Tag Archives: Hackney

Delays to North London waste processing plant

Posted on September 10, 2012 by Admin

September 2012: Key to the proposed North London Waste Plan (NWLP) – currently under development – is the development of a new ‘Mechnical and Biological Treatment’ (MBT) plant at the former Friern Barnet Sewage Works at Pinkham Way. An independent planning inspector has however recently ruled that the Plan has not been properly consulted on with neighbouring boroughs and hence developers (see below) for the project  must look again at resubmitting their proposals.

The NWLP sets out the planning framework to 2027 for waste management in the seven North London boroughs – Haringey, Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Hackney, Islington and Waltham Forest – which together are known as the North London Waste Authority (NWLA) . It identifies sites for waste management use and sets out policies for determining waste planning applications.The Plan has been under development now for several years, and the inspector’s decision will now knock the timetable for the adoption of the councils’ proposals.

The planning application for the Pinkham Way is a separate process to the overall plan and is currently on hold. The ‘mythbusters’ section of the NWLA website sets out that the MBT to be based there will be used to “manufacture a solid fuel from waste that is left over after as much recyclable material as possible has been extracted; that fuel will then be transported to one of two sites outside of north London where there is a need for energy (heat and electricity).” This type of fuel is usually called SRF or solid recovered fuel.

The website goes on to say that “NO waste incineration will take place on the site, and no plans are being made to accommodate incineration at Pinkham Way now or in the future.”

NWLA also state that “The carbon impacts of waste are mostly in the treatment of the waste rather than in its transportation, but even so we are seeking to have the Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF) delivered to the fuel-user by rail or water transport to minimise this. It is also important to note that we are making SRF precisely so that the maximum carbon benefits of combined heat and power can be reaped at a location where a suitable demand exists. The alternative would be to build a new incinerator that recovers only electricity and that wastes the heat; and this is very specifically what we are not proposing to do.”

A lot more information on the NWLA’s proposals – and the active campaign directed against them – is provided at the pinkhamwayincinerator.blogspot.co.uk website.

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Olympic Schools Retrofit Project

Posted on July 9, 2012 by Admin

July 2012: The GLA has approved procurement of  “specialist technical services to supervise and inspect energy efficiency works… during the delivery of RE:FIT to 12 schools as part of the Olympic Retrofit Project. It is estimated that these services will cost no more than £60,000.”
The approval form sets out the history to this project, which arose as a consequence of the shortfall in carbon emission savings and renewable energy generated on the London Olympics site due to the failure to secure a viable large-scale wind turbine project.

“The Olympic Retrofit project is a CO2 reduction project that will be fully funded by an ODA grant. It will be delivered with zero costs to the GLA. The ODA set ambitious targets within its 2007  Sustainable Development Strategy including a target “To achieve a reduction in carbon emissions for the built environment of 50 percent by 2013”. This subsequently became legally binding under a Section 106 agreement [Schedule 11]. The planning conditions for the Park also include a twenty percent renewable energy target, which contributes to the overall fifty percent carbon target. So far, the ODA has invested in a suite of carbon mitigation measures including energy efficiency; district heating and cooling from the Energy Centre; and renewable energy...

“The strategy to meet the renewable energy target on the Olympic Park had originally relied on a 2MW wind turbine that had received outline planning permission and was expected to deliver thirteen percent renewable energy for the Olympic Park. Diminished commercial interest however meant that the plan had to be abandoned. With consideration of cost and programme, the ODA could only reasonably deliver a further two percent renewable energy through the installation of photovoltaic (PV) panels on the Multi-Storey Car Park and the Main Press Centre. The overall impact is a gap in the ODA carbon target of circa 1,100 tonnes of CO2. The ODA assessed the options to compensate for the onsite shortfall and a local retrofit project based on the RE:NEW and RE:FIT models proved to be the best value for money. The ODA have amended their Section 106 agreement allowing funding of £1,700,000 to be spent on this compensation project to retrofit homes and schools within the host boroughs of Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, and Waltham Forest.The ODA is a ‘sunset organisation’ meaning it has a limited timeframe for operation (related to the London 2012 Games) and so it was necessary to seek a third party to deliver the programme onbehalf of the ODA. The ODA identified the GLA as best-fit to deliver through the existing RE:NEWand RE:FIT models (see Appendix 1 of MD839).

