Defenders of Wildlife
Office in Washington, DC, DC · 1130 17th Street NW · 20036
At a glance
Defenders of Wildlife is a 47,898-square-foot office building at 1130 17th Street NW in Washington, DC, built in 1959. In its 2023 Washington, DC benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 55 out of 100 (grade C), a site energy-use intensity of 59.6 kBtu/ft² and 226 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 19% of the 774 scored office buildings in Washington, DC.
Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 55 (band C) |
| Site EUI | 59.6 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 137.0 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 226 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 4.7 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 596,721 kWh |
| Natural gas | 8,186 therms |
| Water use | 494 kgal |
| Gross floor area | 47,898 sq ft |
| Source record | dc:PM20405984:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 55 | -14 | 59.6 kBtu/ft² | 226 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 69 | 50.4 kBtu/ft² | 191 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS
DC's Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) require buildings below the performance standard to improve over compliance cycles (the first ends December 31, 2026; later cycles run five years), with penalties for buildings that fail to meet their pathway.
Ownership
DEFENDERS OF WILDLIFE
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Location
- Address
- 1130 17th Street NW
- City
- Washington, DC
- State
- District of Columbia
- ZIP
- 20036
- Coordinates
- 38.90496, -77.03879
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
- Main Complexscore 59
Office · 1,872,507 sq ft
- International Squarescore 56
Office · 1,233,833 sq ft
- Midtown Centerscore 91
Office · 911,093 sq ft
- Lafayette Centrescore 74
Office · 908,482 sq ft
- NGS Headquartersscore 68
Office · 746,237 sq ft
- Northwestern Buildingscore 90
Office · 732,964 sq ft
See also: most efficient in Washington, DC · biggest emitters
How does Defenders of Wildlife compare with other office buildings in Washington, DC?
The latest disclosures cover 899 office buildings in Washington, DC, out of 6,870 buildings citywide. Defenders of Wildlife's ENERGY STAR score of 55 compares with an average of 70 across the 774 that report a score; it scores higher than 19% of them and lower than 80%. Its site EUI of 59.6 kBtu/ft² is roughly in line with the average of 55.6 kBtu/ft². Its emissions intensity of 4.7 kgCO₂e/ft² is roughly in line with the group average of 5.0 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 47,898 sq ft, it is about 78% below the average floor area of 216,135 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1959, 15 years earlier than the group's average year built (1974). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 15,264 office buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 73 and a site EUI of 59.3 kBtu/ft².
How has Defenders of Wildlife's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 2 Washington, DC disclosures for Defenders of Wildlife, covering report years 2022–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 69 in 2022 to 55 in 2023 (-14 points); its best year on file was 2022, at 69. Site EUI moved from 50.4 kBtu/ft² (2022) to 59.6 kBtu/ft² (2023), an 18% increase. Reported emissions went from 191 tCO₂e to 226 tCO₂e over the same span (up 19%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 55 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 55 means the building performs better than about 55% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 55 falls in band C — below median (55–69). It sits 20 points below 75, the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification. In Washington, DC, 47% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. Defenders of Wildlife's 59.6 kBtu/ft² across 47,898 sq ft works out to about 2.9 billion Btu (837 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 137.0 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 596,721 kWh of electricity, 8,186 therms of natural gas and 494 thousand gallons of water for the year.
Which law requires Defenders of Wildlife to report its energy use?
Defenders of Wildlife reports under the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS, the legal basis of Washington, DC's Building Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2023 disclosure (source record dc:PM20405984:2023). DC's Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS) require buildings below the performance standard to improve over compliance cycles (the first ends December 31, 2026; later cycles run five years), with penalties for buildings that fail to meet their pathway.
More office buildings in Washington, DC
- Bromine· 47,569 sq ft · EUI 62.3 kBtu/ft²
- BROMINE· 47,569 sq ft · score 99 (A)
- Jemal's Manhattan - 1328 Florida Ave NW· 47,456 sq ft · score 58 (C)
- 3939 Wisconsin Ave, NW· 47,451 sq ft · score 71 (B)
- 1146 19th Street· 47,083 sq ft · score 87 (A)
- PENN-BAMA LLC· 47,022 sq ft · EUI 38.2 kBtu/ft²
- Office buildings in Washington, DC· 899 benchmarked
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Frequently asked questions
What is Defenders of Wildlife's energy grade?
Defenders of Wildlife scores 55 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band C, below median (55–69) — in its 2023 Washington, DC disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does Defenders of Wildlife use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 59.6 kBtu/ft² (137.0 kBtu/ft² source) across 47,898 sq ft, including 596,721 kWh of electricity and 8,186 therms of natural gas.
What are Defenders of Wildlife's carbon emissions?
Defenders of Wildlife reported 226 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (4.7 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is Defenders of Wildlife?
Defenders of Wildlife is at 1130 17th Street NW, in Washington, DC 20036. Its coordinates are 38.90496, -77.03879 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Building Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is Defenders of Wildlife and when was it built?
Defenders of Wildlife has 47,898 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1959 as its year built. It is classed as office.
Is Defenders of Wildlife covered by the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS?
Yes — it appears in the 2023 Building Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS.
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About this data
Source: Building Energy Benchmarking (Clean and Affordable Energy Act / BEPS), as published July 9, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “Defenders of Wildlife, Washington, DC — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/washington-dc/defenders-of-wildlife-d6d7c086 (data as of July 9, 2026).