Better student health and more comfortable classrooms with a new, cleaner heating system

Energy-renovated primary school "1. March" in Jelah through the Low-Carbon project

December 31, 2023

Three decades of work are behind Ismeta Lokić, a cleaning worker at Elementary School "1. March" in Jelah. She admits that this is not an easy job, especially in one of the largest schools in the area of the Tešanj municipality, which gathers close to eight hundred students and about a hundred workers.

Hard working days are etched in the memory of Ismeta and her colleagues. In the past, they had to prepare classrooms for the arrival of students as early as four o'clock in the morning.

"We had a certain number of classrooms that were heated by small stoves using solid fuel, wood and coal, which we had to light in the early morning hours. Bringing coal and wood into the classroom created a lot of dirt in the classrooms, and our frequent entrances and exits distracted the students," Lokić recalled.

Despite the extremely difficult working conditions, the most difficult thing for Lokić was to watch the shivering students, coming to school on foot from distant places, into classrooms with poor conditions.

"Wet and cold like that, they would come to lukewarm and smoky classrooms where they sat for four or five hours. The lightning in the classrooms was almost non-existent, so it was difficult for us to clean the classrooms in the second shift", added Lokić.

Today, everything is much easier for Lokić and her colleagues. The hard days are over, the old stoves have been replaced by warm radiators, and the rooms they maintain are in much better condition, brighter and more pleasant to stay in.

The school building was completely retrofitted and insulated with the cooperation of the Federal Ministry of Spatial Planning and the United Nations Development Program in BiH (UNDP), as part of the project " Scaling-Up Investment in Low-Carbon Public Buildings in BiH ".

Three pellet boilers with complete accompanying equipment have been installed in the school. The old roof was replaced with a tin roof with adequate heat and sound insulation. Thermal insulation of all walls was done on the building, window openings, gutters and downspouts were replaced, a new lightning protection network was installed, and a new facade was installed. LED lighting has also been installed in all rooms in the school.

The director of the school, Jasmin Kurdić, says that the project meaningfully contributed to the energy efficiency of the school building, which was shown by significantly lower bills for the consumption of electricity, water and energy resources.

"The temperature in the school is constant and pleasant, which is very important for the concentration of students, teachers and all school employees in order to be more productive at work. The conditions for the teaching process have improved significantly, which is ultimately shown by the excellent results of our students at municipal, cantonal, federal and state competitions", said Kurdić.

Before switching to pellet heating, the school used about 150 tons of coal annually, which is why it was ranked among the biggest air polluters in Jelah. The implementation of the energy efficiency project reduced the number of students with respiratory problems, who previously often missed classes due to these health issues.

The message from the elementary school "1. March" is that their students have recognized the importance of the project " Scaling-Up Investment in Low-Carbon Public Buildings in BiH ", which had an effect on increasing their awareness of energy conservation within global efforts, and their long-term benefits.

The goal of the project Scaling-Up Investment in Low-Carbon Public Buildings in BiH is to eliminate financial barriers to scale-up investment in public buildings, which contributes to the reduction of CO2 emissions, creates savings, creates new "green" jobs, and provides support for the country's economic development.

English