Kootenay-Columbia is one of the 28 school districts in the province to receive funding to launch a green project to cut carbon emissions and operating costs.
Rossland's school has been awarded $296,500 for a replacement boiler project under the Ministry of Education's Carbon Neutral Capital Program that has planted a total of $4.55 million this year.
“We are very excited to be able to make a major capital improvement to the RSS building, funded by this specific grant,” said Greg Luterbach, superintendent of schools. “The district has numerous high cost capital projects that are beyond the funding we receive in the form of our annual facilities grant.
“By receiving these funds it means that this project can be completed through alternate funds and we can put that $300,000 towards other needs in our buildings throughout the district.”
There are eight boilers at the school, two of which were replaced in 2002. This project will replace the remaining boilers, which date back to 1987.
“The new boilers will save the district annually about $15,000 as they are more efficient than the ones they are replacing,” added Luterbach.
Other projects around the province include boiler replacements, air source heat pumps and carbon dioxide sensor installations, all of which will help reduce electricity and natural gas usage.
Since 2012, districts have achieved more than $873,000 in cumulative operating cost savings and reduced their annual carbon dioxide emissions by a total of 3,030 tonnes, according to the Ministry of Education.
The program began as means of compensating school districts for the amount they pay to purchase carbon offsets from Pacific Carbon Trust each year by funding projects that reduce emissions and saves money.