tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39442057170982152412024-03-21T08:51:22.648-07:00Waterfeaturegiving a dam about micro hydroUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-65408895261437675352013-09-05T08:53:00.002-07:002013-09-05T08:54:10.852-07:00Hydro Guidelines Omnishambles <div class="greenTextBlock">
From SATA's website...<br />
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<i>Angling and conservation groups have
expressed alarm at the continued delay in properly regulating the use of
hydropower turbines on English rivers despite admissions that the
current guidelines for hydropower schemes were ‘not fit for purpose’ and
risked long-term environmental damage to fish and other ecology.</i><br />
</div>
<i>At a meeting of on Thursday 11 July, the Environment Agency (EA)
board failed to approve new Good Practice Guidelines for hydropower
developments because of a lack of evidence provided by the EA executive
team to support their recommendations that higher flow protection
standards should be adopted. The Angling Trust, Atlantic Salmon Trust,
Buglife, Fish Legal, Salmon & Trout Association and WWF have today
demanded a moratorium on all new developments until the necessary
evidence has been gathered to enable a decision to be taken to protect
rivers from further damage.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>This latest delay follows years of broken promises and delays with the
process of developing the new guidelines. The meeting was expected to
approve the executives’ recommendation to adopt new guidelines which
would have reduced the amount of water that could be diverted from
rivers into hydropower turbines. The proposed guidelines were supported
by angling and fisheries NGOs who have attended more than 20 meetings
to help draw them up. Their position was based on the best available
evidence world-wide, including scores of scientific papers and a review
of flow requirements commissioned by the Agency itself from a renowned
expert in the field. </i><br />
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You can read the <a href="http://www.salmon-trout.org/news_item.asp?news_id=266" target="_blank">full article here.</a><br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-12617765286369362382013-09-05T08:36:00.001-07:002013-09-05T08:58:23.692-07:00Kelham Island Hydro Abandoned!This is the official statement from Sheffield Renewables on the Kelham Island hydropower project:<br />
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<i>Kelham Island has always been a small scheme and therefore difficult
financially. Following on from what we have learned from Jordan Dam, we
have further concerns about the viability of this scheme. We do not
currently have the resource within the group to work through these,
therefore we are concentrating our efforts elsewhere for the foreseeable
future.<br />
<br />
We do believe it has a great potential for outreach and as a celebration
of Sheffield’s culture, whilst providing a small but significant
contribution to energy demand in the city. Therefore, if any
opportunities arise for us to partner with organisations to enable this
scheme to happen, we would be very pleased to do so.</i><br />
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Needless to say this is fantastic news for those who opposed the scheme in
Sheffield and I'm very grateful to all those who signed the petition. The planning consent will expire in Jan 2015 but I really
can't see a way back for it now, and wish Sheffield Renewables all the best in their new ventures, creating genuinely green solutions such as Solar PV arrays for the city. <br />
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The lesson from both these abandoned schemes which at first seemed so 'eco-friendly' and profitable, must surely be that the small-scale, low-head, hydropower simply cannot work efficiently and cost-effectively for either man or the environment and we are far better off looking towards genuinely sustainable and 'green' means of energy generation. <br />
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Of course the questions about Sheffield's weirs remain. They still continue to pose a barrier to fish migration and cause significant problems for bio-diversity in their canalised upstream sections. Here's an exciting prospect from the <a href="http://www.irwellriverstrust.com/" target="_blank">Irwell Rivers Trust</a>, although I don't anticipate anything quite so radical happening in Sheffield any time soon!<br />
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Keep an eye on the changing image where you can clearly see the immediate improvements to the upstream section which was like a mill-pond before the weir was removed. Great work by all involved!<br />
