Today, the NYC Water Board met to consider the water and sewer rate for 2023-2024. The DEP is proposing a rate increase of 4.42%. The Water Board will conduct a series of public hearings in May, and announce their final decision at the end of the month. We at Ashokan anticipate that the final rate increase will be 4.4%, resulting in a rate of $11.64 per 100 cubic feet.
Let the games begin..
The DEP held a public water board meeting on Friday April 29th and proposed a 4.9% water rate increase, citing lower consumption and water bills not being paid. Consumers will be shocked, as there has been minimal increases in recent years, and this would be the LARGEST increase that we have seen in some time. We predict that the DEP will reduce the increase from 4.9% to 4.7%.
The meeting also included measures to increase the late payment fee, and an increase in capital construction funding by 21%. There will be public hearings held in the coming months with rate updates and revisions for NYC.
The New York City Water Board met to propose changes to the Water & Sewer Rate Schedule to be effective July 1st, 2021. The meeting took place via teleconference on Monday May 10th at 9 AM, and was attended by Board Members Alfonso Carney, Dr. Demetrius Carolina, Sr., Evelyn Fernandez-Ketcham, Adam Freed, Jonathan Goldin, Jukay Hsu, and Arlene Shaw.
The Board announced that rates would increase by 2.76%, after years with no increase. The rate increase wasn’t unexpected, as the DEP has incurred additional cost due to Covid while consumption dropped reducing revenue. it As expected, for the eighth year in a row the deadline to file paperwork for the Multi-family Conservation Program was extended once again. This time they blamed the extension on Covid.
The most significant financial change announced was that the interest rates for late payments involving certain properties would increase from 5% to 18%. According to the Board, a two-tier interest rate had been in effect based upon the valuation of the property, but the 5% rate was the only one that was enforceable due to computer program limitations. With the upcoming launch of new software, the DEP is now able to apply the 18% interest rate to certain properties, as well as keep the 5% rate for others.
Two public hearings will be held on June 1st and 2nd at 12 PM and 6 PM, respectively, via conference call. Interested parties can call (347) 921-5612 with the access code: 107 181 687, or email comments to nycwaterboard@dep.nyc.gov by 4 PM the day before the hearing.
Not bad news for this crazy year.
In December 2018, the New York City Council Committee on Environmental Protection met at City Hall to amend the administrative code of the City of New York in relation to the commitment to achieve certain reductions in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 (Introduction No. 1253), establishing a sustainable energy loan program (Introduction No. 1252), and to a building energy efficiency grade (Introduction No. 1251). The full report can be accessed online, but in short, the clock is ticking fast to combat climate change in New York City. Our buildings contribute 70% of the city’s total carbon emissions, and the time for change is long overdue.
In 2009, Local Law 87 was supposed to mandate retrofits in large, high energy consuming buildings. The law was weakened, and instead became a voluntary retro-commissioning program. De Blasio “used retrofit to win” his position as Mayor, according to councilmembers, and attempted to make a voluntary program work – but it didn’t. Now, a full decade later, time is up. We lost this decade of potential progress due to pushback from the real estate industry. However, there is now overwhelming support for Introductions 1253, 1253, and 1251, and as the largest city in the country, it is New York’s moral obligation to do as much as we can.
Although these amendments are being presented and Local Law 87 never saw the success it was hoped to, it is important to acknowledge that the voluntary retro-commissioning program resulted in a 15% drop in carbon emissions over the past decade. However, with the new IPCC report, we know that a 15% decrease over 10 years isn’t going to cut it. New York City’s carbon reduction goals are to achieve a 40% decrease by 2030, and an 80% decrease by 2050. With the primary sources of greenhouse gas emissions being heating/ cooling and electric use, large buildings must be targeted first.
“Can a letter go out to the Trump International Building?” said a member of the committee, which was met with laughs and applause. “They don’t believe in climate change, but it’s real,” he continued. It is an unfortunate reality that at such a critical time to make huge changes to protect the future of our homes, cities, countries, and planet, the current administration is turning a blind eye to impending disaster. That’s why New York has stepped up to remain compliant with international environmental agreements such as the Paris Agreement.
Kinks in compliance were still being worked out by the Department of Buildings at the hearing last December. What we do know is that annual audits of energy use will be mandatory, as well as sub-metering non-residential tenants. Mandatory auditing is a huge step- and I see no reason to stop at energy. The NYC Retrofit Accelerator and Community Retrofit NYC programs both helped identify energy and water saving retrofits, yet “water” language is otherwise absent from today’s efficiency conversation. Decreasing water consumption leads to decreasing energy consumption, and the two utilities should not be separated in conservation efforts as they often are. Representatives from the Department of Environmental Protection, which is New York City’s water utility provider, were present at the public hearing, yet there was no discussion of mandating audits or sub-metering for water usage.
