SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
In many cities down south, people go as far as stealing the golden liquid, using it to fuel their cars or heat their greenhouses.

Furnaces like these could easily be adapted to burn used vegetable oil, says Dwayne Wohlgemuth, the owner of Ko Energy. - photo courtesy of Dwayne Wohlgemuth

But in Yellowknife, almost all of our used vegetable oil -- at least 84,000 litres per year -- goes to waste in city landfills.

Dwayne Wohlgemuth thinks there's a use for it.

His business, Ko Energy, conducted a study in 2010 under the auspices of Ecology North, looking at exactly how much oil was being wasted in Yellowknife and if it could be used as a biodiesel for vehicles.

Problems with the fuel jelling in the frigid Yellowknife winters, as well as issues with safe storage and conversion of the oil, put the biodiesel project on hold, Wohlgemuth said.

But the research didn't stop there. While the oil wouldn't be practical to use in vehicles in Yellowknife, Wohlgemuth found it might work just fine as a heating oil for some buildings.

"It makes a lot more sense to use it for space heating up here," Wohlgemuth said.

Fuels for transportation generally cost more than heating fuels down south, but the high energy costs in the North means the prices are fairly equal in Yellowknife.

One might be more convinced to dump their used vegetable oil in their boiler rather than their truck in Yellowknife.

Using the oil for heating would require a lot less infrastructure as well, Wohlgemuth added. Biodiesel needs a chemical process to make it palatable for car engines, while used vegetable oil can be burned directly in some boilers for heat.

"So you eliminate the whole step of needing a separate facility to process the vegetable oil," he said.

It might not be practical to use the oil for individual homes, but Wohlgemuth said he thinks it would work well in some city buildings and restaurants.

Not practical at the moment

Unfortunately, the City of Yellowknife doesn't see used vegetable oil as practical at the moment.

In an e-mail to Yellowknifer, Carl Bird, director of corporate services with the city, said the investments in storage, treatment, management and new boilers isn't justified yet with the amount of used vegetable oil produced in Yellowknife

But he added the oil may have potential if used in larger city projects, saying it could be part of Yellowknife's 2015-2025 Community Energy Plan.

Because restaurants produce most of the wasted oil in Yellowknife, Wohlgemuth said they could easily be one of the greatest users.

"It makes that fuel so much more valuable if you don't have to collect it and transport it around."

Most of Yellowknife's oil is sent to the dump, but mines around the North -- also producing vast amounts of used vegetable oil -- ship theirs down south, Wohlgemuth said.

"It isn't such a great use for it, especially considering there's so many great uses for it here."

There's environmental benefits to using the oil locally, Wohlgemuth added. Not only would it save space at the dump, burning the oil would displace the import diesel to the city.

The emissions are a little cleaner too, he said.

Wohlgemuth said most cities in North America are finding applications for used vegetable oil, and hopes Yellowknife will be able to do the same soon.

"It's a pretty rare case up here where all that oil is going to the landfill."