Making the grade with geoexchange School teachers have the “three Rs”; administrators, responsible for heating and air conditioning B.C. schools, have the “three Es” – energy, environment and expenditures – all of which need to be conserved like never before. Fortunately, Terasen offers alternative energy options that can help conserve all three Es.
ROOFING CONTRACTORS ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
One of the most attractive energy options for school boards is geoexchange, a system that uses the Earth to help heat and cool buildings. In winter, heat stored in the ground is extracted and used to heat buildings. In summer, heat is transferred back into the ground to help keep buildings cool. The result is clean, renewable energy, increased oper-
ating efficiency, and a dramatically reduced carbon footprint. Schoolyards, with their large areas of open playing fields, are ideally suited for installing exchange loops, as the piping is called in a geoexchange system. School buildings are also ideal for geoexchange, as such systems are most economical and efficient where there is a large volume of space, or multiple buildings, to be heated or cooled. Terasen is a leader in developing geoexchange and other sustainable energy systems. In keeping with its provincial government mandate to encourage energy and environmental conservation, the company builds, owns and operates geoexchange and other energy systems for both private and public sector entities. There are many benefits of outsourcing responsibility for operating a school’s heating and cooling plant. As a pure bottom-line consideration, capital expenditures and energy consumption are reduced, and overall utility costs can be better managed. The environmental benefits are significant as well. Municipalities, including school districts, play a role in B.C.’s Climate Action Plan, a roadmap to reducing provincial greenhouse gas emissions by 33 per cent by 2020. Two of the plan’s key recommendations are to use only the minimum amount of energy needed for operation, and to use renewable energy sources for heating, cooling and power. Geoexchange meets both these recommendations. But perhaps the greatest benefit is one that is unique to schools. Schools set an excellent example for the next generation about responsibility, sustainability and the goals that can be achieved by human ingenuity. Join the growing list of school districts doing their homework to help secure B.C.’s energy future. Learn more about geoexchange by visiting: terasenenergyservices.com. ❏
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Ops Talk Fall 2009
