The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the top 2017 cities for energy efficiency, and Kansas City ranked 16 on the list for its ENERGY STAR certified buildings.
The top 25 cities included: Washington, DC, Los Angeles, CA; New York, NY; San Francisco, CA; Atlanta, GA; Dallas, TX; Chicago, IL: Houston, TX: Boston, MA; Phoenix, AZ; Philadelphia, PA; Denver, CO; Austin, TX; Riverside, CA; Seattle, WA; Kansas City, MO; San Jose, CA; Minneapolis, MN; Sacramento, CA: Miami, FL.; San Diego, CA; Virginia Beach, VA; Cincinnati, OH; Portland, OR; and Indianapolis, IN.
The 2017 EPA list of the top cities with the most ENERGY STAR certified buildings in the previous year includes the emissions prevented and the cost savings per city.
In Kansas City, 125 buildings were ENERGY STAR certified in 2016 for a total of 14-million square-feet of space. To qualify, a building must earn an ENERGY STAR score of 75 or higher, indicating that it outperforms 75 percent of similar buildings nationwide.
In Kansas City, this resulted in a $10-million energy savings and a CO2 emissions savings equivalent to eliminating the electricity use in 10,300 homes for a year, according to Dennis Murphey, KCMO chief environmental officer.
“This ranking is a testament to the great work of building owners and managers in Kansas City who were recently recognized for their participation in our 2016 Mayor’s Energy Challenge, in addition to many other building owners and managers in Kansas City and across the entire metro area,” said Mayor Sly James.
At the Mayor’s Energy Efficiency Awards event on June 13, James recognized building owners and managers in Kansas City, MO who had accepted his challenge to improve their 2014 scores. Several buildings that received certification in 2016 or in previous years were recognized, including KCMO City Hall, which was certified in 2012 and increased its ENERGY STAR score in 2016. Other award winners included the Centennial Building, J.E. Dunn Headquarters, Assurant Inc. and Shook, Hardy, & Bacon.
By the end of 2016, nearly 30,000 buildings across the country had earned EPA’s ENERGY STAR certification. Combined, these buildings have saved more than $4 billion on utility bills and prevented greenhouse gas emissions equal to the annual electricity use of nearly three-million homes.
