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Owners of commercial buildings with at least 20,000 square feet by 2017 could be required to track and report energy use to the city of Portland.

The Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability has launched an informational campaign aimed at educating owners what would be required if the City Council in April 2015 approves a proposed ordinance requiring building owners to participate in an Energy Star-affiliated Energy Performance Reporting Policy.

鈥淐ommercial buildings are responsible for nearly a quarter of Portland’s carbon emissions and spend more than $335 million on energy every year,鈥� said Alisa Kane, green building and development manager for BPS. 鈥淭he 5,000 commercial buildings in Portland are the city’s second-largest emitter of pollutants.鈥�

At the Thursday campaign launch Kane noted that the bureau will hold stakeholder engagement meetings in January and February.

鈥淲e want to collect comments until mid-February to help shape the program and make it easier for owners to implement,鈥� she said. 鈥淎ll we’re going to be asking for is that owners track their energy use score and report it to the city so we can make the information into data that’s accessible to the public.鈥�

The program would require owners of buildings 50,000 square feet or larger to begin tracking and reporting energy use by April 2016. Owners of buildings between 20,000 and 50,000 square feet would be required to begin reporting energy usage by April 2017.

鈥淭he proposed policy will build awareness in the commercial building sector about energy performance,鈥� Bureau of Planning and Sustainability Director Susan Anderson said. 鈥淓nergy-efficient buildings are a win for the building owner, the tenant and for Portland’s carbon reduction goals.鈥�

The proposed Energy Performance Reporting Policy would require owners to track energy usage and performance with a free online tool called Energy Star Portfolio Manager, and report it to the city annually.

Energy used to power buildings is the single largest source of carbon pollution in Portland, according to the BPS.

Kane said 10 other major U.S. cities have already implemented this program, and have found that by tracking energy usage, tenants have become more aware and have responded, on average, by decreasing usage by about 2.5 percent.

鈥淚t makes people aware of their energy use and they start looking at things differently,鈥� Kane said. 鈥淚t shines a light on improved performance and links people to resources if they need and want to do a little better at lowering energy use.鈥�

Buildings that would be included in the policy are offices, retail spaces, grocery stores, health care facilities, higher education institutions and hotels. Residential and nursing homes, places of worship, parking facilities, primary and secondary education institutions, warehouse spaces and industrial use buildings would not be included.

By requiring reporting from only commercial buildings with 20,000 square feet or more, the program would cover 1,000 Portland buildings. They account for 80 percent of the total commercial space in Portland.

This program would benefit potential buyers and tenants, Kane said, educating them about spaces’ possible hidden expenses.

鈥淭his is a great step in the right direction for the real estate industry,鈥� said Renee Loveland, sustainability manager for Gerding Edlen. 鈥淚f we’re going to get to a place where we have more environmental responsibility as a society, then tackling the built community is important.鈥�

Loveland said the program aligns with the green building practices Gerding Edlen uses, but that allowing tenants and owners to see energy usage is the 鈥渓ast frontier鈥� to sustainability.

鈥淭he first step is to see where you’re at,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat’s the first stepping-stone to knowing how to tackle the problem.鈥�

David Zier, president of Melvin Mark Construction Co., said it also tracks its buildings’ energy usage, but doesn’t think a city mandate is the way to go.

鈥淲e use it for self-evaluation because we know the intricacies of our properties, but there are some major flaws in the Energy Star program,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he rating is of very limited value, and in fact can be confusing to someone who doesn’t understand its limitations and how it’s calculated.鈥�

Kane argued that providing energy consumption information to tenants increases awareness and often inspires behavioral changes that decrease energy use, but Zier said that’s unlikely.

鈥淭enants typically aren’t what drive energy consumption,鈥� he said. 鈥淏uilding owners have more control over that than tenants do, as a practical matter.鈥�

Air conditioning and lights in a building often are linked to a timer that the owner or landlord controls, he said.

Zier said that publishing energy consumption data for a building as a whole fails to take into account tenants’ contrasting usage levels, which can vary widely depending upon the type of business. He also said that, in his experience, energy consumption levels aren’t a deciding factor for potential tenants.

鈥淭hat hasn’t been a factor for the majority of our prospective tenants,鈥� he said. 鈥淎s a property owner we’re driven to control energy consumption because it affects our bottom line, but most buildings in Portland are rented on a gross basis, so energy consumption doesn’t change the rent amount for tenants.鈥�

Zier said he doesn’t think that requiring building owners to report energy usage levels is of value to the community. Tracking and reporting costs time and money that could be better spent elsewhere, he added.

The bureau has two January events scheduled where interested parties will be able to ask questions and understand next steps. The first information session will take place from 9 to 10:30 a.m. on Jan. 14. The second is scheduled from 3 to 4:30 p.m. on Jan. 20. Both events will take place at 1900 S.W. Fourth Ave., Room 2500A on the second floor.

People can learn more about the program, provide feedback or sign up for policy updates.