Energy Efficiency, Energy Storage, Solar  -  February 13, 2025

NY Funds Energy Efficiency at Two Public Colleges

New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced the state will provide $150 million in climate resiliency grants for projects that will improve the energy efficiency of New York State’s public college campuses.

These grants received funding from the $4.2 billion Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act of 2022. The State University of New York (SUNY) is receiving $100 million for clean energy projects, including the installation of a thermal energy network at SUNY Buffalo and the City University of New York (CUNY) is receiving $50 million for solar, energy storage and heat pump projects on three campuses as part of a comprehensive plan to reduce CUNY’s carbon footprint.

“New York’s higher education institutions play a significant role in leading by example to help advance a cleaner, greener future,” Governor Hochul said in a statement. “The $150 million in new investments from the Environmental Bond Act will allow SUNY and CUNY to take a significant step forward in electrifying campuses and integrating cleaner energy solutions to reduce pollution and help New York’s colleges become more energy efficient.”

Among the SUNY projects funded by the Environmental Bond Act are the installation of thermal energy networks and building heat pump technology at Binghampton University, which is expected to lower energy use by 45% and GHG gases by 1,100 metric tons. The University at Buffalo will construct the first of many energy hubs to phase out fossil fuel-based systems and replace aging, lower-efficiency systems with on-site electrical systems that reduce GHG and improve operating efficiencies. CUNY projects funded by the Environmental Bond Act include:

The CUNY projects include parking lot solar canopies at City College of New York, which will be paired with battery storage and electric vehicle chargers. Rooftop solar and heat pumps will be installed to electrify heating and cooling. Brooklyn College will install geothermal energy systems to provide ground-source renewable heating and cooling. Rooftop solar and EV charging stations will also be installed.  A project at Hunter College will initiate the hydronic conversion transformation of North Hall energy systems away from inefficient steam and standalone window air conditioning. 

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