Title
Motion with Notice: Staff Investigation into Expansion of Waste Heat District Energy System (Commissioners Kelbert/King/Diller)
Recommendation
[At the October 21, 2025 Saanich Peninsula Wastewater Commission meeting, the following notice was read by Chair Kelbert into record to be discussed at the next meeting:]
WHEREAS the Saanich Peninsula Wastewater Treatment Plant currently supplies recovered heat to the Panorama Recreation Centre through an established District Energy System (DES);
AND WHEREAS there is a potential opportunity to expand the current DES beyond institutional use to include residential properties located along the corridor between the treatment plant and the recreation centre;
AND WHEREAS expanding the DES to nearby residential properties may offer significant energy savings by replacing less efficient electric baseboard heating with a centralized, renewable thermal energy source;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Commission direct staff to investigate and report back on the steps required to develop a pilot project to convert residential household heating to waste heat, utilizing the existing DES infrastructure;
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the staff report should include feasibility considerations such as a subsidized fixed per month household cost model for participating homes, under an estimated 20-year term.