November 5, 2009

Co-gen project to break ground

Facilities Management’s Murray Sloan inspects the heating and cooling plant, which will be expanded for cogeneration later this month. / Photo: Ken Bendiktsen

At the same time, the U of C will break ground for construction of the cogeneration project, which upon completion in 2011, will reduce campus greenhouse gas emissions by an estimated 80,000 metric tonnes annually.

The new plant, which will produce heat and power from a single fuel source, will be an extension to the existing heating and cooling plant located behind Cascade Hall.

Combustion of natural gas will drive a turbine to generate enough electricity to power the average daily needs of the U of C. Exhaust heat, a byproduct from the turbine engine combustion process, will be recovered and used to heat campus buildings.

“Students, faculty and staff will not notice a difference in the energy deliverance system as the change will be completely seamless. However, they will have the satisfaction of knowing that the U of C is reducing its overall greenhouse gas emissions significantly,” says Murray Sloan, senior manager of energy and utilities in Facilities Management and Development, and co-chair of the sustainability stewardship working group’s energy and atmosphere portfolio.

The reductions will be significant. With the use of cogeneration technology, the U of C will improve its energy efficiency by approximately 25 percent. The associated reductions in annual greenhouse gas emissions are equivalent to planting approximately 6.5 million trees every year. 

“The cogeneration initiative is one way that the U of C is following through on its commitment to the University and College Presidents’ Climate Change Statement of Action for Canada,” says Joanne Perdue, director of campus sustainability.

“The collective action on reducing GHG emissions across Canadian and American universities is considerable; similarly, individual actions to reduce energy demand here on campus can add up to a significant difference,” she adds.

For more information on the cogeneration project, the buildings challenge and more, visit www.ucalgary.ca/sustainability.

—    Written by Amy Crofts, BSc student in biology