Micro hydro energy is back on the agenda in West Berkshire
Council to consider sites along the Kennet and Thames
Council staff may be asked to scope out the viability of putting hydro turbines on the Kennet and the Thames to power local authority buildings.
The first of the cross party advisory groups at West Berkshire Council picked up the issue first raised as a potential energy source for the district back in 2003.
The environment advisory group sits with 10 councillors from different parties and acts as a sounding board for new ideas.
“I made the first presentation/suggestion about the possibility of hydro power at Victoria Sluices to the town council in 2003,” said town councillor Roger Hunneman (Lib Dem, Wash Common).
“I was elected to WBC in late 2003 and I was able to obtain very limited funds from them to get a pre-feasibility study done which led in turn to a full, with predicted costs, feasibility study received by WBC in March 2008.
“For whatever reason the then administration did not proceed with it.
“In the meanwhile I continued to pursue the idea through the town council and the then Sustainable Newbury Group.
“We obtained a couple more studies and reports on the possibilities of using town council land at Lock Island.
“This activity died out in 2011 as it became clear that cost of the civil engineering needed would be too much to warrant spending for the likely electrical output at that time of austerity.”
The micro hydro schemes mooted by Mr Hunneman use an Archimedian screw generator – yielding about 20-40kW.
“The increase in energy costs and the availability of Smart Export Guarantees (SEGs) also makes these schemes more attractive,” added Mr Hunneman.
“It is very encouraging that the newly elected WBC is looking at the possibilities of such schemes – not just in Newbury but throughout West Berkshire at the many similar sites along the River Kennet.”
The meeting heard that the River Kennet in Newbury has been used in the early 20th century for hydroelectric power generation and that there is around a 100m fall across West Berkshire which would provide enough of a drop to generate the power.
Electric street lighting was powered by a turbine in 1904, and the site at Greenham Mill was last used in the 1950s.
There was another turbine at West Mills which was demolished and replaced with housing in the 1970s.
“I would like to think that this would be a very good way of cutting the district’s carbon footprint,” added Mr Hunneman.
Turbulent, based in Belgium, also gave a presentation on the opportunities for low level hydroelectric power by installing turnbines near weirs or along rivers with technology that has moved on from the technical solution suggested 20 years ago.
“For the same amount of energy as one 70kw turbine, you would have to install a solar plant the size of a football field, and that doesnt provide continuous power either, ” said Maria Elvira Zeman of Turbulent.
She explained that the generator is put underwater, and so does not create noise.
“It would be great to get some grants to do some experiments on this,” said Martha Vickers (Lib Dem, Newbury Speen).
“Very keen for it to be investigated further, but we also have the Thames flowing through in the north east of the district, so we should be mindful of other areas as well as those in Newbury,” said Richard Somner (Con, Tilehurst South and Holybrook).