Medway Council Targets 20% Reduction in Emissions Across 11 Public Buildings

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• Medway Council Targets 20% Reduction in Emissions Across 11 Public Buildings

07 July 2023

Libraries, theatres and leisure centres in the South East of England are being targeted for carbon emission reduction in association with SSE Energy Solutions and Medway Council.

The forecasted savings will reduce emissions by 476.5 tonnes of CO2, the equivalent of taking more than 2 million miles of car journeys off the roads every year.

The buildings will undergo a range of energy-reducing measures including the installation of rooftop solar, energy storage systems, air-source heat pumps, demand-controlled ventilation, and LED lighting. The work will deliver cost-savings of 35 per cent for the local authority, based on 2019 rates.

The retrofits are worth an estimated £3.2 million, and are part of Medway Council’s net-zero targets, as their operational buildings currently account for 60 per cent of the total emissions.

Heat Pumps, Waterless Urinals and EV Chargers

All of the libraries in the area have had oil boilers and gas heaters removed, with Daikin Heat Pumps installed. Additionally, waterless urinals and ultra-low flow showers have been installed in some buildings to help reduce water usage by up to 10 per cent. SSE has also supported the council to install 20 EV charging points at its headquarters.

Medway Park Sports Centre and Gun Wharf, together account for 69 per cent of the total energy consumed by the 11 buildings. A Solar and Energy Storage System installed by SSE Energy Solutions at the Sports Centre means it can go fully off grid for 4-to-5 hours a day. 

Medway Council’s Smart City Project

The buildings upgraded as part of this programme will form the foundation of Medway Council’s Smart City Project. Nine of the eleven buildings will be fitted with smart building upgrades, equipped with an Internet-of-Things embedded controller and server platform that delivers integrated control and supervision capabilities. The accompanying Building Management System will monitor all HVAC services, ensuring the building operates at maximum efficiency.

Part of the Medway Smart City Project includes plans to monitor road temperature through sensors that will provide a constant stream of data to inform decisions about whether to send out the winter gritting fleet to prevent ice on the roads.

Tunde Olaoye, Smart Energy Systems Sector Lead at SSE Energy Solutions, said: “We know that there are many stepping stones to reach net-zero and no single solution alone will resolve the challenges we face. Projects like those undertaken across Medway Council are an exemplar of SSE’s ‘Whole System Approach’ and how this can help businesses and organisations to fully decarbonise. 

“By combining a range of energy reducing measures and renewable technologies with SSE’s experience in delivering investment and controlling localised flexible energy assets, we can transform the sustainability of community assets and public spaces up and down the country vital to our everyday lives.

“The responsibility to decarbonise the world we live in is one we all share. Partnerships with forward-thinking organisations like Medway Council and other local authorities represent a vital step forward towards creating net zero communities that will benefit future generations to come.”

Picture: a photograph of the exterior of the Gun Wharf building. Image Credit: Medway Council

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 07 July 2023

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