Project description
Paving the way for sustainable geothermal energy solutions in Europe
The potential of geothermal energy as a reliable power source often goes unnoticed. Despite its numerous advantages, including power generation and heating and cooling capabilities, deep geothermal energy is subject to environmental scepticism from decision-makers. Also, the media has focused predominantly on its disadvantages, fuelling concerns among decision-makers and investors over the risks associated with geothermal projects. In this context, the EU-funded GEOENVI project will address the geothermal’s negative perception in Europe. Specifically, the project will assess the environmental impacts and risks associated with geothermal projects across Europe and develop a robust framework for proposing environmental regulations and guidelines. It will also engage with key stakeholders, promoting the adoption of recommended regulations and implementing a life cycle assessment methodology.
Objective
The advantages of using geothermal for power production and H&C are little known. Recently, deep geothermal energy production in some regions is confronted with a negative perception, and a special attention from some decision-makers, in terms of environmental performance, which could seriously hamper its market uptake. Media reports focus more on disadvantages than advantages. As a result, decision makers and potential investors have concerns about possible environmental impacts and risks involved in implementing geothermal projects, and social resistance often results in practical obstacles - such as significant slowdowns - to the deployment of the deep geothermal resources. The first objective of the GEOENVI project is to make sure that deep geothermal energy can play its role in Europe’s future energy supply in a sustainable way. It aims to create a robust strategy to respond environmental concerns (by environmental concerns we mean both environmental impacts and risks): • by assessing the environmental impacts and risks of geothermal projects operational or in development in Europe, and • by providing a robust framework to propose recommendations on environmental regulations to the decision-makers, an adapted methodology for assessing environment impact to the project developers, and finally • by communicating properly on environmental concerns with the general public. Secondly, GEOENVI aims at engaging with both decision-makers and geothermal market actors, to have the recommendations on regulations adopted and to see the LCA methodology implemented by geothermal stakeholders. The engagement with stakeholders includes to share knowledge by adopting an open and FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable, reusable) data approach.
Fields of science
Keywords
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
CSA - Coordination and support actionCoordinator
1050 Bruxelles / Brussel
Belgium