THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK
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New York, NY 10007
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**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE** 
October 13, 2010

Contact: (212) 788-7116
Release # 098-2010
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Council to Raise Water Efficiency Standards
New legislation has potential to save more than one billion gallons of water per year

City Hall – At today’s Stated meeting, the Council will vote on a set of bills that will save the City one billion gallons of water every year.  Earlier this year, the Green Codes Task Force, a group convened by The Urban Green Council at the request of the Speaker and the Mayor, submitted its report outlining a comprehensive series of recommendations on how to make buildings in the city more efficient. The report contains many firsts in the nation – a few of which will be voted on today.

Also, the Council will introduce a resolution calling on Congress to pass two pieces of critical anti-bullying legislation. In addition, the Council will also be introducing a resolution that calls on the New York State Legislature to override Governor Paterson’s veto of a bill that would provide persons living with HIV/AIDS to receive rental assistance.

INCREASING WATER EFFICIENCY
New York City uses one billion gallons of water every day, according to the Department of Environmental Protection. This legislative package has the capability of saving more than one billion gallons per year.

“A typical New Yorker uses 125 gallons of water every day,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “That’s quite a bit of water. And sometimes, in our day-to-day, we tend to take it for granted, as other cities and countries across the world struggle to find access to fresh water. But I’m proud to say that our legislation today will do its part to make sure that New Yorkers are using water wisely, not wasting it. Our legislation has the potential to save more than a billion gallons a year!” 

These four bills will prohibit the use of certain equipment that utilize drinking water, will allow for the identification of water leaks, will promote the use of domestic drinking water rather than bottled water and will revise water efficiency standards.  Specifically the bills are as follows:

Intro 263-A
• BEFORE: Drinking water is passed through a piece of equipment to provide cooling and then the water is dumped into the sewer system and wasted.  Such “once-through” water cooled equipment is also susceptible to silent leaking which also wastes water.
• AFTER:  This bill will prohibit the use of drinking water for once-through cooling systems such as large ice-making machines, walk-in coolers, refrigerated walk-in boxes and air conditioning equipment.  This could potentially save 150,000 to 200,000 gallons because once-through cooling systems use about 40 times more waters than systems that use evaporative cooling towers or other water re-circulating mechanisms.

This bill would apply to new construction of commercial buildings and spaces and to replacements to cooling systems which require the use of more water than the water used prior to a certain date and would take effect on January 1, 2011.

“Water is one of our most basic and healthy resources.  This bill represents our diligent efforts to undertake energy conservation measures.  By taking steps to prohibit the use of drinking water in our cooling systems, we are taking a major step in conserving thousands of gallons of drinking water daily,” said Council Member Inez E. Dickens, sponsor of the bill.

Intro 264-A
• BEFORE: Drinking fountains are currently required in commercial occupancies; however, these fountains do not easily allow a user the option of filling a container with water.
• AFTER: This bill would require all drinking fountains in commercial occupancies to include a separate faucet that can fill a container 10 inches in height. The bill would allow up to 50% of the required drinking fountains to be substituted by devices (such as water coolers and water dispensers) that connect directly to a building’s domestic water supply pipe.  Bottled water dispensers may no longer be used to substitute for the required drinking fountains.

The bill would apply to new construction and alterations of commercial buildings or spaces and would take effect on July 1, 2012.

"When not recycled, plastic from bottled water can produce a significant amount of waste which can negatively impact our environment," said Council Member Mathieu Eugene, sponsor of the bill. "I am pleased to sponsor Int. 264 A, which will help reduce this waste by clarifying the requirements of drinking fountains in all new commercial occupancies and those undergoing any major renovations. Specifically, the bill will require that drinking fountains include a separate faucet at least 10 inches high in order to encourage individuals to use and refill their own containers. In addition, this bill will allow up to 50% of required drinking fountains to be substituted by other devices, such as water coolers, while also ensuring that bottled water dispensers can no longer be used as a substitute for drinking fountains."

Int. No. 268-A
• BEFORE: Leaks and equipment malfunctions in buildings can waste a tremendous amount of water and can persist undetected for years. 
• AFTER: this bill would require alarms and sub-meters to detect water leaks and monitor water use on certain water equipment. Under the legislation, all roof tanks must have a high-water level alarm which would activate when there is too much accumulation of water and such tanks fail to operate properly and certain commercial facilities and equipment that use a large amount of water would be required to install sub-meters to monitor water use. 

