UBC Installing New Campus-Wide Heating SystemEarlier this week, the UNA board received a presentation ^[1] outlining how UBC would be converting the entire campus-wide heating system from steam to hot water. As part of this, a new Hot Water Plant is to be built at the corner of Thunderbird Blvd. and East Mall.

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The proposed location for a central Hot Water Plant at the corner of Thunderbird and East Mall.

The switch represents possibly the biggest single part of UBC’s short-term and long-term sustainability efforts. It’s forecasted to reduce energy demand by 24% and GHG emissions by 22%, and “cement UBC’s reputation as a world leader in sustainability and energy management.” One big advantage of using hot water is the ability to turn it off in the summer when not needed, unlike the current steam system which must remain on all year. If there are engineers or a VP Finance, Resources & Operations reading, please fill us in on what other advantages of hot water systems are.

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The trend for having massive glass faces on buildings will have reached a new level of craziness if a hot water plant needs floor-to-ceiling glass.

Converting the whole campus from steam to hot water will happen in 9 phases over a period of 5 years. Phase one conversion is supposed to start this summer. One fun thing in the technical map is that it confirms the location of the one and only steam tunnel on campus. It runs along University Boulevard from Angus to the Aquatic Centre, then takes a turn to the south, ending at Woodward. Unfortunately, we have it on good authority that it’s fairly boring and cramped down there.