North Hudson boiler (Photo provided)

NORTH HUDSON — Santa Claus may typically enter through a chimney, but for the town of North Hudson, this year he is installing the chimney — and the new wood pellet boiler — just in time for Christmas.

The new boiler is a fully automated, self-feeding, high-efficiency wood pellet boiler that will provide whole-building heat via the hot water distribution system in the concrete slab of the town highway garage. The new boiler replaces an outdoor cordwood wood boiler that was no longer operational.

It will allow the town to minimize the money they spend on oil to heat the building.

“We are very excited to be installing an automated wood pellet boiler,” said town Supervisor Ron Moore. “We get to use wood for heat and we will support jobs and the forest products industry through that decision, without requiring our town staff to spend time managing a cordwood boiler.

“With the funding support that was available to us, this decision is a real no-brainer for our town.”

The town’s installation is receiving support from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) through Renewable Heat NY, and from the Northern Forest Center through the Adirondack Model Neighborhood project.

Northern Forest Center program director Maura Adams said, “The Northern Forest Center has supported nearly 150 similar installations to date, and we see the results every day — through satisfied consumers and measurable regional results. We’ve calculated that these installations have generated $2.6 million in regional economic benefit, and saved 3,200 tons of carbon dioxide from being emitted into the atmosphere.”

“For each dollar spent on heating oil, 78 cents immediately leaves the region,” said Adirondack Project Manager Leslie Karasin. “When we buy wood pellets, every dollar stays local, and ripples through the economy, supporting jobs and local industries in our communities.”

North Hudson is working with Ehrhart Energy on the installation. Ehrhart, based in Trumansburg, is a qualified contractor through NYSERDA’s Renewable Heat NY program, and is one of the state’s most experienced installers of wood pellet boilers.