People taking a dip in the swimming pool at All Seasons Leisure Centre in Chorley are now using a new source of energy, thanks to a project that was part-funded by Foundation.

In a bid to save money and help protect the environment the water at the Chorley Council-owned leisure centre is being heated by a combined heat and power unit, which produces 60% of the Centre’s required electricity.

And the results are already looking good, with the environmentally-friendly heating system expected to save 88 tonnes of carbon per year – the equivalent to driving in a car from Chorley to London more than 800 times.

Councillor John Walker, Chorley Council’s Executive Member (People), said: “Not only is the new technology going to improve our environmental footprint it will help to save money too."

The £126,000 scheme was funded by Chorley Council, with a £46,000 grant from Foundation.

Technical Manager, Roger Dawson, of Active Nation, the charity that runs the leisure centre, explained: “The old system involved heating the leisure centre and pool with a series of boilers which, with rising energy costs, was extremely costly and not very green. We had already changed to lower energy lighting and introduced pool covers but the installation of the new unit is really exciting. Test readings are showing a definite reduction in carbon emissions, which is great news.”

The combined heat and power unit works with a gas turbine that is coupled to a generator which makes the electricity. The exhaust heat from the turbine is diverted to heat exchanges, where the heat is extracted to heat the pool and showers.

Darren O'Toole , Foundation's Projects Manager, said: “This scheme should benefit the whole community, with lower energy bills at the leisure centre and fewer carbon emissions. Companies are getting switched on to different ways of saving energy and helping the planet at the same time and this particular scheme will really make a difference.”