NEW ORLEANS — Property owners and managers in Orleans Parish are invited to join a friendly competition to reduce energy use in buildings: the NOLA Energy Challenge. Led by the City of New Orleans’ Office of Resilience and Sustainability, the NOLA Energy Challenge is open to commercial, multifamily, and industrial structures of any size, with prizes awarded in a variety of categories in 2020. The competition will provide building operators with tools, support, and training to save energy and cut costs.
Details were shared in a press release.
On average, 30 percent of the energy used in commercial buildings is wasted. Buildings that measure and track energy data realize 6–14 percent in energy savings on average over several years, resulting in significant cost savings.
The NOLA Energy Challenge is a featured action in the city’s climate action strategy – “Climate Action for a Resilient New Orleans” – which aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent by 2030. Energy use accounts for half of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions, and commercial, multifamily, and industrial buildings are large energy users.
How the NOLA Energy Challenge Saves Businesses Money
The NOLA Energy Challenge provides property managers with the knowledge and tools to lower operating and maintenance costs and make intelligent choices about energy use. These actions save them money, make their buildings more competitive in the leasing market, and make New Orleans a better place to do business.
The City of New Orleans is also working to improve energy efficiency in its municipal building portfolio, working toward the climate action goal to reduce energy use in municipal operations by 15 percent by 2020. Energy savings opportunities have been uncovered through detailed analysis on 92 municipal properties and targeted actions are underway.
Last year’s NOLA Energy Challenge focused on the downtown area, with 40 properties signing up to start monitoring and managing their energy data. Winners of the 2018 competition included the F.E. Hebert Federal Building, the U.S. Custom House, the Energy Centre, the Tulane University Downtown Campus, and the Ernest M. Morial Convention Center.
In order to participate in the NOLA Energy Challenge, property managers or owners must visit www.nola.gov/EnergyChallenge and register online. There is no fee to sign up, and free technical assistance is provided.
