The New York Power Authority (NYPA) and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey have announced that energy-efficient LED lights will be installed throughout One World Trade Center, the tallest building in the United States.
“NYPA and Port Authority are partnering to upgrade and modernize the lighting at One World Trade Center, which lights up lower Manhattan as a symbol of American resiliency and ingenuity,” said NYPA Interim President and CEO Justin E. Driscoll. “The lighting improvements implemented throughout the 1,776-foot tower by NYPA will increase the building’s energy efficiency, lowering operating and maintenance costs for Port Authority while also reducing the building’s carbon footprint.”
The nearly $3 million project, which is being funded and implemented by NYPA, calls for the replacement of more than 5,800 fluorescent light fixtures with state-of-the-art, energy-efficient LED lights and will reduce carbon emissions by more than 760 metric tons—the equivalent of taking more than 170 cars off the road. The new lights will be installed in the tower’s corridors, hallways, and mechanical equipment rooms and reduce the tower’s maintenance and operating costs. The installation is set to begin this summer and complete by the end of 2023.
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The Power Authority support for the lighting project stems from the Lower Manhattan Energy Independence Initiative, a $25 million fund established by New York State in 2006 to provide support to lower Manhattan with energy efficiency improvement projects in the area.
The new lights have a 10-year life span and will reduce energy use by 60%. One World Trade Center was built in 2006. The lighting project builds on a NYPA-Port Authority announcement last year to install LED lighting inside the September 11 Memorial & Museum.
Buildings are the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in New York State, responsible for 43% of annual emissions statewide. Integrating energy efficiency and electrification measures in new and existing buildings will reduce carbon pollution and help achieve more sustainable, healthy, and comfortable buildings in support of the state’s ambitious goal to achieve 2 million climate-friendly homes by 2030. Through New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, the Power Authority, and utility programs, more than $6.8 billion is being invested to decarbonize buildings to achieve the state’s decarbonization goals.