It's no secret New York is trying to be more energy efficient with green initiatives, however, a proposed bill to ban new buildings from using fossil fuels did not make it out of committee this past session.
Sal Vasapolli is the manager, developer and owner of Downtown Village in Middletown.
"In this building, we not only use gas, but we use electric as well. So our HVAC system is gas and everything else is electric," he explained.
That’s why he is paying attention to a movement to make all new buildings across New York fully electric.
"I think it's a per case basis. If you have to go with existing buildings, I think it's just easier with electric, and I think in a building that you're gonna be building out totally, I think gas is more efficient," Vasapolli said.
An effort this past legislative session to pass the All Electric Building Act, which calls for banning fossil fuel energies in newly built buildings, didn’t make it through committee this year.
Annie Carforo, climate activist organizer WE ACT for Environmental Justice, said the use of gas and fossil fuels is not only damaging the environment, but also for those living in the homes.
"The concentrations of air pollutants inside of homes of gas stoves is astronomical, and is not is above what is accepted for outdoor concentrations," she said.
According to RMI, an organization that advocates for green energy, going fully electric in new buildings could save four million metric tons of carbon by 2040, equivalent to keeping over half a million cars off roads for one year.
Meanwhile, Consumer Energy Alliance, a group pushing for cheaper energy, said banning fossil fuel use in buildings would increase costs and disproportionately affect consumers and households on fixed incomes.
It says nearly 60% of New York households rely on natural gas for home heating, and it provides over 40% of the state’s power generation.
Carforo said the benefits of going all-electric will be a win-win for the environment and for pocket books.
"We really were targeting new construction because it's one of the easiest ways to start this transition to electric," she said. "People are already struggling with their energy and their utility bills, and we don't want to cause unjust or undue burden on people by going all-electric. So our organization is laser-focused on making sure that our transition to all-electric is equitable."
Vasapolli believes everyone should have a choice whether they want to go gas or electric.
"Well, I think if they talked about how much the rates were going to be and if they kept them for five years, I think people will be able to easily make a decision if it's going to be right for them and their project," he said. "But if if somebody was going to be gambling, I don't think many people are going to gamble on just putting an electric unit in."
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June 29, 2022 at 07:14AM
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