The Utility Thermal Energy Network and Jobs Act will enable utilities to provide renewable heating and cooling to entire neighborhoods!
Want to learn more about what thermal energy networks and why unions and environmentalists support them?
Tune in here!
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The Utility Thermal Energy Network and Jobs Act:
♨️Legally enables utilities to build thermal energy networks
👨⚖️Requires the PSC pilot 5 networks in each utility territory and develop regulations
🛠️Promotes union jobs and creates a #JustTransition for gas utility workers
Thermal energy networks are essentially pipes that carry hydronic or water-based fluid instead of gas.
That fluid carries thermal energy (heat) from where it's not needed to where it is, exchanging heat across buildings, subways, geothermal boreholes, water bodies, and more!
Homes and businesses can connect to the thermal energy network with air-source or ground-source heat pumps.
Heat pumps work like a refrigerator, but they can pump heat in 2 directions, providing renewable heating and cooling.
There are many benefits of thermal energy networks!
The fluid they carry isn't explosive, so they're safer for utility workers than gas.
Because the infrastructure is shared, it can be paid off by many utility customers over time, lowering up-front costs.
Ground-source heat pumps are even more efficient in the winter than air-source heat pumps are, and they will help us reduce peak energy demand.
Because heat pumps are highly efficient and "level out" energy demand, they relieve strain on the grid and improve grid utilization.
That will help prevent blackouts and save ratepayers money!
Ground-source heat pumps are up to 500% efficient.
That means for every 1 unit of energy you put into a ground-source heat pump, you get 5 units out because it harnesses already existing heat from the ground!
Another advantage of thermal energy networks is that they eliminate the need for outdoor equipment that's exposed to the elements, so they are more climate resilient and last longer.
Thermal energy networks are a system of pipes similar to the gas utility system, but the pipes are connected to a heat pump instead of an inefficient furnace which can only provide heat.
This is a model of a thermal energy network for Penn South, an apartment complex of 15 buildings in Manhattan.
Not a single geothermal borehole needs to be drilled - waste heat can be pulled from a nearby USPS distribution center!
"We've struggled to find a transition for gas utility workers.
I was intrigued by thermal energy networks.
This is a middle ground that will achieve our climate goals while providing a transition and creating thousands of good, middle-class jobs." - John Murphy, @UAPipeTrades
"Through @HeatSmartCNY, we help individuals switch to heat pumps and energy efficiency.
The house-by-house approach is not scaling up quickly enough.
We also intervene in utility rate cases, where we see millions being invested into gas infrastructure." - Jessica, @agreenewyork
"We realized that thermal energy networks could be a solution to provide renewable heat to entire neighborhoods.
Utilities have been trying to pilot thermal energy networks, but the Public Service Commission has been blocking those pilots. This law will change that!" - Jessica
Thanks to a coalition of labor and environmental advocates working together, we now have a way to build affordable, renewable heat at scale and create a #JustTransition for gas utility workers!
Let's build #RenewableHeatNow! ✊🛠️
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