CSE is called 'Action Arm' of

                                                    
 The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has named New York City as one of the thirteen U.S. cities chosen as the inaugural Solar America Cities. On behalf of the City University of New York, the Center for Sustainable Energy partnered with the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and the Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability in submitting a proposal outlining NYC's plans to build a sustainable solar infrastructure, streamline city-level regulations and promote mainstream solar technology adoption among residents and businesses.  New York City is now receiving DOE funding and technical assistance from the National Renewable Energy laboratory and other experts in areas such as city planning, technology selection, project financing, building codes, architecture, and community outreach.

The Center for Sustainable Energy (CSE) provided extensive research for the City from our study on New York City's Solar Energy Future that was instrumental in first achieving CUNY's Million Solar Roof goal and secondly in outlining a plan for NYC to build a sustainable solar future. The Solar City Strategic Partnership with the Department of Energy is a two year initiative that is overseen by the NYCEDC's Energy & Telecommunications Department in partnership with the Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability and the Center for Sustainable Energy on behalf of the City University of New York (CUNY).

CSE has been deemed the 'action arm' by the mayor's office and will help New York City with their initial goal of developing a strategy to install 8.1 MW of solar in the City by 2015. "I believe that when we reach that initial goal we will have addressed many of the key barriers that solar faces today," said Tria Case, Executive Director for the Center for Sustainable Energy. "We recognize that NYC is just about out of choices. Regional transmission lines can only carry 5,000 MW into our city. We need over 11,000 MW during peak demand.  Right now New York City is required to site 80% of our power plant capacity within city limits. The vast majority of our in-city generators burn either natural gas or oil. Besides the enormous environmental and health impact, relying so heavily on fossil fuels mostly purchased from foreign countries that don't always have America's best interests at heart, leaves one of the greatest cities in America particularly vulnerable as the cost of fuel increases."

Each square foot of NewYork City receives the equivalent of 160kWh of sunlight per year. This solar energy could be converted into over 125 thousand gigawatt-hours of electricity, or more than 2.5times the city's 2005 demand (Perez, 2001)

The City University of New York Joins Statewide Solar Effort

The City University of New York (CUNY) has joined The Solar Energy Consortium (TSEC) to create a new research and economic development partnership between academic institutions across the state and solar energy companies in order to dramatically advance the solar industry in New York. Congressman Maurice Hinchey helped to organize TSEC, a not for profit organization that identifies the challenges facing the solar industry for New York's scientists, engineers and business researchers to collaboratively address. TSEC's goal is to deliver turnkey economical photovoltaic (PV) systems both large and small.  CUNY joins participating institutions including Cornell University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Clarkson University, Binghamton University, and The State University of New York at New Paltz.

"The CUNY Economic Development Corporation was created to link academic research, workforce development and economic development," said Frederick Schaffer, CUNY's Senior Vice Chancellor for Legal Affairs and Chairman of the CUNY Economic Development Corporation. "The CUNY Economic Development Corporation recently partnered with the Center for Sustainable Energy to develop a new Sustainable Energy and Technology business Incubator on the Bronx Community College campus, which will provide a springboard for businesses that will be generated as a result of today's collaboration."

"The crucial role that the Center for Sustainable Energy plays is to take vision, policy, initiatives, and turn them into implementation strategies, and make them work." said Tria Case, the Executive Director of the Center for Sustainable Energy. "That means supporting the advancement and commercialization of emerging technologies, training the green collar workforce, and fostering sustainable businesses with our new incubator. Through the TSEC partnership, CSE and CUNY will help create a viable path from the lab to the roof top."

