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Q&A
Discussion on sustainability goals and greenhouse gas emission reduction progress
0:24:54
ยท
5 min
Council Member Lincoln Restler engages with DCAS Commissioner Louis Molina and Deputy Commissioner Sana Barakat about the city's progress towards meeting greenhouse gas emission reduction goals. They discuss the current status, challenges faced, and plans to achieve the 40% reduction target by fiscal year 2027.
- DCAS reports being 26% of the way towards the goal as of fiscal year 2023
- Challenges include COVID-related delays, grid changes, and supply chain issues
- DCAS remains confident in meeting the 40% reduction goal by fiscal year 2027
Lincoln Restler
0:24:54
Thank you.
0:24:55
Councilmember Carr, always good to see you.
0:24:57
I would like to start with sustainability.
0:25:02
We have a DCAS is an exceptional agency.
0:25:06
You guys do so much important work.
0:25:07
So we've got a lot of different areas that we'll cover today, but sustainability is very much oh, and I would just like to acknowledge my colleague and friend, council member Gutierrez, who's with us online.
0:25:20
Climate change of course is an existential threat and the city should be leading the way in helping to combat it, especially as we're mandating compliance on the private sector.
0:25:30
Local law 97 mandates that the city reduce greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 40% for large buildings.
0:25:40
In late twenty twenty three, DCAS testified that the city was no longer on track to meet the goal of 40% reduction in city greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.
0:25:52
Now you had testified that you were on track to meet that goal by 2027.
0:25:57
Today you testify we're only 26% of the way toward achieving that goal.
0:26:02
So we've got a long way to go.
0:26:06
My understanding is that in FY '24, we only reduced the greenhouse gas emissions by twenty six thousand six hundred and twenty six metric tons, 66% of the original target of 40,000 metric tons.
0:26:21
And over the past three fiscal years, the city has cumulatively 23,000 tons behind our goal of reduced greenhouse gas emissions.
0:26:30
The goal for FY '25 is again 40,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
0:26:35
Are we on track to meet the 40,000 greenhouse gas emission reduction goal for FY '25?
Louis Molina
0:26:44
So I'll just talk about why we missed the target a little bit.
0:26:48
So, you know, we do expect, and I just want to reaffirm to US chair and the rest of the council members that we are gonna hit the 40% by fiscal year twenty twenty seven.
0:26:58
For me, when I came on at DCAS, this has been an all hands on deck effort to keep pushing the needle down on our emissions.
0:27:05
We did face some headwinds prior to that, most of which was out of our control, including a lot a number of delays that were connected to COVID.
0:27:13
The state's grid did get dirtier due to the closure of Indian Point Energy Center.
0:27:18
Mhmm.
0:27:19
And then we had equipment and lead time supply chain issues for procurement timelines, and there were obviously budgetary pressures as well that we have to just recognize.
0:27:28
But we are committed to meeting that goal by fiscal year twenty twenty seven.
0:27:32
As you stated, we are 26% from where we were on our baseline in fiscal year o six.
0:27:38
We have reduced overall energy uses in our building operations, which I think is also important by 14% compared to the five year average of fiscal year o six to ten.
0:27:48
So, are driving down energy consumption in our our buildings, we're doing everything we can to electrify our building systems, we're pursuing large comprehensive retrofit projects with significant GHG reduction.
0:28:02
We've been doing a lot of decarbonization of our city's feet, and we're investing in clean energy generation as city owned buildings.
0:28:09
So, do have a plan.
0:28:10
We're on target to to hit that plan, so that's why I'm confident we'll hit it by 40% by fiscal year twenty seven, and our larger goal of 50% by 02/1930.
Lincoln Restler
0:28:22
So I appreciate that response.
0:28:25
The goal is to reduce 40,000 this year 40,000 greenhouse gas metric tons this year.
0:28:31
We've got about a 10,000 to go to reach that goal by FY twenty seven if I have those numbers right.
0:28:36
Please correct me.
0:28:38
Please walk me through, are we on track to meet the 40,000 goal for this current fiscal year and what's the pathway to reduce the further 110,000 greenhouse gas metric tons by f y twenty seven?
Louis Molina
0:28:48
So to walk you through a more technical version of how we meet that goal, I'll hand it over to our deputy commissioner energy management.
Sana Barakat
0:28:56
Morning.
Lincoln Restler
0:28:59
Oh, you need to be sworn in.
0:29:00
I apologize.
UNKNOWN
0:29:02
Can you please raise your right hand?
0:29:04
Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth and respond honestly to council member questions today?
Sana Barakat
0:29:10
I do.
0:29:11
Thank you.
Lincoln Restler
0:29:13
Yeah.
0:29:14
Could we do all your deputy commissioners at once so we don't have to do it a bunch of times?
UNKNOWN
0:29:18
Can you please raise your right hands?
Lincoln Restler
0:29:20
Yeah.
0:29:20
Would you mind standing?
0:29:21
I apologize.
0:29:22
I think that's what we're supposed to do.
0:29:23
I apologize.
UNKNOWN
0:29:27
Do you swear to tell the truth, whole truth, and nothing but the truth and respond honestly to council member questions today?
Sana Barakat
0:29:33
I do.
0:29:34
Thank you.
Lincoln Restler
0:29:35
Thank you.
0:29:36
Sorry about that.
0:29:37
Just figure we don't need to do it for every single topic we go through.
0:29:40
Go ahead.
Sana Barakat
0:29:41
Okay.
0:29:42
So your first question was whether we will meet our 50,000 metric tons for fiscal year twenty five.
Lincoln Restler
0:29:48
Forty thousand metric ton goal for FY '20 That's right.
0:29:51
That's right.
Sana Barakat
0:29:52
And we are on target to meet that goal for '25.
Lincoln Restler
0:29:56
Good.
0:29:56
And walk me through the pathway to '27 for the 110,000 that we have outstanding because I think the commissioner testified that we're 26% of the way from our to our goal.
0:30:06
We got a ways to go.
0:30:07
Could you walk me through?
Sana Barakat
0:30:08
Yeah.
0:30:08
And that that number, the 26% is for based on fiscal year 2023.
0:30:14
We still have few years to go.
0:30:17
Our pipeline we have a lot of projects in our pipeline and those projects are intact.
0:30:23
We're going they're moving as fast as possible.
0:30:27
And they are on track to be completed on time.