A new initiative launched on Wednesday to measure the carbon footprint of Long Island, New York. Measurements are expected to assist climate protection efforts that have already taken root in the region.
With the assistance of ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI), the Long Island Carbon Footprint Project will determine energy use and the resulting greenhouse gas emissions for each community on Long Island, providing local governments with the information needed to determine where they can focus their efforts to reduce their carbon footprint.
ICLEI will collect critical baseline data on energy use and emissions for the residential, commercial, industrial, transportation and waste sectors in each local government on Long Island. The project is supported by the Rauch Foundation and Long Island Power Authority.
While there are many other climate protection and sustainability efforts on Long Island, their collective efforts have yet to be harnessed. The Long Island Carbon Footprint Project will bring those efforts together to both assess the results of the regional inventory but also to collectively develop solutions to address how to reduce their overall footprint.
"You can’t manage what you don’t measure", says Nancy Rauch Douzinas, President of the Rauch Foundation. "If Long Island is going to get serious about reducing its greenhouse gas emissions, we need to know where they’re coming from. The Foundation hopes this project will ground these efforts in reality and serve as a catalyst for a meaningful reduction in emissions."
By incorporating existing efforts into the development of a regional greenhouse gas emissions inventory for Long Island, ICLEI will work with stakeholders to establish a regional framework by which all local governments on Long Island can be engaged and empowered to take individual action.
"ICLEI is pleased to offer the technical expertise and more than 15 years of experience working with local governments to measure and track their energy use and find tangible, cost-effective solutions that save money and increase energy efficiency," said Angela Vincent, ICLEI’s Northeast Regional Director.
With more than 500 local government members across the United States, ICLEI provides the tools, technical expertise, and membership network to drive emissions reductions and sustainability at the local level.
In addition to developing a regional inventory for Long Island, ICLEI will also be inventorying the energy use and greenhouse gas emissions for the government operations in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.
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