As we approach town meetings across Vermont, Energy Committees will be pitching electrification and retrofits, but a big opportunity is missing from the discussion — District Energy. It is time for us to rally behind the idea of District Energy to help our rural town of North Montpelier aka Singing Bridge become a climate-smart blue-print for other communities.
District Energy (DE) is a system that uses a central energy plant to generate heating, cooling, and/or electricity for a group of buildings or a community. The energy is distributed through a network of pipes, wires, or other conduits to individual buildings or homes. District Energy can be powered by a variety of sources, including renewable energy sources like solar, geothermal, and biomass, as well as traditional sources like natural gas and coal. District energy systems are more efficient than individual heating and cooling systems for each building. By using a central energy plant, the energy is distributed more efficiently, resulting in less energy waste and lower costs to each homeowner and the community.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IRA) bill passed by the US government in 2021 includes funding for water, sewer, and energy infrastructure improvements. The most cost-effective way to deploy DE is when a community is replacing their water and sewer lines. By installing both systems at the same time, these infrastructure components can be shared, reducing overall costs. We may not have the density yet, but now is the time with the federal funds available to prepare our community for the climate refugees we know will be seeking healthy communities like ours with clean water, air and a strong local food supply. And with a little vision and planning, we may even be able to rebuild the old waterfront hotel as part of the larger plan to rethink housing and how we may live more generously together.
Investing in district energy systems reduces our reliance on fossil fuels, lowers our energy costs, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. The federal funding from the IRA bill provides money to develop these systems, making them more accessible to communities that may not otherwise be able to afford them. It also helps to promote economic development in these communities by making them more attractive to businesses and residents — for example makes reopening Riverbend with a restaurant a viable option. Moreover, DE can help our rural town prepare for the inevitable climate migration.
The Historic Village of North Montpelier located on the crucial Kingsbury Branch watershed near its junction with the Winooski River, deserves new water and sewer lines and DE. The “downtown” industrial zone offers a perfect location for a biomass plant (with a biochar component) to compliment the local hydro and solar. A number of businesses are hoping to get started in downtown North Montpelier, including the revitalization of the store, and with public water and sewer, we could get a restaurant, the store, the repair cafe, the dance hall, elder housing, a community car and bike bank, and a we-work type space for a number of local businesses, including a real estate brokerage. Ideally, these businesses would be partially community-owned so the town avoids the gentrification death spiral pricing our elders, school teachers, nurses, carpenters, mechanics, and those who keep the crackle alive and make these villages the place we want to call home.
The central North Montpelier pond could act as a potential heat sink similar to what Ithaca NY has designed with their Lake Source Cooling (LSC) project. Given the need to protect our precious watersheds and organic farmland as well as provide strong economic engines to revitalize our communities, DE is a slam dunk.
Let us rally behind this opportunity to make North Montpelier a climate-smart model for other rural communities. By investing in District Energy, we can build a sustainable future while promoting economic development and creating a better quality of life for our community. Let us lead forward and take advantage of the funding from the IRA bill, raise our hands and make it happen. Time is of the essence.
Celina
Who knew there was something called district energy? Not I...Singing Bridge is getting the word out!