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There's also excellent news from The Wandle Trust that two weirs are being removed from the Hogsmill. See <a href="http://www.wandletrust.org/?p=4662" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="http://www.wandletrust.org/?p=4716" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-48757538691834453992013-04-15T06:48:00.002-07:002013-04-15T06:48:21.728-07:00Jordan Dam Dead in The WaterThe sister project for the Kelham Island scheme will not be going ahead despite raising £200k+ from a community share offer. Why not? Because the developers couldn't afford the fish pass demanded by the Environment Agency. Instead Sheffield Renewables are going to focus on sensible energy schemes such as solar power, according to <a href="http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/plans-for-river-don-hydro-dam-dead-in-the-water-1-5586265" target="_blank">this report </a>from the Sheffield Star. Great news for our city! Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-74787065524599241892013-04-04T08:07:00.001-07:002013-04-04T08:07:55.986-07:00DamNationHere's the trailer for a major new film about removal of huge dams on the Elwha in the US.<br />
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<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/49700244?title=0&byline=0" width="500" height="350" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe>
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For the film-makers, 'Dam removal is no longer the work of a fictional Monkey Wrench Gang. It’s real, upon us, a cornerstone of the modern environmental and cultural movements. The benefits from dams, including hydropower, urban water supply, irrigation, and flood protection have played a critical role in the development of the United States, but river ecosystems and Native American heritage suffered greatly. Now, many of these antiquated relics of the industrial revolution are classified as public safety hazards by the Army Corps of Engineers.'<br />
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For more info take a look at the website of this brilliant project. <a href="http://www.damnationfilm.com/" target="_blank">DamNation.</a><span id="goog_682679801"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a><span id="goog_682679802"></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-7105432029479348872012-11-20T09:06:00.000-08:002012-11-20T09:06:37.310-08:00The End of The RiverA startling new European film about hydro has just been released. It contains interviews with Green Party MEPs who are calling for small scale hydropower to be abandoned because of the clear evidence of the environmental damage they have caused across the continent.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='550' height='488' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/7cKFdsS7lVw?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-2711803970459296732012-09-21T03:26:00.000-07:002012-09-21T03:34:29.674-07:00Slicing Up Our Fish For a Mere Drop of HydropowerHere's a comment from Charles Clover in The Sunday Times, made back in November 2011, rightfully shocked at the <u><b>'fish kill allowance'</b></u> of a hydro-scheme on the River Trent. In <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B8etmwoguT1lNWpoaURpenN3c0E" target="_blank">'<b>Slicing up our fish for a mere drop of hydropower</b>'</a>, Clover says, <i>'one water power scheme on the Trent is allowed to kill 110 fish a day - including salmon and sea trout, of which the river has vanishingly few'</i>, and he goes on to say how 'fish-kill' limits are not enforceable in practice. Its worth noting that this particular scheme - Gunthorpe Weir - isn't actually in place yet although licences were granted in 2010 (this is the same scheme referenced in <a href="http://waterfeature1.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/hydropower-impacts-exposed-in-award.html" target="_blank">The Spectator article</a>).<br />
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David Mann of hydro-consultancy firm, <a href="http://www.mannpower-hydro.co.uk/" target="_blank">'Mannpower'</a>, said this of permissible fish kills in a <a href="http://waterfeature1.blogspot.co.uk/p/films.html" target="_blank">comment published on this blog</a> in February 2012, <i>'I do understand your position and desire to alert people to the
potential for problems to arise with hydro schemes, and along with
others in the industry, were surprised that the EA issued a licence
permitting a limited 'fish kill'. </i>Strange that the leading hydro-consultancy firm in the country was unaware that EA had granted a licence which allows the killing of up to 10 salmon and sea-trout, or 100 coarse fish, brown trout, eels, and lampreys, per day, almost two years previously! Indeed one would hope that EA are working very closely with Mannpower in developing the long overdue Hydropower Good Practice Guidelines (which were due to be published at the beginning of 2012).<br />
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Clover's article concludes:<br />
