Utilities: Page 16

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    Sean Pavone via Getty Images
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    Massachusetts city mandates net-zero emissions for some large buildings by 2035

    Cambridge, Massachusetts, touted its new requirements as the most aggressive in the country, as building performance standards emerge as a key tool to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from existing buildings.

    By Ysabelle Kempe • June 30, 2023
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    Phoenix passes water conservation policy that restricts turf, outdoor irrigation on new development, promotes native flora

    Editor's note: This article was originally published in American City & County, which has merged with Smart Cities Dive to bring you expanded coverage of city innovation and local government. For the latest in smart city news, explore Smart Cities Dive or sign up for our newsletter.With droug...

    By Andy Castillo • June 28, 2023
  • An engineer checks the installation of heat pump on a model house.
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    Leon Neal/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Residential heat pump, EV sales surged last year in US and globally, boosting energy efficiency

    “We are seeing strong momentum behind energy efficiency,” said International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol, and the IEA expects global investment to reach record levels this year. 

    By Robert Walton • June 21, 2023
  • A detailed landscape design plan showing topographic contour lines, orange building illustrations, green trees, and directional arrows. The layout includes winding paths and clustered vegetation. A triangular scale ruler lies on the left, and three colored pencils, colored blue, green, and yellow, rest on the lower right corner of the page.
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    NYC housing authority highlights 9% reduction in heat, hot water outages; $78M in infrastructure upgrades

    Investing in modern heat and hot water infrastructure doesn’t just reduce energy costs, it also saves money by cutting down on outages. New York City’s Housing Authority (NYCHA) has reduced its heat and hot water outages by nearly 10% compared to the previous heating season.

    By Andy Castillo • June 15, 2023
  • Seattle skyline.
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    Philip Kramer/DigitalVision via Getty Images
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    To reduce carbon footprint of existing buildings, Seattle proposes new standards

    Mayor Bruce Harrell called the legislation “among the most impactful proposals [the city] can advance to reduce emissions.”

    By Ysabelle Kempe • June 15, 2023
  • A worker installs a solar panel.
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    Sean Gallup via Getty Images
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    California’s urban roofs provide more value for community solar+storage than rural areas: report

    State and federal incentives could help “ensure that not all of our community solar is getting built in the cheapest areas out in rural locations,” said a solar developer’s Western policy director.

    By Ysabelle Kempe • June 13, 2023
  • Close-up of a gloved worker fixing pipes on a heating system.
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    Vasil Dimitrov via Getty Images
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    New York City Housing Authority says heating system improvements reduced outages by 9%

    New York City’s upgrades are just some of many taking place in municipalities across the country, with others also using energy performance contracts to save money to fund future installations.

    By Joe Burns • June 12, 2023
  • A detailed landscape design plan showing topographic contour lines, orange building illustrations, green trees, and directional arrows. The layout includes winding paths and clustered vegetation. A triangular scale ruler lies on the left, and three colored pencils, colored blue, green, and yellow, rest on the lower right corner of the page.
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    USDA announces $11B in green energy grants for rural utilities

    USDA announces $11B in green energy grants for rural utilities

    By Andy Castillo • June 8, 2023
  • City skyline from above over highways.
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    Sean Pavone via Getty Images
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    Dallas in the homestretch of ransomware attack recovery

    Security operations and tools are also getting a refresh as city officials rebuild impacted systems and make upgrades across multiple departments.

    By Matt Kapko • June 8, 2023
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    metamorworks via Getty Images
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    Greenhouse gas emissions tracking project addresses ‘flawed’ approach cities use now, researchers say

    City Climate Intelligence can provide free, near-real-time information on greenhouse gas emissions at the city, neighborhood, building and street level.

    By Ysabelle Kempe • May 26, 2023
  • Several vehicles lined up along a curb are blurred while in the foreground a white and silver electric vehicle charger is in focus.
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    Permission granted by Enel X Way North America
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    Utility plan to build 460 EV fast-charging stations in Colorado angers retailers, other charging proponents

    Gas stations, convenience store owners and other businesses say Xcel Energy's plan to own chargers makes it less likely they will install them.

    By Robert Walton • May 26, 2023
  • A detailed landscape design plan showing topographic contour lines, orange building illustrations, green trees, and directional arrows. The layout includes winding paths and clustered vegetation. A triangular scale ruler lies on the left, and three colored pencils, colored blue, green, and yellow, rest on the lower right corner of the page.
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    How green last-mile infrastructure benefits your community

    Editor's note: This article was originally published in American City & County, which has merged with Smart Cities Dive to bring you expanded coverage of city innovation and local government. For the latest in smart city news, explore Smart Cities Dive or sign up for our newsletter.Overseeing...

    By Celeste Frye • May 24, 2023
  • The Phillips 66 Los Angeles Refinery Wilmington Plant stands beyond a residential street on November 28, 2022 in Wilmington, California.
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    Mario Tama via Getty Images
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    Collecting data to support energy-burdened communities poses unique challenges, experts say

    Census data isn’t collected often enough to reflect neighborhood demographic shifts, and asking communities to self-report can present additional burdens, panelists said at a clean energy summit.

