housing developments as well as the Section 8 housing voucher program. NYCHA’s 344 aging developments—some sixty years old—house 412,281 low-income New Yorkers, 5 percent of the City’s total population.89...NYCHA’s utility costs currently account for approximately 20 percent of the operating budget and 37 have increased over 42 percent in the last few years.90 In this context, energy efficiency programs that lower the costs of operating NYCHA housing are especially important.
- 20,37 - Energy efficiency upgrades in affordable housing stymied by delays in HUD approval for using capital funds
- 31 Discusses need for maintenence staff to understand and be on board with energy efficiency requirements
- 24 Meter Service Providers use smart meters, real-time pricing, and sophisticated mapping tools to pinpoint when and how their clients use energy. Create energy management plans. Staff includes meter readers, analysts, billers, accountants, electricians, metering technicians, IT professionals, engineers, and project managers.
- 25 Companies in the emerging field of strategic energy asset management can help large power consumers tap into government demand-response programs by reducing their reliance on power from the grid at times of peak system usage, and collecting the targeted government subsidies...Jobs in strategic energy asset
- management include: • Account managers. Account managers work with client facilities managers to design the energy management program. • Energy analysts. Energy Analysts advise clients on how to tap into market-based opportunities, such as carbon trading or renewable energy credits.
- 26 Yet, the biggest hurdle to growing green collar jobs in this field may be the skill levels required for some positions. While ConsumerPowerline has beenable to recruit qualified meter installers from the telecommunications industry and utility companies, they have had more difficulty finding staff members who possess the requisite level of engineering, energy, or financ experience to be managers or analysts. Izzi explains, “A lot of these jobs aren’t established within a career services office….[Many people] might not have the track record for doing what we want to do.”
- 27 Offers recommendations on Green Collar Jobs:
- Working with the Workforce Investment Board (WIB) to collect workforce, employer, training, and education data in emerging green industries.
- Creating a Green Workforce Career Center to:
workforce growth;
• develop green collar employment and training
programs, including sector specific training and
advanced training for technical an professional
jobs;
• support green technology R&D and expose
workers to new technology and skills;
• create referral, placement, and job retention services
in partnership with labor and the public and
private sectors; and
• support the creation of green collar career ladders
in growth industries.129
- Developing a Green Collar Jobs Corps to help New Yorkers succeed in the City’s expanding green economy. A Green Collar Jobs Corps would:
unemployed and underemployed;
• develop comprehensive training and education
programs to prepare entry-level, incumbent, and
transitional workers for permanent green collar
employment;
• provide paid green collar work experience at prevailing
wages;
• work with unions and the private sector to develop
placement and referral services for Corps graduates;
• involve New York City’s existing support services,
training, and job placement programs; and
• ensure that Corps participants do not displace existing
workers.
- 28 Emphasizes that job "supply" creation must be combined with governmental measures to create demand: efficiency mandates, carbon reduction emission mandates, support of green businesses, etc.
- 30 PlaNYC: If all of the PlaNYC 2030 efficiency initiatives are implemented, the City projects a 14 to 15 percent reduction in energy consumption citywide by 2015.6 Ten percent of the
- 2007 municipal energy budget—$81.2 million—has been earmarked for municipal building energyefficiency improvements, and the Plan proposes making this annual allotment permanent.7
- 35 Lack of energy auditors: Richard Cherry, President and CEO of the Community Environmental Center (CEC), sees the lack of qualified auditors and engineers as “the major bottleneck” in growing the energy efficiency market. “No one is coming out of schools trained in energy auditing work,” he explains. Yet, CEC Green Building Specialist Katherine Carredu notes, “There is a great demand for people with computer skills and building mechanical-system knowledge who can perform the energy modeling analyses for new and existing buildings of all types.” Organizations like CEC are competing for the same workers with engineering firms and corporation who can pay larger salaries.78
- 39 Commissioning and retro-commissioning = assessment, testing, and balancing of a building's systems and controls. If possible, should be person who designed the building's energy systems. If not, engineer.
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