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<b><i>'History says that we once had to alter our rivers to grind flour. Superficially it seems reasonable to do it again to fight climate change. But England is a fairly flat country that isn’t very wet, so the potential gains from small-scale hydro are insignificant - a maximum of 0.5% of electricity demand - and the ecological costs are high. I have no doubt that a look at the costs and benefits would convince us to scrap subsidies for smallscale hydro, and put the money into solar instead.'</i></b><br />
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<i></i> Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-12587478483553673652012-09-06T06:11:00.002-07:002012-09-06T06:11:17.646-07:00Run of River Projects Are Killing Fish - Evidence from British ColumbiaAccording to British Columbia's Wilderness Committee, run of river hydropower projects are having a deathly impact on fish populations.<br />
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<i>The Mamquam River pours cold and fresh off the Coast Mountains,
forming pools and canyons and chutes of white water on its way to the
Squamish River and Howe Sound. It was a natural place for federal fisheries biologists to assemble
on an August 2010 weekend for swift-water safety training. Like the
river itself, however, their exercise took an expected turn. Rather than watch the Mamquam flow predictably to the sea, the
biologists were dismayed to witness the water levels fluctuate wildly —
and with dire consequences. Young steelhead were dying, stranded without water. The culprit? The Capital Power run-of-river hydro plant, located just upstream. </i><br />
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<i>The independent power industry bills itself as green, sustainable and environmentally responsible. But more than 3,000 pages of documents obtained separately by The
Vancouver Sun and the Wilderness Committee through freedom of
information requests show water-flow fluctuations caused by
run-of-river hydro projects are killing fish — and the problem is not
isolated. While independent power producers insist their sector remains the
cleanest energy option, the documents bolster environmentalists’
long-standing concerns about the industry. “I’m seeing significant environmental problems,” said Gwen Barlee,
policy director for the Wilderness Committee. “And that runs completely
counter to what the companies are saying, which is essentially, ‘Trust
us with your wild rivers and there won’t be any problems.’ ”</i><br />
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The full article can be read <a href="http://wildernesscommittee.org/news/exclusive_run_of_river_power_projects_kill_fish" target="_blank">here</a>. Of great concern is the synergy with UK plants such as the Settle hydro scheme. The companies have, according to the evidence, time and again breached the requirements of their licences but not been charged. And in tandem with our concerns about the depleted reach of the River Don and the likely impacts on the Kelham Island Goit, the main culprit of the damage being caused is the lack of proper control of the flow being taken from the river. <br />
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<i>Julia Berardinucci,
the south coast’s director of resource management for the Ministry of
Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations... said run-of-river projects represent an “emerging technology” operating in a “challenging landscape.”</i><br />
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So here again we have clear evidence of the negative environmental impacts of hydropower, but what are we learning from this here in the UK? Aren't companies like Sheffield Renewables being given consent to use the same 'emerging technology' to tinker with our poorly understood river ecosystems in the name of 'being green'?<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-34558963991847228592012-09-04T05:12:00.000-07:002012-09-04T13:05:45.364-07:00Hydropower impacts exposed in award-winning Spectator articleAt last some mainstream press about the negative impacts of hydro!<br />
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From the Spectator this week (1st September): <br />
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Why does hydroelectric power have such a friendly image compared to other forms of renewable energy? In this week’s magazine cover, our first ever Matt Ridley Prize winner Pippa Cuckson examines why hydroelectricity is not just bad for the taxpayer, but also bad for the environment. In our View from 22 podcast, Fraser Nelson discusses this hidden scandal:
<i>
‘The principle of hydroelectric power, which is great for mountains, does not apply to England’s green and pleasant lakes. But that hasn’t stopped the government subsidising this because they love the idea so much…every week three hydro-plants are being authorized which pretty much have the power of a candle. They require huge amounts of subsidy but most important of all, they harm the environment.’</i><br />
