[Forest_Biomass] Bend Bulletin story on Sisters SD biomass

[WEEKS Kevin]

Sisters schools may convert to biomass under proposal

By Patrick Cliff<mailto:pcliff at bendbulletin.com> / The Bulletin, February 01. 2010

The Sisters School District may be the first district in the region to install a biomass heating system at one of its schools, and it might be able to do so without making any upfront investment.

In the past, school board members have been supportive of using biomass - wood pellets, in this case - to heat its buildings, but the immediate cost of about $125,000 to install a new boiler was too high as the district struggled with tight budgets. The school board is scheduled to consider the new plan at its Wednesday night meeting.

If the school board approves the plan, the district will begin with the high school's heating system, which is its costliest and so has the largest potential savings.

Backers of the plan say it would eventually save the district thousands of dollars while benefiting the environment.

No initial cost

The new plan would allow the district to pay for the system over several years. In three years of researching biomass systems, this is the first time that Director of Operations Leland Bliss has found a way to pay for the system with no initial investment.

"We're looking for a way to do it so it's not going to affect any of the budget," Bliss said. "We want a program that's no cost to the district."

Under the new approach, the district would pay a set fee to Energyneering, a local biomass company. The fee would be equal to the district's current heating costs at the high school of about $60,000 per year. No contract has yet been signed and so details might change, Bliss said.

Savings

After about 10 years, the district would own the system, according to board member Glen Lasken. At that point, the district would pay only for the wood pellets and, depending on heating oil costs, could save tens of thousands of dollars a year.

"In the long run, it's a cost- saving measure," Lasken said. "That's probably the driving force."

Lasken said the board had not yet decided whether to support the plan, but that he hadn't found any issues with it.

"We need to ask if there is any risk, if anything happens to the company involved. Are there any hidden costs?" Lasken said. "I don't see any significant problems."

Bliss said the stable costs would be an immediate benefit for the district. With its current system, the district uses diesel, the cost of which can fluctuate from day to day, Bliss said.

If the board agrees to the biomass plan, the district could more accurately project what its high school heating costs would be, Bliss said.

"We could budget a price and not have the volatile fuel prices jumping," he said.

Rare company

The system would put Sisters in rare company. Schools in Enterprise and Burns are the only ones in Oregon with biomass systems already in place, according to Phil Chang, a program administrator at the Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council. COIC has advised the school district as it looked for biomass options.

The biomass system would help the district both save money and use renewable energy, Chang said.

"It's a highly effective and appropriate use of wood for energy," Chang said. "It lets (the district) do a good thing by getting renewable energy online."

Using biomass can also help the local economy, according to Chang.

With a heating oil system, much of the money spent leaves the state, he said. A biomass system can use local wood that would otherwise go to waste, such as sawdust from mills and waste left from forest thinning projects.

"If the school district buys locally produced wood pellets, all of the money stays in the community and is circulated in the community," Chang said. "We're stopping the leakage of that (energy) money."

Patrick Cliff can be reached at 541-633-2161 or at pcliff at bendbulletin.com.

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