Furthermore, there are reasons beyond the 2050 carbon emission cut goals to reduce water usage, such as the impending Delaware Aqueduct shutdown or CSO mitigation in our waterways. The more water we use, the more water we have to manage, which poses real infrastructure issues. The tools exist and are readily available to tackle water consumption the way the city is about to tackle energy consumption, and I see no excuse to ignore the issue. As we know, any and all action to reduce our carbon footprint can help in the race against a disastrous future. And the race is getting tight.
The last update on the status of Intro 1253 was that it was returned unsigned by the Mayor on May 20, 2019. In the meantime, building owners and property managers can fight on the front lines of the climate battle by engaging in conservation practices for both water and energy. There are plenty of tools and consultants out there to help – such as us at Ashokan Water Services. For any noble real estate or sustainability professionals reading this, check out our monitoring, auditing, and sub-metering services.
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Allegra Miccio
Having grown up in Brooklyn, I always knew the Gowanus Canal to be a polluted waterway that was near the big-box hardware stores under the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. It was flanked by “cool neighborhoods” on either side- namely, Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, and Boerum Hill. These are the places my parents liked to go out to dinner, do boutique shopping, and catch a movie. To me there was this grey area between Fifth Avenue and Smith Street, of which I knew nothing about for most of my childhood. It was Gowanus.
Fast forward to my college years. I’m in an introduction to Urban Planning course, learning about Superfund sites. It turns out that the dirty little waterway is one of the country’s most polluted. Fast forward to present day. I’m back in Brooklyn, getting my Master’s in City and Regional Planning, and working in water management. My office is in- you guessed it- Gowanus.
With water, it’s important to consider that every part of the cycle is interconnected. One could argue that what we do at Ashokan Water Services (reading meters, monitoring consumption, and finding ways to help people save on bills, to name a few of our so-called water services) has little effect on bigger, hot-topic water issues that environmentalists are into. I, however, beg to differ.
The less water we use, the less water we discharge to the sewer systems (and the less money we spend, but I’ll leave that pitch to our sales team!) Combined Sewer Overflows (CSOs) occur when the volume of waste in the sewer system exceeds capacity. When the sewers overflow, waste is released from CSO outfalls into bodies of water, like the Gowanus Canal. This is common during precipitation events, and the discharge can contain anything from stormwater runoff to toxic waste.
So, saving water seems great. It will save bill-payers money, and help ameliorate issues like CSOs. This is where the Gowanus Canal comes in. Last summer had the pleasure of chatting with folks from the Gowanus Canal Conservancy about the Gowanus sewershed and implications of impending rezoning in the neighborhood. The inevitable future of high-rise residential buildings in the area will lead to increased volume of water in the sewershed. The Conservancy’s goal is to implement extensive stormwater retention systems, such as bioswales and storage tanks in buildings, to eventually reach zero CSO. Requirements to implement sewage overflow prevention measures in new developments are included in the rezoning outline.
Mitigating waste dumped into the Gowanus Canal will allow the waterway to more easily transition to a natural state. The reintroduction of mussels and oysters into the ecosystem helps to filter water, and creating natural banks rather than built up bulkheads can help improve storm resiliency. While some groups advocate for development catered towards human recreation (such as boat slips, access points, and promenades), I think it is wiser to focus on returning the canal to a more natural state.
As someone who spends every day in relatively close proximity to the canal, I am concerned about the seriousness of health issues. There are reportedly higher than average cancer rates in the area, and anyone who comes in direct contact with the water is at even higher risk. I also had the opportunity to canoe with the Gowanus Dregdegrs Canoe Club last summer, and I’m going to be honest, I was very paranoid about touching the water. It was nasty. While I support their initiatives as stewards and educators, and hope that the Gowanus can ultimately be reclaimed for human enjoyment, remediation needs to come first.
Ultimately, the introduction of residential buildings surrounding the canal will lead to increased demand for public space. It is likely that this demand will come before the canal ceases being a cocktail of toilet water and chemicals, because of the impending rezoning in the area. The Department of City Planning’s rezoning framework for Gowanus is focused on resilient infrastructure, open space, job growth, and residential development. As can be seen with the first residential development to go up bordering the canal (365 Bond), some public space that has already been created.
