Mount Gambier Aquatic Centre Biomass Boiler an industry first

The installation of a new biomass boiler at the Mount Gambier Aquatic Centre has made the City of Mount Gambier the first council in Australia to install a biomass boiler for pool heating.

Operational since September 2013, the biomass boiler runs on wood chip from the local forestry industry and heats all of the pool water at the Mount Gambier Aquatic Centre.

This boiler can also run on sorted urban timber waste that is chipped (with metal removed), and on woody prunings from Councils or residents, thus giving the potential for it to be utilised in larger urban centres that do not necessarily have forestry within close proximity.

The system is more cost effective to run than a gas boiler, supports the local forestry industry, and uses a carbon neutral fuel source – wood chips from local plantations that are regrown.

Mindful of the boiler’s need, local industry has also expanded its skills on the project during the installation and maintenance phases.

Speaking about the boiler to the ABC last year, City of Mount Gambier Environmental Sustainability Officer Aaron Izzard says that the new bolier is environmentally friendly and sustainable, stating "it can run on any kind of biomass woody material, so woodchip or sawdust."

The use of biomass in heating systems is beneficial because it uses agricultural, forest, urban and industrial residues and waste to produce heat and electricity with less effect on the environment than fossil fuels.

In practice, Izzard told the ABC "we've been buying (biomass) from a local mill, our sawdust supply, so that supports the local economy, the local forestry industry and it's also carbon neutral because the trees that the sawdust are from are regrown, so essentially that's a carbon neutral process."

Click here to view a case study on the project on the City of Mount Gambier website.

15th August 2013 - MOUNT GAMBIER AQUATIC CENTRE'S NEW BIOMASS BOILER HELPS THE ENVIRONMENT 

16th August 2010 - GISBORNE OLYMPIC POOL HEATED BY LOCAL WOOD CHIPS