By Brian Trompeter
Using energy emanating from the sun and stored in the Earth, Spring Hill RECenter in McLean soon will be able to slash its utility costs and lessen its environmental impacts.
Fairfax County officials broke ground July 26 on nearly $8.5 million worth of upgrades at the facility that they said would bolster its energy efficiency and benefit the environment.
The recreation center, located at 1239 Spring Hill Road, will receive solar photovoltaic arrays, a geothermal heating-ventilation-and-cooling (HVAC) system, improved building-automation systems, LED lighting upgrades and replacement pool-dehumidification units.
The upgrades demonstrate the county’s commitment to serving the community and collectively reducing impacts on the environment, said Supervisor John Foust (D-Dranesville).
“These improvements will also provide significant economic benefits, in terms of less energy and fossil-fuel usage, as well as improving the overall reliability and reducing maintenance costs associated with the systems that will be installed,” he said.
Sweating in the sun on the mid-90-degree afternoon, Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay (D) said the weather was a “grim reminder of the urgency to address climate change.”
“Parks really are at the forefront of mitigating the impacts of climate change,” said Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) Executive Director Jai Cole. “It really is important that we take every step that we can to ensure that our planet is as good for our children as it is for us.”
Park Authority leaders anticipate the project will be complete during summer 2024, said agency spokesman Benjamin Boxer.
“There may be occasional temporary disruptions in service as work proceeds,” he said. “The Park Authority will be working closely with the project team to minimize any impacts to our patrons.”
Many of Spring Hill RECenter’s systems were reaching the end of their useful lives and county officials did not want to replace them with “energy-chugging units,” Cole said.
County officials expect the project annually will cut the facility’s electricity consumption by 19 percent, its gas usage by 29 percent and its carbon-dioxide output by more than 507 metric tons annually.
Officials held the ceremony on a grassy field located west of the building, where 50 in-ground wells will be drilled 455 feet deep for a geothermal-energy system that will use the natural underground temperature to both heat and cool the facility.
The wells, which will be the biggest geothermal system ever installed by the Park Authority, obviate the need for the facility to have a chiller and cooling tower.
The geothermal system will cut the center’s energy usage by an estimated 67,000 kilowatt hours per year, or the amount used by six homes, as well as reduce the amount of natural gas used by about 4,500 therms per year – enough to heat about 85 homes, officials said.
The system also will offset an estimated 72 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, which officials described as the equivalent of taking 16 vehicles off the road.
“It’s the most efficient HVAC-system technology available and it’s literally right under us,” Cole said. “The best part is, you won’t even know it’s there once it’s finished. We’ll still be able to use the field for a variety of activities.”
A 370-kilowatt photovoltaic solar array will be installed on the roof above the gymnasium and pool and will provide about 13 percent of the building’s annual electrical load. The equivalent amount of electricity generated could power about 33 homes for a year, officials said.
The solar array also will reduce the building’s carbon footprint by removing an estimated 250 metric tons of carbon monoxide per year from the air – an amount roughly equal to that produced by 54 cars.
The pool-dehumidification system will improve air quality and circulation in the natatorium and employ heat-recovery technology to reuse waste energy and heat the pool, officials said. The system will save more than 55,000 kilowatts of energy each year, about equal to the amount used by five houses, and lower natural-gas usage by more than 1,100 therms annually – the equivalent needed to heat 21 homes.
The dehumidification system will remove about 46 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually, or about the equivalent amount produced by 10 cars.
CMTA is the project’s general contractor and will employ subcontractors to perform some of the work. The county government is working with CMTA to install lighting, energy and mechanical improvements at 21 county facilities overall.
The City of Fairfax Regional Library, as well as Cub Run and South Run RECenters, already have received energy-efficiency upgrades and have seen one-third reductions in electricity use and two-thirds less usage of natural gas, officials said.
The $8,477,392 Spring Hill RECenter project, a joint initiative by FCPA and the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination, comports with the county’s goals for carbon neutrality for facilities, fleet vehicles and operations, they said.