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You'll have to buy the magazine or subscribe on-line to read<i> </i>the article in full but there are more details from <a href="http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2012/09/hydro-power-the-winner-of-the-2012-matt-ridley-award/" target="_blank">the Spectator here</a> and there's a <a href="http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2012/08/the-view-from-22-something-fishy-romneys-tea-party-tall-building-syndrome-and-cleggs-nonsense-theories/" target="_blank">podcast</a> you can download too. Here's a sneaky peek:<br />
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<i>'As with wind and solar, so it seems it is with hydro power: a few rich
get richer; everyone else gets poorer; property rights - in this case
riparian rights - are trampled;
time-honoured liberties are infringed; energy prices rise; and the
environment, in the name of being saved, is needlessly damaged. But don't expect to be reading this any time soon on the British Hydropower Association's website.'</i><br />
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<a href="http://www.spectator.co.uk/Image%20Library/Spectator/Issue%20Images/2012/1%20September%202012/Hydro-Fish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://www.spectator.co.uk/Image%20Library/Spectator/Issue%20Images/2012/1%20September%202012/Hydro-Fish.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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(image from The Spectator 1st September 2012, thanks to Glenn for the heads up on the article)<br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-81434530369100320902012-08-17T03:23:00.000-07:002012-08-17T03:23:27.773-07:00Fish Pass ClearanceSPRITE have posted a video of their massive efforts to clean up the fish pass on the River Don at Niagara Weir following a double spate. <br />
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<i>'Only a few weeks after an exhausting effort to clear flood debris from
the fish pass at Niagara weir on the River Don, another spate set things
back to square one in July 2012. The local volunteers of the community
group SPRITE set to work again and, along with their multiple additional
works, become part of a long legacy of groups and heroic individuals
from Yorkshire who have helped this post industrial river onto a fragile
recovery path. It is significant that these works are going on at a
time of great political pressure for widespread adoption of low-energy
producing and ecologically damaging micro- hydropower schemes. These
give a financial imperative to retain the impounding barriers in their
entirety and also limit the efficacy of fish passes.'</i><br />
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/47673492" width="500" height="281" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe> <p><a href="http://vimeo.com/47673492">Fish Pass Clearance by SPRITE</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3719662">Paul Gaskell</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-46918921117498461142012-06-23T06:50:00.000-07:002012-06-23T07:30:34.245-07:00Screening and CleaningOne of the issues raised in Kelham Island Hydro is the importance of adequate screening to prevent juvenile fish from entering the turbine channel from both up and downstream positions. The ideal size is just 3mm x 3mm. To give an idea of how difficult maintenance of such a screen can be, take a look at the before and after pictures below which show the accumulated debris caused by recent flooding at Niagara weir. The 'trash-screen' is at the upstream entrance to the fish-pass.<br />
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<b>Before</b> <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5VNMYfegI9Qm-NxTLo2b-DvS7vqNx28Vf7SD3uE1sOl5LWkqrzSQ0kKj6NKg611AkUZjl-j_NEuZ_8Kj37XjyM_2BdCxnSdPT1VjRB0cfLVoXbF-M5bzBrIrGAC79IMaVly2t2_oLB5n4/s1600/Photo0142.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5VNMYfegI9Qm-NxTLo2b-DvS7vqNx28Vf7SD3uE1sOl5LWkqrzSQ0kKj6NKg611AkUZjl-j_NEuZ_8Kj37XjyM_2BdCxnSdPT1VjRB0cfLVoXbF-M5bzBrIrGAC79IMaVly2t2_oLB5n4/s400/Photo0142.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>After</b><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIScHy3SeGHB3ihfqJLjKm7f8LAeBfBSurpIyfA32UT6xYThPCAUwRUlcAh0LtZGWCUhgc72jrcVsuSjJ3NofhjJp_zq4PNa3vDUc_JTVgx29460XkT3Gcs-yj6cn6uV4lCc777L1ub1rj/s1600/Photo0144.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIScHy3SeGHB3ihfqJLjKm7f8LAeBfBSurpIyfA32UT6xYThPCAUwRUlcAh0LtZGWCUhgc72jrcVsuSjJ3NofhjJp_zq4PNa3vDUc_JTVgx29460XkT3Gcs-yj6cn6uV4lCc777L1ub1rj/s400/Photo0144.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The screen in this case is intended to allow passage of fish and is therefore deliberately large, but if you imagine the amount of debris that will frequently accumulate on much smaller screens intended to <b>stop </b>fish passage, i.e. those that need to be installed on a hydro-power channel, then you can also imagine the levels of maintenance that will be required to ensure that adequate levels of water flow through and keep the turbine running at an optimum. Cost effective? No maintenance costs were factored into the published feasibility survey for Kelham Island.<br />
