Rocky Mountain Institute wins award for energy retrofit of Empire State Building

[cmac2012]

RMI, founded in '78 by experimental physicist Amory Lovins, sends out a newsletter every month. Largely focused on improved energy efficiency. Good stuff.

http://www.rmi.org/rmi/RetroFit

Buildings are the ultimate end-users for 68 percent of coal and 55 percent of natural gas in the United States. A huge opportunity exists to mitigate fossil fuel consumption in this sector, and it has yet to be exploited.

Despite new codes, design tools, technologies, media momentum and early success stories, the U.S. commercial building stock is no more energy efficient today than it was 25 years ago. Clearly, commercial building retrofits need to be a major part of any lasting solution to get the U.S. off fossil fuels by 2050.

[barry123400]

Have the Americans purchased their empire state building back from the Canadian that owned it? I thought it was in semi bad taste when he purchased it. We have to leave the Americans some of their heritage.

There is quite a story behind that historical edifice. I think it was errected during the thirties depression by two brothers who were builders. They had no experience on large buildings either. Anyways they got it up efficiently and with no casualties. Quite a feat at the time.

Possibly more people have rode in the buildings elevators that any I can think of over the years. It has only been commercially profitable on occassion and did survive a heavy hit by a military propellor driven bomber crashing into it at one time.

[cmac2012]

I saw a video piece about that bomber crash. Pretty wild.

I visited NY late Aug, '01. My niece and I had a beer at Windows on the World 3 weeks before 9/11. I went to the Empire State observation deck also. Pretty neat.