BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The International District Energy Association (IDEA) applauds Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn.; Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo.; and Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn., as well as Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., and Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., for introducing bi-partisan legislation that recognizes the economic and environmental importance of thermal energy and creates policies to support expanded use of district energy and combined heat and power systems throughout the country. Introduced July 21, the Thermal Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act (TREEA), represents an enormous opportunity to improve energy efficiency, increase energy security and cut greenhouse gas emissions through renewable thermal energy sources, combined heat and power and other energy-efficient technologies. “Since nearly one-third of the total energy consumed in the U.S. is used for heating and cooling buildings and industrial processes, it’s high time that national energy policies fully consider thermal energy,” said Robert P. Thornton, president of the International District Energy Association. “Currently, energy policies focus primarily on electricity and overlook huge opportunities for saving money and the environment through cleaner and more efficient uses of thermal energy. TREEA could help make that happen. Expanding existing and developing new district energy and combined heat and power systems are some of the best ways to save energy and reduce carbon emissions.” Combined heat and power (CHP) – also called cogeneration – is a way to dramatically increase the efficiency of power plants. Standard power plants typically convert around 35 percent of the fuel they burn into useful electricity and end up rejecting 65 percent or more of the fuel energy as waste heat into oceans, lakes, rivers or the atmosphere. District energy/CHP systems recover and use this waste heat for heating and cooling buildings in a surrounding area through a district energy system. “District energy and combined heat and power are not new technologies that require extensive testing or research,” said Thornton. “The McKinsey Institute, the International Energy Agency and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have all called for robust, immediate investment in district energy/CHP as a cost-effective approach to cut greenhouse emissions and deliver reliable, lower carbon energy.” District energy systems have been operating in the U.S. for more than 120 years and currently serve more than 7 billion sq ft of buildings, including landmark buildings like the U.S. Capitol and Supreme Court, Empire State Building, Mayo Clinic and Harvard Medical School. “If a national objective is to stimulate jobs by investing in green infrastructure to improve energy security,” said Thornton, “there are hundreds of cities and campuses ready right now to invest in system renewal and expansion. This was borne out in 2009 when a U.S. Department of Energy funding program for district energy and CHP was oversubscribed by a factor of 25-to-1. The industry is poised for growth, and TREEA could help leverage the benefits the industry has to offer immediately.”
