The State of New York is the latest of a number of states that have moved beyond Federal requirements for energy efficiency by establishing standards for a variety of everyday items.
The new law [Appliance and Equipment Energy Efficiency Standards Act of 2005, Laws of New York 2005, Chapter 431], signed on July 29th, will require the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to adopt the necessary regulations for implementing the new energy efficiency standards on or before June 13, 2006.
Devices covered under the new law include: automatic commercial ice cube machines; ceiling fan light kits; commercial pre-rinse spray valves; commercial refrigerators, freezers and refrigerator-freezers; consumer audio and video products; illuminated exit signs; incandescent reflector lamps; very large commercial packaged air-conditioning and heating equipment; metal halide lamp fixtures; pedestrian traffic signal modules; power supplies; torchiere lighting fixtures; unit heaters and vehicular traffic signal modules.
New York consumers and businesses stand to gain substantially from the new standards. Savings of up to 2,096 gigawatt hours of electricity a year and $284 million in overall, annual savings have been estimated.
A handful of other states have adopted similar efficiency standards to fill in the gap created by a lack of Federal action on these particular energy consuming products.
More
- Full Text of NY’s Appliance and Equipment Energy Efficiency Standards Act of 2005 – click link and search for Chapter 431 of NY’s 2005 Laws.
- New York State Energy Research and Development Authority(NYSERDA)