15 Million Dollars Committed

The Center for Sustainable Energy announces commitment from

CUNY Economic Development Corporation

THE BRONX IS BURNING

The newest crop of green seeds includes Down East Seafood of Hunts Point, which recently placed a purchase order for an all-electric delivery truck from Smith Electric Vehicles in England.  "We just want to thank [CSE] and NYSERDA for the chance to do this, we think it will change the way people do business" said Ed Taylor, President of Down East Seafood.  Coca Cola, which operates a facility in the South Bronx, recently acquired five new hybrid-electric beverage delivery trucks manufactured by International Trucks, and are the first of their kind to operate in the Bronx.  Last month, the Bronx Initiative for Energy and the Environment launched a shuttle bus service to the Hunts Point Market that employs a hybrid-electric minibus.  Budweiser, which is developing a plant in the Hunts Point Fish Market, recently put a compressed natural gas (CNG) powered beverage delivery truck into service, and is retrofitting several other units to cut down on diesel emissions.  All of these projects were made possible with funding from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).  In addition, Gotham Yellow, LLC, a taxi cab management company on Canal Street in the South Bronx, now has over 80 Ford Escape Hybrid vehicles in its medallion fleet and is planning to convert its entire 200 cab fleet to hybrid vehicles.

These Bronx green horns are following the cleaner tail pipe emissions of earlier way pavers that began changing their fleets around 2000.  The pioneers include Manhattan Beer Distributors, located on Walnut Avenue, which now has 15 CNG delivery trucks operating out of the Bronx site.  These are easily identified by their sky blue wrapping and white lettering proclaiming that the vehicles provide "A Breath of Fresh Air!"  Bronx News 12 has been covering events by dispatching their reporters in Toyota Prius hybrid sedans (this year they added a Ford Escape hybrid to the expo).  The U.S. Postal Service operates two all electric panel trucks at a depot on 132^nd Street in the Port Morris section of the Bronx.  Other examples of early green fleets include the various vehicles employed by city agencies located or operating in the Bronx, such as the Department of Transportation, Parks Department, Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Sanitation.  Also, the Bronx Zoo uses CNG powered tractor trains that transport visitors.

What else is coming down the road?   Coca Cola is planning on increasing its fleet of hybrid delivery trucks.  Budweiser is reviewing plans for a CNG station at its new Bronx facility for its trucks.  United Parcel Service, which operates a facility in the Bronx and Federal Express, which will open a plant in the Bronx, should give serious thought to deploying all-electric and hybrid-electric trucks like those they brought to the CSE expo.   Let's not forget the New York Post facility in Port Morris, which has dozens of delivery trucks.  On a smaller scale, BCC should convert its fleet and add to the electric GEM carts currently in use on its campus. 

The Bronx has a long way to go on the road to energy independence.  However, this is the problem that the entire city, state, region and nation face.  If we do make it down that road, people will look at this time as the early mileage marker of the trip.  

NSF Grant Leads to

CSE's effort leads to the Energy Services and Technology Program (EST) at

Bronx Community College (BCC), CUNY

The EST Program at BCC is funded with a grant of $900,000 awarded by the National Science Foundation (NSF).  It is housed in the BCC Physics and Technology Department.  The Co-Principal Investigator's of this program are Dr. Reid Strieby, Senior Associate at the BCC Center for Sustainable Energy, and Dr. Luis Montenegro, Chair of the Physics and Technology Department.

The program has been approved by the New York State Department of Education to offer a new Associate in Applied Science degree in EST.  It is the first of its kind at CUNY and New York City to address the employment needs of the energy services industry, especially in housing, commercial properties and institutional and other facilities.  The training offered to students will prepare them to become skilled technicians working in building systems and operations in many areas related to energy services.  The program also provides quality science and technology education and training for students seeking employment in areas of high job growth potential over the next ten years.

The EST program also establishes an Alternative Fuel Vehicles (AFV) option within BCC's Automotive Technology Program.  By creating affiliations within four high schools in NYC that have automotive technology programs, the EST Program will be able to provide new career opportunities for students, establishing clear educational pathways from high school to college, to job placement within the automotive industry.

Take the 'Change a Light, Change the World' Pledge!

