Cascade, Idaho exploring geothermal district heating and cooling
The Alzar School in Cascade, Idaho (source: Seanbierle, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
Carlo Cariaga
21 Apr 2025
The city of Cascade, Idaho is evaluating the feasibility of a networked geothermal heating and cooling system to serve its residents and businesses.
The city of Cascade, Idaho is currently conducting a feasibility study on the use of geothermal for district heating and cooling, potentially lowering energy costs by 66% for homes and businesses connected to the geothermal system.
The “Geothermal Heating and Cooling District Planning Project” aims to investigate the feasibility of a heating and cooling district, determine the footprint and design for the district, identify potential users, identify workforce development and training needs related to the district, develop a financial plan/cost estimate, and estimate the costs and benefits for interested customers. The project has received a USD 200,000 grant from the US Department of Energy and another USD 100,000 from the Idaho Office of Energy and Minerals. The study is expected to be completed by 2026.
The proposed geothermal heating and cooling network will be supplied by seven existing geothermal wells in the city. Two of these wells have been providing heat to the Cascade Schools and the Cascade Aquatic & Recreation Center for more than 15 years. The other wells are currently not in use. One of the wells is owned by the city, while the others are privately owned.
The project will involve an assessment of the capacities of the wells, and a study on the number of customers who would be interested in buying into the system. A design and cost estimate for the system will then be created.
Further grants and incentives sought
If Cascade decides to move forward with the project, the city will have to construct distribution lines to homes and businesses. The current grant will not cover this phase of the project. The city instead intends to pursue new grants and could consider a bond to construct the system. No funding source has been finalized yet.
As for the end-users, customers would have to connect to the distribution network and install their own heat pumps. The city officials noted that there are several incentives available to customers to help with the costs of heat pump installation. Both the federal government and Idaho Power offer incentives applicable to geothermal heating. City engineer Trevor Howard said that most of these incentives are capped at 50% to 70% of the total cost.
Howard further noted that investing on a geothermal heat pump is worth the long-term savings compared to existing heating technologies. “Heating and cooling with geothermal heat pumps costs about a third of the cost of electricity or propane heat,” Howard said.
Source: City of Cascade, The Lewistone Tribune and Valley Lookout
