Mayors from metro areas pledge to reduce energy in buildings
Through the City Energy Project, 10 major U.S. cities will develop their own locally tailored plans to advance energy efficiency and reduce waste in their large buildings.
The mayors from 10 major U.S. cities — Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Orlando, Philadelphia and Salt Lake City — recently announced they will undertake a united effort to significantly boost energy efficiency in their buildings, a move that combined could lower energy bills by nearly $1 billion annually. The new City Energy Project, an initiative from the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Institute for Market Transformation, is designed to create healthier, more prosperous American cities by targeting their largest source of energy use and climate pollution: buildings.
Through this new project, the cities will develop their own locally tailored plans to advance energy efficiency and reduce waste in their large buildings, which can represent roughly 50% of their citywide square footage. These plans, which will include multiple integrated strategies, can make more progress in each city than any one program or policy could alone.