Originally published on 14 Feb 2010, in WHISTLERtoday. Not written by me.
Did you know that during its journey, the inherent temperature wastewater actually provides space and water heating for the entire Whistler Olympic Athletes Village? It also reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 90 to 95 per cent compared to traditional methods. It all starts with a flush.
The District Energy System (DES) is one of the highest profile aspects of the RMOW’s waste management system and earned the 2009 CAMA (Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators) Environmental Award as well as the 2008 Community Energy Association’s Energy Action Award for Community Planning and Development.
The unique system was designed as part of the RMOW’s strategy for applying sustainable principles to infrastructure.
Led by the RMOW’s Environmental Services department, and supported by Terasen and the Whistler Development Corporation for the Whistler Athletes Village, the project is the first innovative step in the larger aspiration to develop a renewable-energy (ground source heat pump-based) district energy system for the entire Whistler Village core.
“This is an innovative alternative energy system that effectively leverages all of the showers, toilets and hot water going into the sewers in Whistler,” said Ted Battiston, Whistler Centre for Sustainability’s Energy & Emissions Manager.
The Whistler system extracts low-temperature ambient heat from treated wastewater effluent, making the system flexible enough to provide both heating and cooling for approximately 2,200 users occupying 85,000 square meters of space.
The district energy system actually provides approximately 95% of the space and water heating for the entire neighbourhood. It is estimated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 90% compared to using standard baseboard electric heating and by 95% compared to natural gas for space and water heating. The financial feasibility assessments show that the project as planned saves money in the long run.
In terms of your own home, space and water heating typically represents about 65 % of the energy used, totaling approximately $350 in annual utility bills and roughly 2.5 tonnes of GHG emissions for most of us.
“The DES demonstrates community leadership that builds local capacity and provides on-the-ground evidence that these types of systems are strategic long-term fiscal investments,” Battiston said. “The return on investment is substantial and will be shared in the future.”