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The maintenance of Niagara fish-pass is undertaken by volunteers working for <a href="http://www.sheffieldsprite.com/home.asp?slevel=0z0&parent_id=1" target="_blank">SPRITE</a> and I'm hugely indebted to that organisation for providing these illuminating images. Keep up the brilliant work!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-36952671477399820892012-06-13T15:35:00.001-07:002012-06-13T15:52:56.720-07:00Protecting Freshwater Diversity - A Promo!Interesting new short video emphasising just how important colonies of
freshwater invertebrates are to the planet, how impoundments - e.g. weirs - affect them, and highlighting the fact
that they form the most overlooked and least understood component of many of the aquatic ecosystems
we think we already know. Its from the States so they've gone for
cheesey blockbuster production, but the message is, nonetheless, clear:<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='550' height='457' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/xi9ZLXGZwSM?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />
(Thanks to PG)<br />
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Some very overdue updates, regarding invertebrates and their habitats closer to home, are coming soon!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-61607270714185188492012-04-25T15:05:00.000-07:002012-04-25T15:05:33.819-07:00Settle Hydro - EA evidence that fishery is affectedThe EA investigations into complaints about the Settle hydro scheme have begun. The basis of the complaints are that the scheme is affecting fish migration, in particular Salmon, which are prevalent in the River Ribble on which the hydro station stands.
From the <a href="http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/country-view/environment/top-hydro-plant-may-face-curbs-over-fears-for-salmon-1-4408657" target="_blank">Yorkshire Post article</a>:
<i>Brian Shields, senior fisheries specialist for the Environment Agency, said: “ We believe there is sufficient evidence that fisheries have been affected for some form of action to be taken.
“There is a whole range of options and in discussion with the operators we will have to find something that is workable and legally enforceable.</i>”
It seems the scheme isn't exactly living up to its 'environmental' plaudits after all and all for the sake of just 50 homes worth of electricity per year.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-14638677945024042462012-04-25T14:41:00.003-07:002012-04-25T15:30:00.096-07:00River Itchen Hydro AbandonedExcellent work by the <a href="http://www.salmon-trout.org/" target="_blank">Salmon and Trout Association</a> (SATA), working together with local fishery interests, has led to the withdrawal of a planning application by <a href="http://www.eastleigh.gov.uk/" target="_blank">Eastleigh Borough Council</a> to develop a 'run-of-river' or 'low-head' micro-hydro scheme on the River Itchen in Hampshire. It seems that the winning thrust of SATA's objections, led by leading environmental solicitor <a href="http://www.linley-adams.co.uk/" target="_blank">Guy Linley-Adams</a>, was focussed around the scheme's incompatibility with the <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/legislation/habitatsdirective/index_en.htm" target="_blank">EU Habitat Directive</a>. The River Itchen, a chalkstream, is designated a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) due to its Atlantic Salmon populations which use the river as a spawning ground, and in which juvenile fish develop before they embark upon their incredible journey into our oceans. The Itchen is also one of the most prestigious pleasure-fisheries in the UK, attracting fly-fishers from across the globe, and, consequently, it holds significant economic value to the county.<br />
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SATA CEO, Paul Knight, highlighted the impact the intended scheme would have on the hydrology of the river by 'slowing and deepening the water' above the proposed micro-hydro site. Locally, in Sheffield, this point has real synergy with the proposed development at Kelham Island and its an argument clearly illustrated by Dr Paul Gaskell in 'Kelham Island Hydro' when he discusses the ecological impacts of the perpetuation of the Kelham Island weir. As viewers will know, the channel upstream of any weir is 'impounded', which is bad news for the bio-diversity of hundreds of metres of river habitat. By and large run-of-river micro-hydro schemes need to preserve, or, even worse, <i>resurrect</i>, similar impoundments in order to generate power.<br />
