New school in Fredericton to be heated with wood pellets

A new school being constructed in Fredericton, New Brunswick will be the first in the province to be heated with wood pellets.

The school will be equipped with a wood pellet fired hot water boiler.

The hot water boiler plant will use wood pellets as the base fuel while automatic controls will engage natural gas boilers to provide extra heat during extreme weather conditions. The 500 kw boiler will use about 300 tonnes of pellets annually.

“We are committed to implementing provincial policies that encourage the use of wood pellets and other bio-fuels to heat provincial buildings,” said Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Claude Williams. “The Department of Supply and Services is reviewing provincially owned buildings to identify viable opportunities for conversion to biomass energy. We are also encouraging the installation of biomass boilers to cover base heating requirements on new construction projects, particularly in areas of the province where natural gas is not available.”

Natural Resources Minister Bruce Northrup said the provincial Wood First policy being developed will “encourage the use of wood in constructing provincial buildings and of wood pellets to heat these buildings. This will directly benefit our wood producers while utilizing a renewable New Brunswick resource.”

Last fall, the province of PEI approved two proposals that would see five public buildings – 4 schools and a community hospital, heated by wood biomass.

Source:
New Fredericton school first to be heated with wood pellets (Farm Focus of Atlantic Canada)