Is the steam heating system in NYC ecologically wise?

Question

The wonderful heating system under the streets of NYC, based on steam and run by Con Edison

http://www.coned.com/history/steam.asp

makes me wonder how the steam is generated and if today that generation method does not cause damage to the environment. The steam is obviously a great idea, I wonder if the energy balance is the right one. On the other hand, I would like to know if other cities in the world have the same system (Iceland uses NATURAL steam from geisers).

Answer 1

The heating system has been deemed fit for the environment repeatedly by several agencies since it began use.  Other than producing a little CO2, which is beneficial to plants, the entire system is surprisingly eco-friendly.

Answer 2

Probably from fossil fuel burning (though geothermal can provide it as mentioned provided you are in the right place for (not New York), nuclear could also do the job and is used for district heating in Canada).

It is more efficient to use the steam directly for heating than to use the steam to run a generator and use electric heating (though with nuclear or geothermal it won't matter in terms of pollution).

Answer 3

It depends on the source of heat. The amount of energy used isn't really important.  If ConEd is using coal or oil, then the system is going to hurt the environment. If they use hydroelectric or nuclear power--or switch to an alternative energy source in the future--there's no problem