The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced a 51 percent reduction of its building portfolio’s annual operational greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions — more than a decade ahead of the government-wide goal of a 50 percent reduction of GHG emissions by 2032. This marks a reduction in 2021 of over 1.1 million tons of annual emissions compared to the 2008 base year.
GSA has worked to save taxpayer dollars through energy-efficient operations, smart building technologies, and sustainable new construction and building modernization. This includes a focus on competitive utility purchasing to lock in favorable prices, smooth price volatility, and procure more renewable energy. These investments enabled the agency to avoid over $80 million in energy costs in 2021, with a total of over $648 million since 2008.
This year, in furtherance of new government-wide goals, GSA will expand support of customer agencies’ needs for zero-emission vehicles and carbon pollution-free electricity (CFE) procurement. By aggregating CFE procurement across multiple agencies, GSA will help agencies meet their GHG reduction goals, while also securing consistent prices to support agency missions and benefit taxpayers.
Dan Hounsell is senior editor, facility group.
