Page 40 - 2020 Westchester Economic Development Guide

Green Initiatives Clean and Green
Westchester features leading-edge programs and businesses dedicated to advancing green business practices while adopting clean and renewable energy resources.
A New Vision
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Westchester County Director of Sustainability Peter McCart discusses the County’s forward-thinking sus- tainability efforts and commitment to the environment.
What does the County Director of Sustainability do?
My role is to analyze the County’s ener- gy use, and through computer models and other analytic methods, I provide recommendations on how to lower energy consumption. We do this by an evaluation of energy-saving technol- ogy and considering best practices in the field to enhance the County’s envi- ronmental resource practices.
What sorts of initiatives are you working on?
We focus on three three major catego- ries – transportation, heating/cooling and energy use.
We have a 9 megawatt solar power project, stretching over seven differ- ent facilities around the County that we own. We are also electrifying our transportation fleets. Our bus fleet will
be fully electric or electric hybrid by 2024, so we are on a fast track. Plus, we are electrifying our County-owned cars and trucks.
We’re also putting in charging stations for the public in parking lots at places like train stations and parks, using grant money secured through the State.
In April, we have the Earth Month Big Clean – a major clean-up County-wide that will celebrate the 50th anniver- sary of Earth Day. That’s also when the state’s plastic bag ban goes into place.
Finally, there’s Planting Westchester, a program based on New York City’s Million Tree campaign. The effort is a long-term plan to plant trees and bushes as well as create community gardens. The plants absorb carbon, but also reduce heat, minimizing heat islands in cities.
Talk about Westchester’s commitment to the environment.
We’re very fortunate that we live in Westchester because we have George Latimer as the County Executive. He listens to science. We believe in science. We’re working on 60 million dollars of energy-efficiency capital projects that are creating tons of jobs. All of this shows that we are forward thinking and that we care.
Which local companies are involved in your efforts? And which deserve a shout-out?
In the private sector, Regeneron and IBM are distinguishing themselves. The New York Power Authority (NYPA) – with whom we have a general con- tract for solar programs – is also help- ing with our energy-efficiency capital
projects, as well as our solar projects, replacing boilers and saving energy.
Sustainable Westchester, an en- vironmental non-profit, is doing so many good things – including commu- nity aggregation of energy purchases across the County.
Then there’s NuEnergen. They’re helping us with an initial demand response during heat events to save money on energy use, to avoid blackouts and minimize the need for brownouts.
Westchester Green Business
Westchester Green Business (WGB) is a Business Council of Westchester pro- gram administered in partnership with Westchester County since 2009. With notable members like Regeneron, SUNY Purchase and the Westchester Medical Center Health Network, the program helps integrate sustainable business practices into company operations.
The following companies were certified by WGB as Green Businesses in 2019.
• Acadia Realty Trust
• Candela Systems
• Energize NY
• Kirkland Town Library
• Lindenhurst Memorial Library
• Lippolis Electric, Inc.
• Mid-Hudson Library System
• North Babylon Public Library
• River Architects, PLLC
• Suffolk Cooperative Library System
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Sunrise Solar Solutions, LLC
Teatown Lake Reservation
The Rey Insurance Agency Inc.
Vintage Trailer Supply, Inc.
Wartburg
Westchester Jewish Community Services (WJCS)
York International
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WESTCHESTER COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GUIDE