AIREBOROUGH Leisure Centre is going green with the fitting of an environmentally friendly heating system.

As part of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, the leisure centre is set to be fitted with an air-source heat pump and solar PV (photovoltaic) panels to generate heat and electricity.

The aim will be to reduce reliance on traditional gas boilers for heating in favour of low-carbon methods. It is estimated that city-wide, this scheme could save almost 4,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.

Guiseley and Rawdon councillor Paul Wadsworth welcomed the news.

He said: “This grant funding is fantastic news. Moving to renewable energy sources such as heat pumps and solar PV is good for the environment and will help in reducing the city’s carbon footprint.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy estimated that in 2016,

nearly one-fifth (17 per cent) of the UK’s carbon emissions were from space heating and cooling alone. By applying these technologies to energy intensive public buildings such as leisure centres, I would hope that significant reductions can be made for everyone to benefit.”