All right, I'll violate my "self-disclosure" rule by sharing one of my secret fantasies: to build a backyard hot tub that uses no chemicals, doesn't pollute, doesn't contribute greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, requires minimal maintenance, etc. I doubt I'll ever complete this project, since I'm not particularly handy and I don't have a lot of free time, but I'll talk about it occasionally anyway. It's no longer a secret fantasy, after all.
I'm bringing it up now because of an email I received this morning informing me that UW-Oshkosh is going to develop a biogas plant. No, my mind didn't race to the possibility of fueling a hot tub with grass clippings and coffee grounds - although that would be great, wouldn't it? And check it out: Wisconsin leads the US not only in binge drinking, but also in "creating energy from cow manure-using digesters." Tonight I'll dream of a cow-powered hot tub...
In fact, what caught my attention was not the biogas part, but the passing mention that UW-Oshkosh is using a geothermal system to heat its Student Success Center and a new residence hall. If you're like me, you associate geothermal energy with places near mountains, volcanoes, and tectonic plate boundaries more generally - that is, the kinds of places where you find thermal hot springs. (Click on the last link to see a great NOAA map of hot springs in the US. Alas, there are none in or anywhere near Wisconsin.)
But as it turns out, we're now going well beyond our historical range for tapping into geothermal energy - if by that we mean using systems that absorb heat from the ground when it is warmer than the air, rather than just those that use good ol' hot rocks. I'll let the Wisconsin Geothermal Association explain.
OK, so maybe geothermal isn't the best word - here's a long Wikipedia article discussing why - but I like the idea that I can still actively fantasize about having a geothermal hot tub in Milwaukee.
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