“The study, which was published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, adds to a growing body of research that links the delivery and use of natural gas to detrimental consequences for public health and the climate.”

“The District of Columbia is soliciting design proposals for a community heat pump system, the latest pilot project to attempt to scale a decades-old geothermal heating and cooling technology to the neighborhood level…In doing so, Washington, D.C., joined a spate of other regional efforts to try to expand the use of a technology that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sees as the most energy-efficient, cost-effective and environmentally friendly way to heat and cool a building.”

“Luna specializes in applying geospatial technology to issues of environmental justice — the concept that society should cease burdening disadvantaged communities with disproportionate amounts of pollution. He teamed up with Dominic Nicholas of Home Energy Efficiency Team (HEET), a nonprofit that tracks the integrity of the gas distribution system, to analyze Massachusetts’ uniquely detailed data on gas leaks.”

“In Massachusetts, HEET, a nonprofit seeking to reduce fossil-fuel emissions, is working with two of the state’s largest natural-gas utilities to install and test networked heat pumps in neighborhoods, in the hopes of scaling the technology. A three-year Eversource project will connect about 100 homes and businesses, starting this summer. Four National Grid pilots announced in February will explore implementation in different types of neighborhoods. Changing the regulatory structure to allow gas utilities to sell thermal energy is now on the agenda at the Massachusetts Legislature.”

“Today’s guests have developed a visionary solution for for America’s sprawling natural gas infrastructure. In short, they want to replace it with ‘networked geothermal,’ water pipes that carry heat harvested from the ground. It’s called the GeoMicroDistrict, developed by the HEET (Home Energy Efficiency Team) Coalition, run by Audrey Schulman and Zeyneb Magavi.”

“Co-executive director Zeyneb Magavi said gas utilities can evolve into ‘geo-utilities,’ delivering a consistent temperature to customers instead of natural gas, and utilize the expertise of their work crews to drill holes and network the necessary pipes.Without an ambitious project like that, Massachusetts is nowhere near achieving its goal, Magavi warned.”