Micro-Sewer Heat Recovery District Energy Utility Feasibility Study (mSHR)

The City of Richmond will conduct a feasibility study to assess micro-Sewer Heat Recovery (mSHR) opportunities across all urban areas of Richmond. The mSHR system is envisioned to be a series of energy plants that will provide thermal energy to either public or private buildings. Currently buildings in Richmond consume 64% of the total energy use in the community which represents 43 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). The mSHR could meet an estimated 67 percent of the district energy system's thermal energy load with renewable sewer heat recovery, and potentially reduce greenhouse gas emissions from connected buildings by 40-67 percent. The study will assess and identify recoverable heat in the City’s sanitary sewer network, as well as investigating the feasibility of using standalone micro sewer heat recovery plants that will be housed in new developments or within existing pump stations that are in proximity to each other. This information will then be compared against current and future land use identified in the Official Community Plan to identify mSHR potential candidate locations. With a shortlist of candidate areas identified, the City of Richmond will complete the conceptual design and costing to better understand how the service can be delivered most effectively while maximizing greenhouse gas reductions and minimizing energy use. The feasibility study is supported by innovative policy mechanisms including a requirement that new developments in the City Centre and other service areas be “District Energy Ready.” New developments that are in potential mSHR areas identified by the study will also be required to connect to the system via rezoning requirements or as defined by a service area bylaw. There are over 150 pump stations across the City, most of which are integral to the sanitary sewer system, and each station has potential for small scale heat recovery. While traditionally, large scale SHR systems require significant capital investment, the density of energy demand in Richmond's City Centre area will support the construction of smaller dispersed heat recovery plants. The city has successfully used this technology to power the Gateway theatre building downtown, and recently completed a study for mSHR on a local college campus which indicated the potential for further projects. One of the key components that attracted the City of Richmond to this new type of technology was its minimal yearly maintenance, and the long projected life cycle that is anticipated to be in excess of 25 years. (Project description from original funding application)