Designing Greener Buildings and Improving Energy Efficiency
Sustainability plays a role in many facets of our health system—from nutrition and associate fitness and wellness to repurposing office supplies and medical equipment.
It also means taking bold and decisive steps to reduce our carbon footprint in tangible ways. Montefiore has proudly taken a proactive approach to sustainability for decades.
Mayor’s Office of Sustainability NYC Carbon Challenge
Montefiore has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent, firmly placing us ahead of schedule for the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability NYC Carbon Challenge, part of New York City’s Green Building & Energy Efficiency Plan. The initiative was created in 2007 by the NYC Mayor’s Office to encourage commitment on an institutional level to a 30 percent greenhouse gas reduction in 10 years.
Montefiore made a deeper commitment to reduce our greenhouse gasses by 50 percent by 2025—something not all institutions have done. Today, we are working to achieve this 50 percent reduction target—ahead of schedule—by managing inefficiencies in building design, lighting, mechanical systems and waste generation.
Combined Heat & Power (CHP)/Cogeneration
In 1993, Montefiore became the first New York City hospital to install a nearly five-megawatt combined heat & power (CHP)/cogeneration plant.
Investing in combined heat & power (CHP)/cogeneration allows us to provide to Montefiore patients, employees and members of the communities we serve a safe, reliable, resilient and environmentally-friendly source of power.
We increased our commitment to cogeneration by adding another plant with an additional capacity of 4.5 megawatts in 2001. In total, we have the capacity to produce just over nine megawatts of power at our flagship Moses Hospital. Steam—the byproduct of electricity generation—creates enough energy to warm our buildings on the coldest of days and cool them during the most scorching summer months.
Energy Management
Members of our multidisciplinary sustainability team understand that thermal comfort increases our patients' ability to heal. To promote optimal levels of heating and cooling for patients, as well as visitors and employees, Montefiore went live with its Building Management System in 2005, which allows remote control of room temperatures.
The sustainability team—part of Montefiore’s Department of Engineering—has also led efforts to monitor certain parts of our plant and buildings systems to ensure energy efficiency. In addition, our complex energy procurement program decreases operating expenses by analyzing projected weather patterns and changes within the energy market. This approach enables Montefiore to dedicate more time and financial resources to caring for all those whom we serve.
EnergyStar
Montefiore uses EnergyStar’s Portfolio Manager to track and trend the performance of its buildings or campuses. The data collected in the portfolio is used to report to the U.S. Department of Energy's Better Buildings Challenge. Montefiore joined the challenge in 2016, which requires a 20 percent reduction in energy use by 2020.
