BCAN

BCAN Celebrates Passage of BERDO Regulations

On Wednesday, the City of Boston’s Air Pollution Control Commission approved the final set of regulations supporting the Building Emission Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO). These regulations are the final phase of policy supporting BERDO, which is the largest step toward combatting climate change in Boston’s history. BERDO requires all large buildings (20,000+ square feet or 15+ housing units) to reduce their emissions to net zero by 2050.

“BCAN was thrilled to successfully advocate for the passage of BERDO 1.0 and BERDO 2.0. With these approved regulations, we are one step closer to realizing our goal of net-zero buildings citywide. We’re proud to have helped the City reach this milestone” said BCAN Advocacy Director Hessann Farooqi.

The regulations were developed in partnership with the City’s Community Advisory Group, composed of ten community-based organizations working in environmental justice, affordable housing, workforce development, and social justice. BCAN members Linda Hirsch and Loie Hayes served on this Board on BCAN’s behalf. As a part of our service on the Board, BCAN hosted two focus groups with residents of buildings that will need to comply with BERDO. These are residential buildings with 15 or more units. Through these focus groups, we heard from community members in East Boston, Allston, Mission Hill, South Boston, and Jamaica Plain about concerns they would like to see addressed by the City. Notably, residents were concerned about the effect energy efficiency improvements may have on their rent. Condo association owners also felt it critical that the City proactively communicate with building owners to increase compliance with the law.

In response to these concerns, the City of Boston’s Environment Department revised the regulations to ensure tenants are protected to the greatest extent allowable under this law. These changes are summarized in the table below.

BCAN remains engaged in monitoring the performance of BERDO, particularly as we approach the first emissions reduction deadline in 2025. More needs to be done beyond these regulations to ensure tenants are not displaced due to BERDO-related repairs. We must also ensure labor unions are first in line to conduct BERDO-related renovations. BCAN looks forward to working with our partners across City Hall and the community to ensure these concerns are addressed. Every large building owner must comply with the law to the fullest extent and work proactively to meet the needs of the residents of their neighborhood.