London Tube heat could keep buildings warm under new plans
Waste heat could replace one of Westminster's gas boilers
One London borough is looking at how hot air from the Underground could be used to keep buildings warm.
Westminster Council is considering using waste heat from the Tube to replace one of its gas boilers.
It follows a scheme in Islington in 2019 which saw a disused Northern Line station used to heat up to 1,000 homes.
Westminster's director of environment Amy Jones said it was being considered as a replacement for one of the borough's gas boilers.
At the time the Greater London Authority estimated 38% of the city’s heating demands could be met using hot air from the Tube.
If more of the network is used to heat London then huge amounts of energy could be saved.
Speaking at Westminster’s Scrutiny Committee Ms Jones told councillors how they are looking to save energy.
She said: "An option is to replace one of the gas boilers with a water source heat pump using water from the Thames.
"Other options include trapping waste heat from the London Underground."
Westminster Council also burns all the autumn leaves collected from its streets and uses the energy to heat homes.
Although the council is exploring innovative ways to reduce its carbon footprint, its Climate Emergency Action Plan says it must do more to be net-zero by 2030.
Since 2019 it has cut its emissions by 11.6% but it must cut 3,700 tonnes of carbon each year to hit its 2030 target.
The council recently put £110 million of its pension fund towards renewable energy.
Though the council makes up just 2% of the City of Westminster's emissions and councillors have called for more to be done to make private businesses more eco-friendly.