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Sheffield's River Don, and rivers like it across the UK, do not have SAC status, despite the fact that Atlantic Salmon historically spawned at their headwaters and the fact that, year upon year, these remarkable fish continue their attempts to repopulate. These efforts have been devastated over centuries by man-made obstacles and pollution. As Chris Firth says in 'Kelham Island Hydro', 'those structures still impede the free movement of fish'. In Sheffield, the river's ecosystems are recovering after centuries of industrial degradation, and voluntary organisations like <a href="http://www.sheffieldsprite.com/home.asp?slevel=0z0&parent_id=1" target="_blank">SPRITE</a> and the <a href="http://www.dcrt.org.uk/" target="_blank">Don Catchment Rivers Trust</a> have been instrumental in cleaning up the waterway and improving its habitats, giving a significant helping hand to the re-establishment of natural wildlife orders; Sheffield is not alone in its incredible efforts - see, for example, the work of <a href="http://www.wandletrust.org/" target="_blank">The Wandle Trust</a>, a group who have, against inconceivable odds, revived the London River Wandle from its official classification as 'an open sewer' to the vibrant inner-city watercourse it is today.<br />
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But we cannot hope to attract the talents of a Guy Linley-Adams or to access fully any other resource of a major pressure group such as SATA to examine, campaign against, or object to every local proposal because groups such as SATA have finite resources which are spread over many other serious issues affecting their cause, and they prioritise duly. Instead our objections are local and voluntary and we must hope that the decision-makers, especially those within local authorities across Britain, will truly understand the basic tenets of a sound environmental argument and that they will acknowledge the example set by SATA in the case of the River Itchen and consider the evidence of the negative ecological impacts that are beginning to emerge from that flagship of micro-hydro tinkering on the River Ribble, Settle Hydro.<br />
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David Browse, Secretary of the Hampshire Salmon Trust said of the Itchen proposal, 'This hydropower scheme would have provided minimal energy generation compared to the potential impact on salmon and other aquatic species, and we felt we were being let down by the very people who should have been responsible for their protection.' Sound familiar?
The full SATA article is <a href="http://www.salmon-trout.org/news_item.asp?news_id=218" target="_blank">here</a>.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-54783399713338253572012-04-20T03:34:00.002-07:002012-04-25T15:05:17.008-07:00River Lamprey RadioFascinating <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006sr7c" target="_blank">BBC Nature</a> documentary about these ancient little critters <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006sr7c"></a> and the significance of conservation measures being taken. Unsurprisingly such measures include tackling barriers such as weirs in an effort to allow lampreys to migrate and spawn. Specific 'Lamprey passes' are being pioneered with some success but barriers coupled with persistently low river flows mean that life for the lamprey is still far from easy.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-27903611469377991502012-02-13T15:08:00.001-08:002012-02-18T18:19:20.162-08:00Where's Whalley?A micro-hydropower scheme proposed for the Lancashire Calder at Whalley looks set to be rejected planning permission, despite having received a 'feasibility-survey' grant of £20k from the UK government. It would seem that anglers and others were instrumental in the successful objections, based on 'the impact of the scheme on the river environment and fish stock levels, noise from the generator and the risk of flooding', but in actuality the overarching swing-factor for the local Councillor was that the scheme would have a harmful 'visual impact'! <br />
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Full article<a href="http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/news/blackburndarwenhyndburnribble/9510325.Whalley_weir__micro_hydro_station__set_for_refusal/"> here </a>.<br />
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Thanks to JayZSUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-70777467391694959632012-02-11T11:13:00.000-08:002012-02-18T18:58:01.199-08:00European Commission study says 80% of rivers are adversely affected by human pressureChanges to habitat and the chemical balance of water in our rivers - as a result of human development - are having an adverse effect on around 80% of European rivers and will get worse in the future says a <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/environment/integration/research/newsalert/pdf/271na3.pdf">new report from the EC</a>. Those pressures include the development of hydropower on rivers. This indictment of the impact we're already having is surely a warning that must be heeded by developers and public officials, but is anyone really listening?<br />
