Wastewater Energy Recovery

Wastewater flushed from homes and businesses represents an untapped source of energy in Massachusetts. Learn more about technologies and projects that have been used to recover and transfer this valuable form of thermal energy source. This innovative energy recovery method will boost the Commonwealth’s clean energy economy and advance Massachusetts emission reduction goals.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Wastewater is a valuable source of un-tapped energy that can be recovered from existing wastewater infrastructure. Wastewater Energy Recovery (WWER) is a proven decarbonization technology, with approximately 500 installations worldwide. Many of the WWER installations are in Europe and Canada and have been providing cost-effective renewable heating and cooling of commercial buildings for over 15 years[1]. WWER can be thought of as a technology that operates like Ground Source Heat Pumps (GSHPs). Whereas GSHPs reject or absorb heat from groundwater, WWER rejects or absorbs heat from wastewater. One of the more attractive differences between the two technologies is the fact that WWER does not require subsurface ground loops or boreholes, which can account for about 30% of the cost for GSHP technology.

[1] Reference: Uhrig Therm Liner Energy Systems 3-31-2023; Sharc Energy SystemsNoventa - Huber:  Toronto Western Hospital project

News and Updates

June 2025

To advance WWER technology, MassDEP has allocated $5 million to support pilot WWER demonstration projects. The WWER pilot grants launching in the fall of 2024 will support construction and activation of up to eight pilot installations across Massachusetts. The projects will enable testing of the decarbonization technology and evaluation of the resulting energy and cost savings and greenhouse gas emission reductions. This core state funding will be combined and leveraged with other sources of existing technical or financial assistance from our Massachusetts’ energy utilities (Mass Save®, Municipal Light Plants), wastewater energy technology providers who can provide preliminary assessments for interested customers and potentially other state and federal partners. Eligible Applicants:

  • Publicly-owned & privately-owned wastewater facilities
  • Municipal & state-owned buildings
  • Public & private colleges and universities
  • Nonprofit and privately-owned organizations

Wastewater Energy Recovery Pilot

Wastewater Energy Recovery Summit

MassDEP’s Clean Energy Results Program and its partners, MassDOER and the Clean Energy Center (CEC) hosted the Wastewater Energy Recovery Summit on December 8, 2023. This was a hybrid event with in-person and virtual attendance. During the summit, attendees learned from local and US-based municipalities about projects that have been installed utilizing wastewater energy recovery, as well as current projects being planned and their experience engaging with these technologies.

Presentations

Morning Session: Technology Presentations

Afternoon Presentations: Tapping into Energy from Wastewater

Summit Resources

Wastewater Energy Recovery Technology Partner Resources

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