We have all looked at the water going over the weir and wondered why it is not being harnessed.
The Environment Agency have just granted a licence to generate hydroelectric power from the River Thames at Abingdon to a not for profit enterprise run by local Abingdon people.
It will affect this not very beautiful view near Abingdon Weir
and will be a new feature along this short section of footpath …
The fish pass and change from two screws, not three, look like changes from previous pictures I have seen.
Planning permission will be needed next and if that goes well there could be a share offer in the autumn to finance the project and construction next year.
The Archimedes screws are over 3 metres in diameter, and they turn quite slowly. The architect will do their best harmonise the design with the area before putting in the planning application. It will after all be an interesting attraction for visitors.
It is anticipated that they will produce 100 kilowatts. This is equivalent to about 200 average houses.
The project will cost about a million pounds, to be funded by shares. The local people leading the project hope that a good proportion of the shareholders will be local. They say the interest rate will be competitive. Any remaining profit will go into a community fund, to be used locally. For more details visit Abingdon Hydro.
What an eyesore!
Is the visitor centre to be built in the mill stream? as the path is not very wide there as it is.
An awesome Idea, if they can get it to blend in and not be an eyesore. I say use the electricity to light up the Abbey Meadows and use it for outdoor music, theatre and the like 🙂
I kind of like the idea and am generally in favour of green energy and preserving the environment. However, I do feel that this does nothing for the environmental in landscape terms. I think it spoils a very beautiful vista.
It’s a really nice and forward thinking idea, but if it only provides electricity the equivalent of a few hundred houses, I’m sceptical as to why bother building such a large project, for such a little amount of Electricity. Like Steve says above, use it for the purpose of the Abbey grounds and Unicorn Theatre, maybe??
There is one you can see at the mill in East Hendred.
How many years will it take for it to pay for itself? How much energy is used to install it?
The East Hendred machine is not an eyesore and makes a nice noise. The visitor centre is not necessary, but it’s a good idea to have a SAFE observation platform as people will want to look. There is no reason why ‘industrial architecture’ can’t fit in … the lock and weir are, after all, ‘industrial’. This could be a go – look – see feature for the town, though, to be viable, it has to be profitable.
It would be good to have a bird’s eye view of how this fits. I am assuming it is to the right of the footpath on the 2nd photo and won’t affect the millstream much?
Alastair – I wondered where you were headed on your bike last evening – now I know!
I think that the financial viability is a key question. My knowledge of the economics of energy production is limited I must admit, but I have idea that Green Energy (e.g. Wind Turbines) is highly subsidised by the Government?..If so, would we not be paying for this so-called free energy? (That is aside from the revenue that would be anticipated from the end-user).
if you’re talking about a natural view you’d have to take the weir away.
Excellent idea. There should be one on every weir on the Thames. Anyone who thinks this is an eyesore has obviously never noticed the Didcot cooling towers…
There’s also a small one at the old mill at East Hanney.
..sorry i meant East HANNEY
Didcot cooling towers… A good point, and whilst going over the weir at Abingdon never fails to bring out the child in me, they aren’t, um, beautiful are they? I mean, there’s a lot of concrete n’stuff so the hydrothing wont, ahem, screw the view much, especially if we’re compensated by more rushing water and moving parts this time.
And that’s not even thinking about the grown-up green ecostuff.
I see Abingdon has its share on NIMBYS.
Just remember what the Mill stream was there for originally. A pleasant stroll is a by-product of that Industrial history. If you really believe in ‘Green’, every gravity-drop should be used to generate power.
Ignoring totally any flood-control function, without its weirs, the Thames also ceases to be a navigable waterway. What price then, Abingdon-on-Thames ? (Visitor centre needed only for kayakers ?)
This is a great idea and I support it completely regardless of how it looks. The weir is hardly a thing of beauty is it but the sound the water makes is very engaging.
Not everything that looks ugly is bad!
I think some good points have been made about the visual side of this project. The weir is not natural, nor is the millstream, and there is already lots of concrete etc. there. Once completed I don’t think this will make the view any worse.
On the value for money – it dpeneds how long it will continue to provide power for. At £1m for 200 homes that’s £5,000 per home. So if it’s going to have a ten year lifespan it’s probably not worth it, but if it’s going to have a 30 year lifespan it probably is. I assume it’s the latter, or even longer.
I’m a director of Abingdon Hydro and it’s good to see some mixed comments on here.
To answer some of the questions, the environmental impact of the project will be minimal and the embodied energy will be repaid within a fairly short period of time.
The financial returns from the scheme should be around £120k per year, obviously this will be effected by flow rates, weather, etc so this figure should be seen as an average.
The life expectancy of the screws is a minimum of 25 years but with regular maintenance and even replacement of the screws when they need it could give it a virtually unlimited life span.
The visual impact will be obvious but the design is intended to blend in with the locale so the impact should enhance the current view.
If there are any other questions or comments, please feel free to visit our web site at http://www.abingdonhydro.co.uk.
Who in there right minds would invest there own money and others into a non profit making local company, beside the fact that they have assurances from local businesses, and others higher in the gravy train. The fact is it is unwanted not needed for electricity as we will become more dependant on nuclear power now that they can reduce the structure of waste down to 10 years, Besides are they not destroying the natural of the weir which has been there for many years, so investors i would suggest you invest in the Korean market and Pakistan market instead of a supposed non-profit making venture which you have wasted so much money on.