Ishizaka Sangyo’s Energy Management ② Air conditioning system using geothermal energy

Ishizaka Sangyo has installed a geothermal air conditioning system at its on-site environmental education facility, the Kunugi Forest Communication Plaza, with subsidies from the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy and Saitama Prefecture.
This has made it possible to manage air conditioning using natural energy.

Eco-friendly facility using natural energy

Ishizaka Sangyo preserves nearby satoyama (satoyama forests) and operates the Mitomi Konjaku Mura (Mitsutomi Village), an environmental education field.
In light of this concept, the Mitomi Konjaku Mura “Kunugi Forest Communication Plaza” has installed an environmentally friendly air conditioning system that uses geothermal heat.
The facility’s site area is approximately 200m2. The geothermal air conditioning system reduces power consumption to less than one-tenth of that required when air conditioners are installed, and also makes it possible to curb CO2 emissions.

Advantages of using geothermal energy

The geothermal air conditioning system consists of two buried pipes: one that circulates air through pipes 5 meters underground to exchange heat, and one that runs 100 meters underground and uses antifreeze to exchange heat. By utilizing
the temperature difference between above ground and underground, the room is cooled in the summer and heated in the winter, keeping the room temperature in the Community Plaza at a constant 15-22°C. It
also has the secondary effect of purifying the air, with the water at the bottom of the pipes acting as a filter to absorb dust, dirt, pollen, and other particles from the air.

Geothermal energy attracts attention as a stable energy source

Among natural energies, geothermal energy is currently attracting a lot of attention due to its stable supply.
According to the Ministry of the Environment, the number of installations increased by 1,166 (20.4%) in the three years from 2013 to 2016*.
As a result, interest in geothermal energy has been growing at the national and prefectural levels, and subsidies for geothermal energy utilization facilities are being developed.

Ishizaka Sangyo installed a geothermal air conditioning system with the support of the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy’s “Subsidy for Promoting Local Production and Consumption (Renewable Energy Heat Business Support Project)” from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and the Saitama Prefecture “Saitama Prefecture Distributed Energy Utilization Equipment Development Subsidy.” The total amount of these subsidies is equivalent to two-thirds of the installation cost.

By continuing to utilize stable geothermal energy, we will strive to reduce CO2 emissions, save energy, and create a space that coexists with nature.

*From the Ministry of the Environment’s press release on March 23, 2017, “Results of the 2016 Geothermal Energy Usage Survey”

Click here for the press release