UVic News
Summary
UVic is planning its transition towards low-carbon energy by developing a comprehensive and long-term framework to guide campus development and operations and phase out fossil fuel energy.
Most buildings on the Gordon Head campus have heat and hot water delivered by the District Energy Plant, which generates and distributes thermal energy through a network of underground pipes. The plant was constructed in 2019 to replace an end-of-life and inefficient boiler plant in the Engineering Lab Wing. The new plant received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification, but combusts natural gas and is the biggest source of UVic’s greenhouse gas emissions. Fossil fuels for university buildings accounted for 92 per cent of GHG emissions (9,853 tCO2e) in 2020.
Mike Wilson, director of the Office of Campus Planning and Sustainability, says, “The project to decarbonize building energy demonstrates the university’s commitment to climate action and taking responsibility for reducing its emissions.” The planning process is also consistent with the university’s recent submission to the Race to Zero Pledge—a global campaign supported by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) dedicated to reducing carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.
“There are several technology pathways that can significantly reduce our emissions,” says David Adams, manager, energy programs at UVic. “This project is about finding the pathway with the best overall performance while meeting emissions targets in a financially viable way.”
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