This limits geothermal energy to only those who can afford upfront costs before seeing substantial energy bill savings. Geothermal credits are worth $10-13 while solar energy credits are worth hundreds of dollars, Santry said. Currently, geothermal renewable energy credits are so low that most cannot overcome first cost hurdles. Geothermal energy is not new, but there is currently no incentive to invest in geothermal infrastructure in Maryland since geothermal energy is mixed with the other dozen technologies in the “tier 1” clean energy category of the RPS, said Adam Santry, the president of Maryland Geothermal Association and Allied Well Drilling, a geothermal well drilling company.Įnergy companies must use some percentage of solar and wind as a part of their credits, but not geothermal. It could also reduce 140,000 tons of carbon emissions each year, which is equal to the greenhouse gas emissions produced by over 320,000 barrels of oil, Rinehart continued. At least some must come from solar and wind, but there was no previous carve-out for geothermal energy.Īccording to the Public Service Commission, all certified geothermal systems in Maryland made up only 0.0036% of retail electric sales last year.Ĭharkoudian’s bill would double the size of the current geothermal market in Maryland, to reach up to 25,000 homes and hundreds of buildings such as schools, hospitals and community centers across the state, said Ian Rinehart, an energy policy consultant for The Ad Hoc Group. To encourage a gradual transition to clean energy, Maryland set up the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard in 2004, which requires energy companies to use a specific percentage of renewable energy credits every year or pay a fee. The state has a goal to reach emission reduction by 50% from 2006 levels by 2030, which makes decarbonizing buildings key to reaching this goal. Department of Energy, geothermal energy produces one-sixth of the carbon dioxide that a natural-gas power plant emits.Īround 18% of greenhouse gas emissions in Maryland come from heating and cooling in buildings, according to the state’s greenhouse gas inventory. Since they do not require burning a fossil fuel and instead depend on almost unlimited amounts of heat from the earth’s core, geothermal systems can significantly reduce a building’s carbon footprint. In the summer, the pump captures the warm air in the home and releases it into the cooler ground. In the winter, the fluid absorbs the heat from the warmer earth and pushes it through a pump system inside the house to produce warm air. It involves a loop of underground pipes circulating water and other liquids, such as antifreeze. Geothermal energy systems rely on the constant temperature of the earth (around 55 degrees Fahrenheit) to heat and cool buildings. There are already carve-outs for solar and wind. In other words, it would create a “carve-out” for geothermal energy within the state’s top renewable energy tier under the RPS. Lorig Charkoudian (D-Montgomery), would require 1% of the state’s Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS) to come from geothermal energy produced in the state by 2028. (R) is expected to sign the bill Tuesday. In an effort to reduce carbon emissions faster, Maryland lawmakers introduced a bill this year to promote the use of geothermal energy - one of the most efficient ways to heat and cool buildings - through renewable energy credits.
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