Keeping curling cool in south west Scotland

• Dumfries Ice Bowl goes gas free 
• Venue attracts 250,000 people a year and has produced many Winter Olympic curlers
• Dumfries and Galloway Council received £2.5 million funding from the Scottish Government and administered by Salix
• Video: dropping in on curling action, meeting a champion and saying hello to a community hero

Dumfries Ice Bowl - which hosts activities including curling, ice skating and ice hockey – is now completely gas free.  

The building has been one of the biggest users of energy in the local authority’s estate.  We visited to take a tour of the newly-installed sustainable technology and meet some of the curlers.  

The authority was awarded £2.5 million to future-proof the building from Scotland’s Public Sector Heat Decarbonisation Fund, delivered by our Salix team on behalf of the Scottish Government.  

Property and program leader at Dumfries and Galloway Council, Stuart Wixon, told us the project has inspired the authority to use this as a model for future work.  

He said:  “As a council, we’re trying to look at energy saving measures in buildings and we’d like to continue that in other projects in the future."

“This building in particular was one of the highest users of energy that the council has.  The plant and equipment was nearing its end of life and it was costing a lot of extra money just to keep the place running.  We knew we’d have to seek other funding opportunities to make the project viable, so that’s why we applied with Salix,” Stuart added.

“We’ve decarbonised the site.  The purpose was to do away with fossil fuels, which has a big cost itself."

"We've replaced all the gas boilers with electric and we're monitoring the energy to see how much we reduce the carbon footprint of this building, which was high before we started this work,” Stuart continued.  

"We’ve also installed new chillers, the dehumidification plant and upgraded the external fabric of the building, which includes making it more airtight."

“Curling to me is a way of life.  It makes me a lot of friends and it takes me away from the couch at home,” John said.

However, he also has a passion for the future of the planet.  Describing the importance of the sustainability measures at the Ice Bowl, he said:  

“We’ve had solar panels installed on the building here.  I’ve got solar panels on my home.  I think renewable energy and insulation are very important." 

It’s not just curling that’s a success here.  Dumfries Ice Bowl also hosts a range of ice skating sessions from young children through to adults, an ice hockey rink and also has a café and meeting room.

“Curling is greatly important to my life,” said Scottish Women's Junior Champion Katie Archibald.  She's been playing the sport since the age of ten after being introduced through publicly funded sessions allowing all primary school children to try curling.

“It’s a very well used facility and it’s probably one of the best in the country – in my opinion anyway," she added.

"It brings along a lot of youngsters and it helps them reach higher levels like the British academy. There’s a lot of older people who come for the social aspect and just for the fun of it too."  

Earlier this year, Team GB curlers were among the medals at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in the Italian Alps. Members of the squad who've come through Dumfries Ice Bowl include Grant Hardie, who was part of the men's curling team that won silver after being beaten in the gold medal match by Canada.

“There’s been a great uplift since the Winter Olympics.  We’re getting a lot more people of all ages through the door and have had the games on our television in the Ice Bowl lounge, so it's been great to have that support for the squad here," Katie added.

Mike Baird, director of Dumfries Curling Ltd – and a keen curler himself – said: "I’m absolutely over the moon with the large pot of money that’s been invested which I think is going to make the building much more sustainable for the future.  It looks better, it’s going to be more energy efficient and make our sport more sustainable.

"This sport is huge across Dumfries and Galloway.  Everybody will have seen from the Olympic games, we’ve got some very top level curlers who’ve originated from this facility.  

“Curling’s always been a sport that’s very focussed on the social aspects right down to grass roots level.  It's about people enjoying the sport and enjoying being together.  It’s not just about coming and playing the sport.  It’s about that companionship and  I think it really impacts significantly on people’s mental health and wellbeing.  It’s a sport for all ages and all abilities.

“We realise the need to make our sport more sustainable because making curling ice is quite an energy demanding process.

“I feel really proud and really excited for the future of curling here in Dumfries. The building looks great and these improvements have made a big, big difference.” 

Stuart said "it’s a great facility, popular with the local community, serving ice hockey, figure skating and curling.

"The Ice Bowl has pre-planned events, both national and international, which are planned two to three years in advance.  It's a boost to the local economy when we have those sorts of events."

Client relationship manager from Salix, Vicky Fisher, said: "The Dumfries Ice Bowl has become iconic through its popularity and links to Winter Olympians.  However, as locals will tell you, it’s so much more than a sports venue as people enjoy the fun, physical activity and companionship as much as taking part.

"As one of Dumfries and Galloway Council’s biggest users of energy in its estate, it’s been wonderful to work with them to make the building more energy efficient and secure its future."

* Carbon emissions were calculated by Dumfries and Galloway Council using the template supplied by Scottish Sustainable Network for Public Bodies Climate Change Duties Report that is submitted to Scottish Government.