When Energy Stinks
A sewer is where your toilet flushings, shower and dishwashing water go, and it’s a pretty warm place. That heat can generate energy, meaning that a sewer system can take care of heating and cooling a whole city. The small city of Brainerd, Minnesota is trying it out. This could be the ultimate recylcing.
On NPR.com, Conrad Wilson quotes Scott Sjolund, the town’s public utilities supervisor, as saying, "Everybody heats water up, and all that gets drained down the sewer, and that’s potential energy that could be extracted. That’s part of the equation." The bigger problem is "actually extracting it in an economical fashion."
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