The bill would to new construction and alterations to an existing building to repair or replace the noted equipment. This bill would take effect January 1, 2011.

“I am very pleased to be part of the Council’s work to make our buildings greener and more efficient, including this bill which will help building owners detect water leaks in water tanks and other major equipment that would otherwise go unnoticed,” said Council Member Brad Lander, sponsor of the bill. “As a result of this bill, buildings will be able to more easily avoid structural damage and major water waste. This legislation, in combination with the other green building bills that the Council has brought forward, will allow us to reduce the amount of resources that keeps New York City running.”

Int. No. 271-A
• BEFORE: The City’s current water flow rate requirements for certain fixtures allows a lot of water to be wasted.
• AFTER: The bill would lower the maximum water consumption flow rate or quantity for certain plumbing fixtures, including showerheads, urinals, water closets, certain lavatories and sink faucets and require these fixtures to use less water.  This bill will also permit the installation of dual-flush toilets. It has been estimated by some that reducing the amount of water used by plumbing fixtures such as water closets and showerheads could reduce water consumption by 5-7 gallons of water per person per day or 3-4% in the next 10 years.

This bill would apply to new construction and upon replacement of fixtures and would take effect on July 1, 2012.

“Our fresh water supply is a precious resource that shouldn’t be squandered.  As our city continues to grow – and our need for water grows with it – we need to look for ways to minimize our wasted water,” Councilwoman Jessica Lappin said.

“The bills we are passing today use a multi-prong approach to increase water efficiency standards in the City," stated Council Member Erik Martin Dilan, Chair of the Committee on Housing and Buildings. "They encourage the use of products that conserve water,  require the installation of sub-meters and alarms to catch water leaks, and seek to increase the use of drinking fountains. These bills not only have the potential to protect the environment, they also have the potential of saving New Yorkers a substantial amount of money."

In July 2008, the Mayor and the Speaker requested the Urban Green Council convene a panel of experts to help green the laws and regulations that govern existing city construction codes.

The Task Force Steering Committee is comprised of New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, high level New York City officials and the Chairs of the Task Force Technical Committees. It is chaired by Russell Unger, the executive director of the Urban Green Council.

Stopping bullying and discrimination
The City Council is actively pushing Congress to take action on two pieces of critical anti-bullying legislation. Together, the Student Non-Discrimination Act and the Safe Schools Improvement Act would make discrimination in schools based on sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression a crime and would require schools that receive federal funding to implement comprehensive anti-bullying policies that include sexual orientation and gender identity. Neither bill has reached the floor for a vote. The Council will introduce a resolution today calling on Congress to pass both measures.

“We need to ensure that New York’s colleges and universities are places where students come and excel in a safe learning environment,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “No student should have to worry about being bullied or harassed because of who they are.  It is incumbent upon our leadership to ensure that these spaces are safe for all young people.”

“In light of the recent hate crimes against LGBTQ people in New York City and the suicides of the LGBTQ youth around the country, the passing of legislation by Congress to protect young people from anti-gay bullying and discrimination in schools is needed now more than ever,” said New York City Council Member Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights). “I look forward to passing this resolution as an affirmation by the council that we stand united in our efforts to protect all youth in New York City.”

“Making schools safe for all kids, including LGBTQ youngsters, is a moral imperative,” said Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer, co-sponsor of the bill. “As the events of the last month have shown, hateful words and bullying can kill, and even when it doesn't, the scars can last forever. Congress needs to act on these two pieces of life-saving legislation now, before any more lives are lost.” 

The Council will also be introducing a resolution today that will call upon the New York State Legislature to override Governor Paterson’s veto of the bill that would have provided people living with HIV/AIDS rental shelter. The bill would have capped the amount these people would have had to pay rent at 30 percent.

“We commend the State Assembly and the Senate for passing this important bill, and we were deeply disappointed when Gov. Paterson decided veto it,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “That’s why we are calling on our colleagues at the state to override this veto, in order to provide affordable housing protection to more than 11,000 New Yorkers living with HIV/AIDS – many of whom may eventually face eviction due to their high rent burdens. This bill will provide critical relief to people living with HIV/AIDS, many of them to live on about $11 a day.”

"Every day we wait to pass this bill, we are putting people's lives at risk,” General Welfare Committee Chair Annabel Palma said. “It is simply more cost-effective to give people affordable housing. Although Governor Paterson's veto is deeply disappointing and contradicts pledges of support he gave advocates, we are looking to the legislature once again to do the right thing and protect vulnerable New Yorkers."
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