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(Thanks to LR)Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-44456564062594628002012-02-02T08:05:00.000-08:002012-02-02T08:10:45.666-08:00'Salmon Fishing Harmed by Hydro Scheme' - River RibbleHere's the latest example of the grave impact that micro-hydro schemes are having on our rivers. The scheme generates just 50 homes worth of electricity and the Settle Hydro company has breached its licence 238 times. <a href="http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/at-a-glance/main-section/salmon_fishing_harmed_by_hydro_scheme_1_4193772">Salmon Fishing Harmed by Hydro Scheme</a><br />
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Shocking stuffUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-35728325719050903552012-01-30T06:40:00.000-08:002012-01-30T06:40:23.033-08:00Condit Dam 'removal' videosHere's a couple of vids from the States showing the rationale behind the demolition of Condit Dam in Elwha Valley, replete with stunning footage of the moment of detonation. Although the Dam was an enormous obstruction to fish movement, fish have already started to re-colonise the river. It doesn't take any great leap of imagination to transfer the thinking behind this ecologically-driven initiative to the thousands of obstructions that still exist on UK rivers.<br />
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<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/33584271?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="600" height="338" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/33584271">Condit Dam Removal Explained</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/andymaser">Andy Maser</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p><br />
<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/34169308?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="600" height="400" frameborder="0" webkitAllowFullScreen mozallowfullscreen allowFullScreen></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/34169308">The Craziest Idea</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/andymaser">Andy Maser</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p><br />
Thanks to WS and PGUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-36103317585067504262012-01-16T07:51:00.000-08:002012-01-29T16:50:31.572-08:00Kelham Island Hydro Given Go-AheadSheffield City Council today approved the Kelham Island Hydro proposal with some significant mitigation conditions that willl need to be resolved before any development gets under way. The Environment Agency and ecologists were instrumental in ensuring these conditions were imposed.<br />
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The full document can be read <a href="https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B8etmwoguT1lNTdlMDFjNmUtNGU0Ny00ODU3LWEyM2YtMzMyYTY1NTY0YmZm" target="_blank">here</a> and the relevant info starts at page 5.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-3299809980646106392012-01-11T03:12:00.000-08:002012-01-11T03:12:57.798-08:00High-head hydro scheme proposed for PenninesA seemingly sensible scheme is being developed on Dove Stone reservoir. The difference between this and 'run-of-river' or 'low-head' schemes is that it capitalises on controlled releases from a man-made reservoir. Guardian piece is <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/the-northerner/2012/jan/11/highheadhydro-saddleworth-h2ope" target="_blank">here</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-54987462362739938292011-12-29T04:57:00.001-08:002011-12-29T05:00:57.574-08:00Elwha Dam RemovalHere's an amazing project to remove two HEP dams on the Elwha River in North America which will restore a blocked valley to its former wilderness. The project will cost $325 million and began in September 2011. The Seattle Times has full, fascinating coverage on a dedicated project page <a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/flatpages/specialreports/elwha/index.html" target="_blank">here.</a><br />
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Here's a quick look at how they're planning to restore the ecology:<br />
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It seems very curious that public funds should be paying a private company for such a document that will, in effect, inform private developers on how to get a smoother ride for their projects through the planning permission process. Even more curious given that the EA, less than two years ago, had already written their own '<a href="http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=www.climate-good%20practice%20guidelines%20to%20the%20environment%20agency%20hydropower%20handbook&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpublications.environment-agency.gov.uk%2FPDF%2FGEHO0310BSCT-E-E.pdf&ei=Bfn1Tq6WEZL78QPNrbCtAQ&usg=AFQjCNEe5RyhPfVhgkV_kE1_51DmQL8x4w&cad=rja" target="_blank">Good Practice Guidelines to the Environment Agency Hydropower Handbook</a>' which covers the ecological impacts of schemes and, getting really weird now, the EA are due to publish their own new guidelines, 'Good Practice Guidance for small-scale and micro-scale hydropower' in early 2012! Might a multinational construction firm have been paid from the public purse simply to position themselves perfectly to cash in on the UK's present and ill-informed love of all things micro-hydro? Surely not...<br />
