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    1. Energy Efficiency

    City of Philadelphia and Gas Utility release Diversification Study to achieve Net Zero by 2050

    Dec. 13, 2021
    The study evaluates the pathways to reducing GHG emissions and suggests pilot projects
    Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons
    Philly From Wikimedia 61b7a29e929c3

    The City of Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability worked with Philadelphia Gas Works to release a Philadelphia Gas Works Business Diversification Study, which will help the city achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The study aimed to identify pathways to reducing emissions, while maintaining customer affordability and supporting the PGW workforce of over 1,600.

    The study has evaluated the pathways to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from heating and other uses of natural gas. The pathways identified were in line with the city’s climate and air quality goals. The study also determined the near-term business strategies for PGW to ensure affordability to customers and sustain jobs. It has outlined some pilot projects for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, ensure long-term workforce opportunities and benefit the low-income customers.

     The pilot strategies include:

    ·        A weatherization program, wherein the city and PGW will seek funding opportunities to support the low- and moderate-income customers for the implementation of the weatherization applications, like home insulation.

    ·         A feasibility study to investigate the technical and geological potential of block-level networked geothermal district systems, the utility financial and regulatory model for the system and the required skillset in the workforce.

    ·         A local decarbonized gas program to explore the potential to convert City waste to biomethane using local resources.

     The study is part of the city’s climate action and supported by the Bloomberg Philanthropies American Cities Climate Challenge.

    About the Author

    EnergyTech Staff

    Rod Walton is senior editor for EnergyTech.com. He has spent 14 years covering the energy industry as a newspaper and trade journalist.

    Walton formerly was energy writer and business editor at the Tulsa World. Later, he spent six years covering the electricity power sector for Pennwell and Clarion Events. He joined Endeavor and EnergyTech in November 2021.

    He can be reached at [email protected]. 

    EnergyTech is focused on the mission critical and large-scale energy users and their sustainability and resiliency goals. These include the commercial and industrial sectors, as well as the military, universities, data centers and microgrids.

    Many large-scale energy users such as Fortune 500 companies, and mission-critical users such as military bases, universities, healthcare facilities, public safety and data centers, shifting their energy priorities to reach net-zero carbon goals within the coming decades. These include plans for renewable energy power purchase agreements, but also on-site resiliency projects such as microgrids, combined heat and power, rooftop solar, energy storage, digitalization and building efficiency upgrades.