Green Codes Task Force: 111 Ways to Make NYC Greener

In July 2008, New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg called on the Urban Green Council (formerly the New York chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council) to convene a task force to advise the City on future changes to municipal codes that would shrink the city’s carbon footprint and improve public and environmental health. Some 18 months later, the New York City Green Codes Task Force, an assemblage of more than 200 leading thinkers in green building today (including BuildingGreen’s Alex Wilson), has released a report offering 111 recommendations to help bring the codes in line with PlaNYC, the City’s comprehensive plan to reduce energy and water use and bring greenhouse gas emissions down 30% by 2030.

New York City is already out front in the race among cities pushing to encourage green building, mandating LEED for public buildings since 2007 and requiring energy monitoring, audits, and retrocommissioning for large commercial buildings since late 2009 (see