The Nottinghamshire Woodheat Project, which began in 2003, is part of the group of projects that aim to reduce the Council’s emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2).
To date the Council has installed biomass heating at 62
sites around the county, a vast majority of which are schools. Each
year, these boilers consume around 2,500
tonnes of wood pellets and save about 6,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
There is also an educational benefit, as young people have the chance to
have first hand experience of sustainable energy in practice.
The project targeted old coal and oil boilers that were
coming to the end of their useful lives. Due to their age, and the
nature of the fuel they were using, these were the worst offending
boilers in the county in terms of CO2
emissions. Initial pilot projects were undertaken to test the
feasibility of using new biomass boilers, converting coal boilers to run
on biomass, using wood chip and using wood pellet.
Consultations were also undertaken with local coal
boiler manufacturers to establish if they could develop a biomass
alternative. Various sources of biomass, and different delivery and
storage systems were also explored. Once some basic rules and models
were established, the programme was rolled out across the county.
The Woodheat Project piggy-backed on the Council’s
Boiler Replacement Programme, which is part of its planned maintenance
work. The Boiler Replacement Programme annually established the capital
necessary to replace old boilers. Through training and awareness raising
amongst senior managers and elected members it was agreed that,
provided that there was no additional cost to the Council, the Boiler
Replacement Programme would install biomass boilers, subject to a
business case for each site and the site’s approval of the project.
Initially the Council obtained funding to offset the
difference between the capital cost of biomass boilers and fossil fuel
boilers through an innovative Public Service Agreement (PSA), the first
ever to focus specifically on reducing CO2
emissions. Subsequently the Council has been successful in every round
of the Government’s BioEnergy Capital Grant Scheme and is now developing
a model to utilise the
Government’s new Renewable Heat Incentive.
For more information on wood-fuelled
heating, visit www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Generate-your-own-energy/Wood-fuelled-heating.
Wood heat education pack
To enhance the educational benefit of installing wood
heat boilers in schools, the Council has developed an educational
resources pack aimed at key stages 2-3, which is available free of charge
to all schools with biomass boilers.
The pack contains:
-
a set of photocards showing the various stages in the wood fuel process
-
explanatory notes for teachers to support the photocards
-
a poster which explains the carbon cycle of growing wood for fuel
-
a 22 minute DVD, shot at various locations in
Nottinghamshire, which shows how the county is becoming a big grower and
user of wood fuel.
To request a copy, contact us on tel: 0115 977 4849, or email: energy.en@nottscc.gov.uk.