“A project led by the GLA, in conjunction with the boroughs, comprised of RE:NEW-style treatments in homes and RE:FIT works within schools will achieve this objective. The ODA has grant funded the GLA, and the GLA has entered into a grant agreements with each ofthe host boroughs to deliver the RE:NEW-style measures within homes. The GLA has called-off from the RE:FIT framework and entered into a service contract with EDF Energy. EDF Energy are currently undertaking an investment grade proposal for the portfolio of 12 schools.”

A recent update on the scope the RE:FIT project is available in the following June 2012 conference presentation – ‘The London Experience of RE:FIT’.  A tender was issued in June by Mayor for companies to be added to the RE:FIT procurement framework. More on RE:FIT here.

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Hackney Green Deal Project

Posted on June 24, 2012 by Admin

June 2012: Acrola Energy are  leading a training and employment project linked to the start of the Green Deal later this year to:

  • Provide free training for trades people in Hackney on the requirements for work under this new scheme.
  • Provide trades people with the opportunity to meet architects, suppliers and main contractors in order to win new business.
  • Bring together Hackney trades people with the people living in the area who are interested in having building work done through Green Deal or otherwise.

Further information at www.acrolaenergy.com

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Update on London Power Tunnels project

Posted on May 30, 2012 by Admin

May 2012: An update on the London tunnelling project reports that “significant milestones in the construction of three deep level tunnels as part of the London Power Tunnels contract for National Grid” have been reached as part of a project to build new high voltage electricity cable tunnels between Hackney and Willesden (via St John’s Wood) and Kensal Green and Wimbledon. Read the full  story here. Further information on the London Power tunnels project can be read here.

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London LEAF Winners

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Admin

7 February 2012: DECC yesterday announced on their Community Energy Online website that 155 community energy projects across the country have won a share of £5.1 million of funding from the Local Energy Assessment Fund (LEAF). The full list of Local Energy Assessment Fund (2nd Round) projects can be downloaded here. Only scant details of the winning projects are provided in the list however  zooming on London in DECC’s ‘interactive map showing winning community projects‘ provides further information on the 14 winning projects in London. A summary of this information follows below:

  • South Kenton Preston Park Residents Association who will run
    a local home energy assessment of the energy consumption in
    the area. Further information www.skppra.co.uk
  • Community Education Forum who will deliver a community-led energy
    saving programme aimed at the Bangladeshi, Somali and African and African Caribbean communities around Hammersmith and Fulham. Further information www.cefuk.co.uk
  • Sustainable Merton will train community members to carry out
    a community energy efficiency survey and train local champions already engaged in energy reduction to work on implementation. Further information at: www.sustainablemerton.org
  • EcoLocal based in Merton will work to create a mobile home energy
    efficiency demonstration with models of wall insulation, and many other home energy saving devices, to go to engagement events as means of communicating the Green Deal to householders. Further information at: www.thecei.org.uk
  • Zero Carbon Hackbridge in Sutton will set up an energy saving network with local community groups. Volunteers will be trained to enable them to spread the word about energy saving to their friends and neighbours and offer free appointments with an Energy Doctor. Further information here.
  • Hyde Farm Climate Action Network near Tooting will conduct a feasibility study for retrofit community heating and CHP into the neighbourhood. Further information at: here.
  • Brixton Energy Co-op will develop the Brixton Energy Solar 1, a flagship community investment project in the Loughborough Estate in Brixton, deploying an 80kw photovoltaic array on the roofs of the estate. They will also conduct feasibility studies, engage with the community and lay the groundwork for the further renewable energy cooperatives across South London. Further information at: www.transitiontownbrixton.org
  • Transition Peckham’s,Repair, Re-build, Renew, will deliver solid wall demonstration projects to five households, targeting those at risk of being in fuel poverty. Further information at here
  • Shrinking the Footprint is the Church of England’s national environment campaign. They will run the project in three Dioceses around Southwark where no work has yet been done using the sMeasure and iMeasure on-line energy management software tools developed at the University of Oxford. Further information at: www.shrinkingthefootprint.org
  • Waterloo Community Development Group will develop a youth-led programme to empower trained home energy assessors to lead on efficiency and sustainable retrofit, including the Green Deal and ECO, through an awareness and engagement programme in Waterloo. Further information at: www.wcdg.org.uk
  • Camden and Westminster Refugee Training Partnership (CandWRTP) will work with refugees, asylum seekers, BME individuals especially women and organisations to identify and collect data on current energy saving measures and behaviour through a survey and a public consultation event. Further information at: here.
  • Local Space Housing (LSH), based in Islington, will aim to develop a 2 year tenant-led energy efficiency strategy for the association.
  • The Sustainable Home Survey Company C.I.C. aims to create three Green Deal Ready community groups Further information here.
  • The London Borough of Tower Hamlets will work on resident engagement and discuss setting up an Energy Co-Op. This will lead on to a feasibility survey for such a Energy Co-Op and creation of a working group to take it forward.
  • Poplar HARCA and Tower Hamlets manage c.10,000 homes in Poplar. They will purchase home energy management systems to link energy data for analysis.  Further information: www.poplarharca.co.uk
  • St. John on Bethnal Green will undertake energy surveys here and in other local faith buildings as well as domestic properties and prepare a report on findings. Further information at: www.faithintowerhamlets.com
  • Hackney Co-operative Developments CIC will provide external wall and roof insulation to a large managed workspace building used by charities, social enterprises, co-operatives, cultural entrepreneurs and locally-owned start-ups. Further information at: www.hced.co.uk
  • The Arcola Theatre Dalston Energy Angels project will work in Hackney to create a network of members with different needs, skills and offers who can support each other to create and service demand in for energy efficiency and renewable energy. They will use the Theatre to educate people about electricity consumption and create a Waste Wood Heating Network to run a wood-fired boiler. Further information here.
  • The HEET Project works with older and vulnerable people across the
    borough of Waltham Forest in north east London. They research, develop and pilot innovative ways to achieve higher energy savings for fuel poor households. Further information at: www.theheetproject.org.uk
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Hackney Winter Warm Up protest