    By Diana DiGangi • May 24, 2023
  • A construction worker sets a roof joist.
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    kali9/E+ via Getty Images
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    The ‘infrastructure decade’ is here, but challenges loom for local governments at the helm

    “Money is flowing, grant applications are live, private capital is ready to move. But there are real constraints to achieving public goals,” Brookings Metro Senior Fellow Adie Tomer said at an event last week.

    By Ysabelle Kempe • May 23, 2023
  • A detailed landscape design plan showing topographic contour lines, orange building illustrations, green trees, and directional arrows. The layout includes winding paths and clustered vegetation. A triangular scale ruler lies on the left, and three colored pencils, colored blue, green, and yellow, rest on the lower right corner of the page.
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    Research highlights safety tradeoffs of electric scooter speed limiters

    Research highlights safety tradeoffs of electric scooter speed limiters

    By Andy Castillo • May 22, 2023
  • California skyline with buildings, palm trees and mountains
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    Denis Tangney Jr via Getty Images
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    Q&A

    In San Jose, city climate plans must have ‘the cool factor’

    After winning a national climate leadership award, the city’s chief sustainability officer discussed how libraries can win over electric stove skeptics and how house parties might boost community engagement.

    By Ysabelle Kempe • May 22, 2023
  • A detailed landscape design plan showing topographic contour lines, orange building illustrations, green trees, and directional arrows. The layout includes winding paths and clustered vegetation. A triangular scale ruler lies on the left, and three colored pencils, colored blue, green, and yellow, rest on the lower right corner of the page.
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    NYC adopts building emissions software developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory

    Editor's note: This article was originally published in American City & County, which has merged with Smart Cities Dive to bring you expanded coverage of city innovation and local government. For the latest in smart city news, explore Smart Cities Dive or sign up for our newsletter.Across the...

    By Andy Castillo • May 19, 2023
  • A detailed landscape design plan showing topographic contour lines, orange building illustrations, green trees, and directional arrows. The layout includes winding paths and clustered vegetation. A triangular scale ruler lies on the left, and three colored pencils, colored blue, green, and yellow, rest on the lower right corner of the page.
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    Metal buildings: Their versatility and durability suit them for public sector infrastructure

    Metal buildings: Their versatility and durability suit them for public sector infrastructure

    By Michael Keating • May 19, 2023
  • The sun sets behind some transmission lines.
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    "sunset2" by Barbara Eckstein is licensed under CC BY 2.0
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    Most of US faces elevated risk of blackouts in extreme heat this summer, NERC warns

    All areas are expected to have adequate resources for normal summer peak load, but extreme weather could create widespread challenges, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. said Wednesday.

    By Robert Walton • May 19, 2023
  • A dark blue electric bus showing a sign on the right side that reads "Nova Bus: Bring life to your city" is on a road under green trees.
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    Courtesy of Nova Bus
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    How a federal program meant to help communities buy zero-emission buses instead favors fossil fuels: report

    A legal requirement added to the Federal Transit Administration program in 2015 led to the disparity, advocacy organization Transportation for America said.

    By • May 18, 2023
  • A detailed landscape design plan showing topographic contour lines, orange building illustrations, green trees, and directional arrows. The layout includes winding paths and clustered vegetation. A triangular scale ruler lies on the left, and three colored pencils, colored blue, green, and yellow, rest on the lower right corner of the page.
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    Toa55 via Getty Images
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    Column

    The future of parking in the 15-minute city

    The future of parking in the 15-minute city

    By Jeremy Zuker • May 18, 2023
  • A grey footpath winds along the shore with a new york city skyline in the background.
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    Courtesy of New York City Department of Design and Construction
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    Q&A

    How NYC is preparing its infrastructure for extreme weather

    Thu-Loan Dinh, who helps lead infrastructure design for the city’s Department of Design and Construction, discusses the agency’s biggest resilience concerns and how to address them.

    By Julie Strupp • May 17, 2023
  • A rooftop heating, ventilation and air conditioning system for a large commercial building.
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    alacatr/iStock/Getty Images Plus via Getty Images
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    NREL energy audit tool may help cities meet climate, building decarbonization goals

    Local governments often lack the staff and resources to conduct energy audits on thousands of buildings, an engineer at the National Renewable Energy Lab said, but technology can help overcome those challenges.

    By Joe Burns • May 16, 2023
  • City skyline from above over highways.
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    Sean Pavone via Getty Images
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    Dallas restores core emergency dispatch systems after ransomware attack

    “At this point, we do not have evidence or indication that there has been data removed during this attack,” Dallas CIO Bill Zielinski told city officials Monday.

    By Matt Kapko • May 9, 2023
  • smart city, smart cities
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    jamesteohart via Getty Images
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    How governments are updating ‘operational technologies,’ including AI, and the challenges that remain: survey

    Over half of the survey respondents reported their agency plans to upgrade systems by 2025, a Center for Digital Government and Samsara survey found. Operational efficiency and cost savings are a big reason why.

    By Michael Brady • May 4, 2023