District energy systems (DES) centralize the production of heating or cooling for a neighbourhood or community. District steam heating plants in North America go back over a century; now, district systems are one of the potential solutions to our energy and emissions challenges.

Most district energy systems generate heat at a central plant, or extract heat from other sources. The heat is transferred to a fluid and distributed via underground pipes to buildings where it is used for space and water heating. The fluid is then returned to the source to be reheated and recirculated. Some systems also provide space cooling in a similar way. They may deliver energy services with greater efficiencies and lower emissions than individual furnaces, boilers, electric baseboards, and water heaters fuelled by oil, natural gas, propane, or electricity.

Community Examples

• Central Heat Distribution provides steam heat from natural gas in downtown Vancouver
• Corix is constructing a system [1] that will use biomass, with gas backup,at SFU’s UniverCity
• Dockside Green Energy [2] operates a biomass/ gas system in Victoria
• Vancouver’s Neighbourhood Energy Utility [3] uses heat recovered from wastewater
• Biomass–based systems heat buildings at UNBC and in downtown Prince George
• Whistler’s Cheakamus Crossing system extracts heat from wastewater
• A geoexchange system serves a new subdivision in Gibsons [4]
• The Westhills development in Langford uses a geoexchange system
• Revelstoke Community Energy System  [5]
• More examples can be found in the "District Energy Inventory For Canada" [6] located in the Toolkit Guides section

Complementary Measures

• Land use planning [7] that encourages compact, complete communities.
• A Community Energy Plan to develop strategies for energy infrastructure within a broader energy and emissions plan. The CEA created a Community Energy and Emissions Planning guide [8] which describes the purpose and content of a community energy and emissions plan, its benefits, and how to go about creating one.
• Resource Management Plans [9] and Integrated Resource Recovery [10], encourage energy inputs from several sources (such as refrigeration-heat from an ice-rink, sewer heat, biomass, etc) providing more opportunities for carbon-neutral energy.  

 [Use the tab above to learn HOW to reduce emissions with this tool.]