Despite the filthiness of the Gowanus Canal, it really can be quite beautiful. It is as much an asset as it is an issue, and with the hard work of advocacy groups and conservationists in the neighborhood, the aforementioned Conservancy and Dredgers to name a few, change can be made. It is my dream for an organization like Ashokan to help spread the water conservation good news. Every effort helps, and every drop of water saved makes a difference.
It is important to keep in mind that water issues such as these are not limited to the Gowanus neighborhood. It is important to conserve water anywhere and everywhere! For more information on how we can help you save water, check out our website.
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Allegra Miccio
On May 1st, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection proposed a 2.31% increase to the water rate for Fiscal Year 2020. The increase is subject to approval by the New York City Water Board, which will hold a series of public hearing. If approved, the rate increase will go into effect on July 1, 2019.
Despite the proposed rate increase, water still costs less in New York City than in most of the country. Single family homeowners can expect to see an average increase of $1.82 on their monthly bills, and multi-family units will see an increase of around $1.35 per month. Additionally, the minimum charge of using less than 92 gallons of water per day will not increase. For the past six years, this rate has remained constant at $1.27 per day.
According to the DEP, the increased revenue will be used to fund critical drinking water and wastewater projects, as well as maintain existing affordability programs for low-income and multi-family properties.
If you have any thoughts or concerns, please participate in one of the following public hearings. This information is from and available on DEP’s website.
Bronx
Thursday, May 30 at 7pm
Hostos Community College, Savoy Building, 2nd Floor
120 East 149th Street
Manhattan
Tuesday, June 4 at 2pm
255 Greenwich Street, 8th Floor
Queens
Wednesday, June 5 and 7pm
John F. Kennedy, Jr. School (P721Q)
57-12 94th Street
Brooklyn
Monday, June 10 at 7pm
St. Francis College, Founders Hall
180 Remsen Street
Staten Island
Tuesday, June 11 at 7pm
Joan & Alan Berniknow Jewish Community Center
1466 Manor Road
Alfonso Carney chairs water board meeting at which Hershel Weiss presented the following testimony:
“Hershel Weiss, President of Ashokan Water Services, Inc., which represents the owners of 8,500 buildings in NYC, who look to Ashokan for water conservation, bill monitoring and guidance through Water Board/DEP’s regulations.
On this matter, we again request you state what rule is in an official memo.”
We are saddened to hear the news of Leon G. Billings’ passing. Billings was a staunch environmental advocate and a leader in passing environmental laws and regulations.
He was the principal author of the 1970 Clean Air Act, and as the first director of the Senate environment subcommittee, headed the 1972 Clean Water Act and 1977 amendments for antipollution laws.
Today we enjoy a more pristine world because of Billings, and those, who like him, have committed themselves to preserving the environment. Let us honor his memory by striving to further his life’s work of making a cleaner earth and more sustainable future.
It has always been our goal at Ashokan to do our part in safeguarding the environment. Today we remember the legacy left by Leon G. Billings, and hope his memory will inspire others to do the same.
Last weeks rain barely hit the Catskills. The small amount of moisture fell on dry soil, and was quickly absorbed. New York’s reservoir level keeps dropping. It now stands at 56.8%. How low can the reservoirs go before the city becomes concerned and declares a drought?
Mayor de Blasio appointed Vincent Sapienza as acting Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner earlier this month to replace the departing Emily Lloyd. Sapienza has been dragged to the front row as a figurehead representing the DEP after maintaining a non-political post in charge of the DEP’s infrastructure.
The boots Sapienza will be stepping into will no doubt be muddy. Emily Lloyd left behind a number of major challenges that need to be addressed immediately.
The first challenge is the absence of the water rate increase. For the first time since 1995, the water rate increase was revoked by court. How will the Water Board balance its budget if New York City citizens won’t be charged more for water? This is great news for the people but what will happen to the dynamics of political funds?
Another challenge Sapienza will duel with are concerns the Multi-family Conservation Program (MCP) applications. MCP allows flat-rate billing of water bills for buildings with four or more apartments. The MCP program can help save water but thousands of MCP applications are backed up and the MCP guidelines are being ignored. Is the DEP withholding from processing these applications because they know they will lose money?
These problems presented require a permanent commissioner, not from an acting commissioner. I strongly urge Mayor de Blasio to appoint Vincent Sapienza to be the permanent DEP commissioner so these issues can be dealt with. This is a time of crisis for the DEP, the DEP’s reputation and trust from the people are at stake and we need someone with a firm grip on the steering wheel, not an acting commissioner.
Water Watch NYC 