What is Wood Heat?

• The use of wood to produce heat.
• A new market for traditional woodland and clean waste wood, which may otherwise find its way into landfill sites.
• Heat from wood is generated by using modern and high efficiency boilers that offer a reliable, affordable and sustainable supply of heat.
• Wood can be used to reduce the impact of climate change because the CO2 emissions released during the burning phase are the same as those absorbed during tree growth.
• This method of heat supply is well proven and established in other parts of Europe but as yet is relatively new in the UK.

Case Study: Garibaldi School, Mansfield

Garibaldi School in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire is a large comprehensive school with 1100 pupils, including 170 sixth form students.

The original oil boilers were old, inefficient and producing high CO2 emissions, and due to their age were in need of replacement.

Through the boiler replacement programme and an innovative Public Service Agreement funding obtained by the Councils’ Environment Department, Garibaldi was given the opportunity to have a wood fuelled boiler installed to replace the old system.

A partnership was established in order to make this project possible and the old boiler plant was removed in August 2003.  This included 2 x 450kW cast- iron sectional Beeston boilers and oil tanks.  In September 2003 these were replaced by 2 x 400kW Binder boilers and wood fuel storage.

The 400kW boilers are about 30 times the capacity of a domestic boiler and will use around 250 tonnes of wood a year.

The environmental impact of the new wood fuel boilers is clear - any CO2 that is produced during the process of heating the school is equivalent to the amount of CO2 absorbed by growing trees.  Therefore, the emissions from heating the school are reduced from the equivalent of 350 tonnes CO2 to virtually zero every year.

Steve Clowes, the Site Manager at Garibaldi School said, “There were initial reservations about opting for wood heat as the technology was largely unproven in the UK and because of operating time and labour requirements.  The plant suffered initial ‘teething problems’ but since these have been resolved, we are very pleased with the performance and reliability of the wood burning boiler plant.”

What Next?

Controlled monitoring of the boilers is providing accurate information on the performance of the fuel and the boilers.

Experience and data gathered will be made available for other organisations in order that they may benefit from our experience before pursuing their own projects.

There are proposals for further projects to be examined in the future, and further innovative funding is being sought

Further Information

If you would like any further information on this project, or help with a sustainable energy project of your own, please contact: the energy officers tel: 0115 9774849 or e-mail: energy.en@nottscc.gov.uk