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The document is presently in draft and can be read <a href="http://www.climate-em.org.uk/images/uploads/Draft%20Planning%20Guidance%20for%20Comment%20%5b3%5d.pdf" target="_blank">here</a>. Comments should be sent to alex.melling@amec.com or in writing to <i style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Alex Melling, AMEC, 155 Aztec West, Park Avenue, Almondsbury, Bristol, BS32 4UB</span></i>. The deadline for comments is <b>13th Jan 11.</b><br />
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Thanks to RWUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3944205717098215241.post-7078278985152358732011-12-22T18:06:00.000-08:002012-02-03T05:46:10.231-08:00Millhouses Park Fish PassRecently hatched just over the road from me is an imaginative way to put a derelict watercourse into sensible eco-use.<br />
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An old Victorian lido, for decades unmanaged and unloved, has been transformed into a 'fish-pass' thanks to a partnership between <a href="http://friendsofmillhousespark.org/contact/wildlife/" target="_blank">The Friends of Millhouses Park </a>and <a href="http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/" target="_blank">The Environment Agency</a>. A fish-pass is a man-made conduit which allows fish to travel upstream to their natural spawning grounds where significant barriers - mostly man-made weirs - have prevented them from doing so in the past. In theory a fish-pass creates vital opportunities for fish to move above these obstacles and a major measure of their success is an increase in the river's fish population and, as a result, increased numbers of predator populations (birds and mammals) which depend on them for food. This contributes greatly to good <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodiversity" target="_blank">bio-diversity</a>.<br />
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The pass at Millhouses is designed to allow the main native fish species, Brown Trout, to bypass the significant barrier - a long weir with a medium gradient - as well as creating new habitat for our endangered, native, <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/jul/21/crayfish-extinction-breeding" target="_blank">white-clawed crayfish</a> which is <a href="http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/ProtectedSites/SACselection/species.asp?FeatureIntCode=S1092" target="_blank">under threat</a> from its American cousin. <br />
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Slightly spooky to think your dog is at risk of a nip from one of these beautiful creatures<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-72rh4LmP95s/TvPeR2KQoyI/AAAAAAAAABQ/qgfsq7THYRc/s1600/cray.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="282" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-72rh4LmP95s/TvPeR2KQoyI/AAAAAAAAABQ/qgfsq7THYRc/s640/cray.png" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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but more worrying to think they might, without real concrete action, be wiped out by their American counterparts!<br />
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The EA have a short promo video for the fish pass on their website <a href="http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/wildlife/135284.aspx" target="_blank">here</a>. The BBC commented on it <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/sheffield/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_9379000/9379651.stm" target="_blank">here</a>. I know of two 'tagged' fish below the weir in September 2011 and it'll be very interesting to find out in March 2012 whether the same fish have managed to navigate the pass.<br />
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Here's a very rough video I made this morning of the pass area with my pocket camera (the river is in reasonable but late form)<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="350" mozallowfullscreen="" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/34078061?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="622"></iframe><br />
<a href="http://vimeo.com/34078061">Millhouses Park Fish Pass 23rd December 2011</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user9739059">Waterfeature</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0