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Bill would fund pilot to capture wastewater heat for district heating; supporters cite local pilots
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Summary
House File 2317 would fund MPCA studies and engineering for piloting heat recovery from treated wastewater for district heating. Testifiers cited Saint Paul and Duluth studies; committee laid the bill over for further work.
Representative Kraft presented House File 2317 on April 14, proposing a pilot program and study through the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to identify wastewater treatment facilities with recoverable thermal energy and to fund engineering design for two pilot projects (one in the seven‑county metro and one outside it).
Kraft described wastewater as “an almost entirely untapped source of heat” and said pilot studies in Saint Paul and Duluth showed recoverable thermal energy sufficient to serve large district-heating networks. Luke Galsic, president and CEO of Evergreen Energy, testified that the technology is proven, pointing to Clean Heat Saint Paul and a federally funded Duluth study, and said the bill would help communities understand where to invest.
Representative Cessna suggested using prize‑based design grants to spur competition; Kraft said she would follow up. The committee laid the bill over to allow further refinement and to consider funding design grants.
