PRINCE GEORGE – The Prince George Law Courts and Plaza 400 will soon be connected to Prince George’s Downtown Renewable Energy System (DRES), a hot-water utility that produces thermal energy using sawmill residue from Lakeland Mills Ltd., reducing greenhouse gases and reliance on non-renewable fossil fuels.
The gas boilers in the two provincially operated buildings need replacing. A connection to the DRES will reduce capital and operational costs while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 480 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year.
A project map and sample piping were today unveiled at the International Bioenergy Conference & Exhibition.
District energy is a proven technology that is in use in communities around the world. The Prince George system produces hot water that is piped to nine local buildings for space heating and domestic hot water. The cumulative reductions in greenhouse gas emissions for the system are estimated at 1,820 tonnes per year.
Construction is expected to begin the last week of July and be complete by early fall. At select times through the summer, traffic will be affected at:
- Second Ave. and George St.;
- Fifth Ave. and George St.;
- one block of Fifth Ave. between George St. and Queensway; and
- the intersection of Fifth Ave. and Queensway.
The two project sites are:
- Prince George Law Courts – 250 George St.
- Plaza 400 – 1011 Fourth Ave.
Quick Facts:
- Project costs, estimated at $450,000, are being funded by the Ministry of Technology, Innovation and Citizens’ Services’ capital budget. The City of Prince George will install the piping systems to the buildings, at a cost of approximately $200,000.
- Prince George’s energy system was built in 2012 and connects nine buildings throughout the downtown, including the City Hall, Civic Centre, Coliseum, the Four Seasons Pool, the Wood Innovation and Design Centre, and the new RCMP detachment.
- Clean technology is a developing subsector that crosses over into many traditional industries and is part of B.C.’s recently released #BCTECH Strategy.
