Study looks at biomass for school heat

The Whitefish School District is looking into using woody biomass to heat its classrooms.

The School Board last week approved an agreement with Tetra Tech to complete a preliminary biomass feasibility study paid for by a $7,000 grant from the state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.

Wood biomass uses fuel made up of the by-products of timber operations including limbs, trees and needles. The wood waste is run through a chipper or grinder to create fuel that is used in efficient wood boilers to generate heat.

A number of schools across the state have installed biomass systems in recent years. Glacier High School in Kalispell began operating its system in 2007. Estimated annual savings for the school is $100,000, according to the DNRC.

District officials have spoken with Eureka about its system.

“Their heating costs are 20 percent of what they were before the biomass,” Trustee Charlie Abell told the school board in June.

The district spent $160,000 on natural gas last year.

The study will look at installing a biomass system in the new high school. It will also look at the possibility of creating a central heating plant for both the high school and Muldown Elementary. Possible use of biomass at the middle school will also be studied.

The study will not only look at the ability to install a biomass system at the schools, but will also look at the anticipated installation costs, annual operating and maintenance costs and fuel costs.

“The study will tell us if it’s worth pursuing,” facilities director Ron Thompson said. “It will look at how much gas we’re using, what we’re paying and what the supply of biomass out there is like. We’ll know if we’re going in the right direction or not.”

The study is expected to be completed in August.