Change a Light, Change the World Project (CLCW) at

Bronx Community College (BCC)

The Center for Sustainable Energy (CSE) introduced the CLCW project at BCC in the fall of 2007.  The CLCW project is part of the Energy Star Program which is sponsored by the U.S. EPA and U.S. DOE.  The primary goal of this project is putting energy concepts into action and education. A generous donation of 300 hundred compact florescent lights (CFL) have already been provided for this program

Our goal is to convince 300 BCC students and their parents to take a pledge to change at least one CFL in their house.  CSE trained 10 BCC students to become energy advocates and they will each make 10 short in-class presentations to students in Chemistry, Physics, Business & Information Systems, Health, Physical Education, English, Social Science and History department classes.  They will visit in total 30 classes, a raffle will be held and 10 students will receive a free CFL to take home.  Each student and their parents will sign our pledge form as a participant in the project. 

If you are interested in donating CFL's or participating in the program please contact CSE at 718-289-5332 or email at us at mail@csebcc.org

PlaNYC 2030 estimates that 5000 new green collar jobs will be created in the energy sector alone in NYC.

Outside the Pipeline is a series of interviews CSE conducts with leaders in the Sustainable Energy field.

Clement Drummond is the director of Bronx Community College's (BCC's) Automotive Technology Program and is a consultant for the Center for Sustainable Energy (CSE).

CSE:  Environmental issues, energy demand and public outcry have prompted policy makers to mandate new renewable energy and efficiency requirements in New York State and New York City. For example, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has enacted a law that requires all New York City taxis to be hybrid by 2012. Policies like this are pushing new technology into commercialization and will require a skilled workforce to install and maintain emerging technologies that will soon be a mainstay of society.  Will there be skilled technicians ready to service alternative vehicles and which technology should an aspiring technician focus on?

CD: There have been many attempts made of various vehicle types, from natural gas to propane to ethanol to bio diesel. At BCC we have an alternative fuels program where students can learn about all of these alternatives and hybrid technology. It seems at this time there is a true transition being made a, paradigm shift to hybrid technology- that's probably going to be the bridge technology that will advance us to hydrogen economy.  Most importantly in this paradigm shift- there is a great need for educating the automobile technician so there will be a seamless transition to servicing the hybrids.  We can see that General Motors, Ford, Toyota, Honda- everyone has a lineup of hybrid technology. So there is big transition for education to go in that direction to meet the needs of that industry.

CSE- Are the days gone where you can go out and tinker under the hood of your car?

CD: 20 years ago things were much different -today you open the hood and you can't find anything. Although there is a conventional gasoline engine that drives a generator on a hybrid, there is also a set of batteries in there with voltage over 300 volts. If you don't know the safety requirements, you can get injured. There are service people that specialize in servicing the underneath of your car; the brakes, tires, etc. For under the hood of these newer models, people have become accustom to going back to the dealer. Today's car can have up to 95 different computers in them and are very high tech. That requires talented trained technicians with specialized diagnostics tools to interface with the computers on a car. A lot of electronics that you find on cars have 'returned to earth', they were original designed for space shuttles, now they are part of automobiles. There are even celestial navigation systems on some cars that can be adjusted from the satellite sending a signal that reprograms the computer in your car.

CSE: Where are the technicians receiving the training to work on these state of the art vehicles?

CD: We get phone calls at BCC and at the Center for Sustainable Energy each and every day from people already in the service industry wanting to know where they can get trained on hybrid vehicles, whether it's a Prius or a Honda Civic.  Right now we are crafting a hybrid tech program for people who are already service technicians and in the spring we will have our first course as part of an associate's degree. We have also created an alliance with the National Association of Fleet Administrators to create certified training programs.

CSE: How lucrative are these jobs?

CD: There is a high demand for skilled hybrid technicians in the tri-state area as well as across the nation.  These jobs can start at 40,000 a year and go all the way up to 100,000 a year at a dealership. There are usually 3 skilled technicians at every dealership that works closely with the manufacturer that reach that 100,000 mark. Those positions usually require the technician to continue to upgrade their skills, especially on computers.