Boston celebrates Energy Efficiency Day, now ranks second for energy efficiency

Mayor Walsh announced today that the City of Boston is celebrating national Energy Efficiency Day.  Read the proclamation. Energy efficiency is critical to achieve Mayor Walsh’s commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050 and protect Boston and its communities from the effects of climate change. Energy efficiency creates jobs, saves money, and decreases pollution. It is necessary to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 and work toward a healthy, climate resilient, and thriving Boston.

Boston has tied for second place this year in the 2020 City Clean Energy Scorecard released by the American Council for Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE). From 2013-2019 Boston ranked #1 in the country, as a city with the top efforts to achieve a clean energy future by improving energy efficiency and scaling up renewable energy. Energy efficiency is critical to align with our goals outlined the Climate Action Plan and Imagine Boston 2030. 

We work towards our energy efficiency goals through programs like Boston's municipal energy initiative, Renew Boston Trust, which identifies energy-saving projects in City-owned buildings. The projects are self-funded through guaranteed energy and cost savings, meaning that they pay for themselves over time. Projects are underway at 14 municipal buildings across Boston, including libraries, community centers, and police and fire stations. These projects range from lighting upgrades, water conservation measures, and solar panel installations.

The Building Energy Reporting and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO) reached 90 percent compliance in 2018. Last year marked the first year of Energy Action and Assessment, which asks that large buildings demonstrate that they have taken steps to assess energy saving opportunities or reduce their energy use. City staff have supported building owners and operators with resources and technical assistance to help continuously improve the performance of Boston's buildings over time.

The City is also moving ahead with Community Choice Electricity, also known as municipal aggregation. This program will give Boston electricity customers more control over the kind of energy they use in their homes, and the price of that energy. The City has received approval from the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities to proceed with this program and launch in February 2021. 

To learn more about how you can reduce energy and save money, visit our saving money and reducing energy website.