AGA study details efforts to boost natural gas use in multi-family dwellings

The American Gas Association (AGA) recently released a study, published by ICF International, detailing how governments at all levels and industry stakeholders are working to provide better natural gas service to multi-family dwellings and the potential benefits of that access.
 
“Multi-family construction is projected to sustain a high share of new housing construction over the next 20 years,” American Gas Foundation Executive Director Kathryn Clay said. “There are enormous benefits for providing access to natural gas in multi-family buildings — both for the environment and for the bottom line of the people that inhabit them. Understanding that multi-family buildings are made up of a wide range of building types with unique characteristics and needs is critical when looking to expand natural gas service to this growing market.”  
 
Multi-family construction occupies an increasingly large share of newly built residential dwelling units, growing from 25 percent to approximately 33 percent in the past 10 years.

The AGA’s report, “Expanding Natural Gas Service to Multifamily Buildings,” highlights how some regulations and policies have been blocking increased natural gas access to these residential complexes and, in some cases, presents solutions that would facilitate that access. It also looks at initiatives by natural gas utilities to increase access and shares lessons learned.
 
The study also said better access to natural gas could result in $2.2 billion in energy-bill  savings and CO2 emissions reductions of more than 20 million tons nationwide.