District Heating and Cooling in the United States

Used historically in urban areas but now mainly in institutions, district heating and cooling systems—efficient centralized energy systems that may use energy sources other than petroleum—have gained renewed interest. This volume is a nontechnical examination of the history and current extent of district heating and cooling systems in the United States, their costs and benefits, technical requirements, market demand for them, and European experience with such systems, with major focus on the problems of financing, regulation, and taxation. Appendixes provide case studies of cities and towns currently using district heating and cooling systems.

• Front Matter
• Executive Summary
• 1 Introduction
• 2 History and Background
• 3 The Market for District Heating and Cooling
• 4 Impediments
• 5 Leadership, Strategy, and Institutional Arrangements
• 6 Technology and Product Development
• 7 Conclusions and Recommendations
• Appendix A: Case Studies
• Appendix B: Systems in Washington, D.C., and Baltimore Metropolitan Areas
• Appendix C: District Heating in Europe
• Appendix D: Technical Assessment, City of Baltimore District Heating Project
• References
• Glossary of Acronyms