Mayor Hoffeld: "Maintaining the operation of the swimming pool is important for swimming education, clubs, schools, and health care."
The energy crisis is also affecting municipal swimming pools. Many towns and communities in Saarland are currently considering closing their pools against the backdrop of sharply rising costs. "Our goal is not to close THE POOL in Merzig and to counter the energy crisis through numerous measures," announces Mayor Marcus Hoffeld, who is also the chairman of the supervisory board of Merziger Bäder GmbH.
Merziger Bäder GmbH (MBG), a wholly owned subsidiary of the district town Merzig, has developed a three-step plan with energy-saving measures in recent weeks. As the two managing directors of MBG, Martin Siemon and Thomas Klein, explain, an action plan was already implemented at the beginning of July 2022, through which energy could be saved immediately and daily without the bathers noticing any significant reduction in the quality of their stay. Many of these measures only served to save energy overnight. "At the beginning of August 2022, we started the second phase of our energy-saving measures," the managing directors report. Among other things, the water temperature of the two heated outdoor pools was each lowered by one degree. Further measures concerned the operation of the ventilation systems, room heating, hot water supply, and lighting – especially outside opening hours and during low occupancy – but also the shower interval times, attractions, and the operation of the gastronomy area outside of holidays.
“However, the energy crisis requires us to take further necessary steps,” emphasizes Hoffeld. “We must and want to continue saving energy in DAS BAD to counter the massively rising costs.” Although the majority of the energy needed in DAS BAD is produced by its own CHP plant (excess amounts of electricity are fed into the grid except for self-consumption; the generated heat is fully used in DAS BAD), energy costs are estimated by MBG to increase by €25,000 per month in the coming months due to generally rising prices. High energy consumption is also recorded in the two outdoor pools heated in the autumn and winter months in the Wasserwelt (sports and leisure area) and in the Thermalwelt (health area). For this reason, MBG considers it unavoidable, given the current situation that presents a major challenge to everyone – private individuals, the state, companies, associations, and also pools – to close the two outdoor pools. This measure can save a large proportion of energy consumption in DAS BAD.
“This step is not easy for us,” emphasizes Mayor Hoffeld. But the pool must continue to save a significant amount of energy in order for the facility to remain open in the coming months. “The continued opening of the pool is of great importance for the swimming education of our children, recreational sports in the clubs, as well as with regard to the health services that visitors find here,” says Hoffeld. There are long waiting lists for swimming courses, both in clubs and at the pool. “It is important for our children and young people to have the opportunity to learn to swim, especially since this was not possible for many months due to the coronavirus pandemic,” explains the mayor of Merzig.
“Due to the energy we save through our extensive package of measures, it is possible to keep DAS BAD open even during the energy crisis and at the same time not raise the admission prices for the time being despite drastically increasing ongoing costs,” Klein and Siemon add. As the management emphasizes, MBG has already continuously developed projects in the past to save energy sustainably. For example, the gas ovens in the outdoor saunas were replaced by energy-efficient electric ovens, and the lighting in DAS BAD (general lighting, underwater lighting) as well as in the parking lot was switched to LED. A sustainability certification and the inspection seal awarded in this context in 2021 demonstrate that DAS BAD takes a pioneering role in sustainability and energy optimization in the southwestern German region.
Despite all these intensive efforts, it could happen in the worst-case scenario that THE BATH would have to close upon the entry of the third alarm level of the "Emergency Gas Plan" if the Federal Network Agency were to decide to completely disconnect baths that do not belong to the critical infrastructure from the grid.
Further information is available at www.dasbadmerzig.de and at https://www.facebook.com/DasBadMerzig/ .
