Cumberland District Energy Project

planned

An initiative developed through the University of Victoria's Accelerating Community Energy Transformation (ACET) program to use abandoned coal mine shafts and tunnels beneath the village of Cumberland, Canada, to create a community-scale geothermal energy system for heating and cooling buildings. The project leverages stable groundwater temperatures in the mines to operate heat pumps with low cost and near-zero carbon output. Initial focus is on a proposed civic precinct including a community centre, municipal offices, affordable housing, and a large industrial area near Comox Lake.