by Linda Reeder

The EPA's pilot program for the Energy Star for Multifamily High-Rises (MFHR) applies primarily to new construction. It was launched in 2006 with projects in New York and Oregon, and was later expanded to Colorado, Georgia, New Jersey, Texas, and Nevada in order to gather data from different climates.

In undertaking the pilot program, the EPA identified four challenges in the MFHR building type that could not be addressed by the existing Energy Star programs for homes or other commercial buildings:

• There is a split incentive in multifamily high-rise buildings, in that the costs of improving energy efficiency are paid by the developer or owner, but the resulting savings typically go to the tenants.


• Tenant turnover in MFHR is high, making tenant education difficult. Occupant behavior and building management can have a significant impact on energy use.


• Current residential modeling tools do not accurately model energy consumption in multifamily high-rise buildings.


• Benchmarking the energy consumption of new projects to similar buildings types, as done in the Energy Star program for commercial buildings, is difficult because there is very little data publicly available on comparable buildings.

At this time, the pilot phase of the MFHR program is still underway, so the EPA has not yet finally determined if it will establish a national Energy Star program for multifamily high-rises, nor has it identified what, if any, changes would be made as a result of the pilot if the program is to be launched nationally.   >>>

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SUBSCRIPTION SAMPLE The six-story Intervale Green apartment building by Edelman Sultan Knox Wood/ Architects provides 128 units of energy-efficient affordable housing in the Bronx, New York City. Photo: Courtesy WHEDCo Extra Large Image Part of an Energy Star pilot certification program for high-rise multifamily residential buildings, Intervale Green includes a green roof and other sustainable features. Photo: Courtesy WHEDCo Extra Large Image   Click on thumbnail images to view full-size pictures.