Decarbonizing the U.S. Buildings Sector Through Geothermal Heat Pump Adoption

Last week, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released its blueprint and nationwide strategy for decarbonizing the built environment by 2050, with assertive actions aiming to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from U.S. buildings to achieve aggressive targets such as 65% by 2035 and 90% by 2050. Additionally, delivering equity, affordability and realized resilience benefits across communities as part of the strategy is at the forefront of the blueprint's vision of economic prosperity.

With the timely release of this plan coinciding with New York's 5th anniversary of its Local Law 97 passing, the city's most significant climate law passed in 2019 aiming to curb GHG emissions from buildings over 25,000 square feet through investments in energy efficiency, electrification, and more, the time to act is now.

A recent study from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) found that coupled with building envelope improvements, installing geothermal heat pumps in around 70% of U.S. buildings could save as much as 593 terawatt-hours of electricity generation annually and avoid seven gigatons of carbon-equivalent emissions by 2050. Furthermore, In vast swaths of the country, primarily East of the Mississippi River, NREL assesses that if 70% of U.S. buildings in the area adopt geothermal pump technology, it will translate to an approximate 62-78% reduction in GHG emission reduction.

Among the many benefits of and news surrounding geothermal heating and cooling adoption, much of the landscape is still fresh to building owners and developers. As increased restrictive measures are activated Nationwide and in the coming years, building owners and developers will have to quickly pivot to define the significant and costly investments in energy efficiency, electrification, and fuel conversion for the future. 

With decades of experience helping many building owners bring their properties into compliance, such as with our 1 Java Street project, New York State's largest geothermal residential project focused on sustainability and decarbonization, Brightcore Energy is positioned to answer the call as your resource for navigating building electrification, LL97 compliance, and preparing for the future of clean energy. 

Discover how Brightcore can help you -- contact us today to learn more.

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