Today, Corix Utilities celebrates Earth Day 2022 with 1½ years of successful operation of the Burnaby Mountain District Energy Utility (BMDEU), and more importantly, a reduction of 14,100 tonnes of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions since the implementation of our new biomass plant in October 2020.
The BMDEU biomass plant has helped Simon Fraser University (SFU) achieve its SFU 2025 Sustainability Plan targets, which aim to reduce total direct GHG emissions by 50% by 2025, from 2007 levels. Those targets have actually been exceeded, with SFU achieving an 80% annual GHG reduction over 2007 levels. Once the UniverCity residential neighbourhood is fully built out, carbon reduction is expected to reach 85% when compared to baseline (natural gas).
Corix’s biomass plant incorporates several technologies that increase its environmental efficiency, beginning with the use of clean wood waste as a fuel source, flu gas recirculation, and heat harvesting via an economizer. These and other technologies enable the plant to meet its low carbon energy production targets and reduce its biomass fuel consumption by up to 5% compared to traditional biomass plants.
District energy systems, like the BMDEU, centralize the production of thermal heating or cooling for multiple buildings located within a district, neighbourhood, or campus. They are an increasingly important tool in the fight against climate change, as they can achieve significant GHG reductions in a relatively short period of time.
Learn more about district energy’s environmental benefits here.