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Admin

31 January 2012: Hackney Gazette news story on a protest outside Hackney Town Hall against rising fuel prices and the increase in fuel poverty. The Independent additionally highlighted how “Events organised by the Fuel Poverty Action Group at the weekend took place in Lewisham, Oxford, Leeds, Cambridge, Haringey, Hackney, the City of London and elsewhere as anger at energy firms’ high prices took to the streets. The campaigners say their demands are simple: they ask for a fair energy system which provides warm housing for all and a safe climate for our future.“

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Combined Heat and Power at Clissold Leisure Centre

Posted on January 6, 2012 by Admin

6 January 2012: “Clissold Leisure Centre has become the first leisure centre in Hackney to install an innovative energy saving system expected to reduce carbon emissions by over 100 tonnes each year.” Read the full Hackney news release here.

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‘2000 solar panels give brighter future to estate hit by the riots’

Posted on January 5, 2012 by Admin

5 January 2012: The Evening Standard has reported on how “Nearly 2,000 solar panels now line the roofs of the Pembury estate in Hackney – enough to provide electricity for three villages …The “photo voltaic” panels have been installed on 10 blocks, with the energy generated helping to cut bills for its tenants by as much as £150 a year.”

Due to the recent Government cuts in the level of subsidy for electricity generated by solar panels, Peabody has had to accelerate the installation process for these systems over the past month, as detailed here,  and have also raised their concerns to DECC over the change in the tariffs as proposed by Government.

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Three schemes bid to generate heat and power from North London’s waste

Posted on October 13, 2011 by Admin

October 2011: Three bids have been submitted to the North London Waste Authority (NLWA) to generate energy from the 300,000 tonnes of solid recovered fuel (SRF)  created from the 500,000 to 600,000 tonnes of North London’s waste that cannot be recycled  or composted.
The NWLA is a statutory waste authority managing the disposal of municipal waste from seven London local authorities (Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Islington, Hackney, Haringey and Waltham Forest) and this procurement is one of two that NLWA is running to provide a “long term and sustainable waste management solution for North London”.  A separate procurement is being run that will involve recycling or composting half of North London’s waste, producing the fuel and minimising the landfilling of municipal waste.
The contract for the use of SRF will be available from 2015 for up to 25 years and the NLWA states that it “is striving to achieve the most efficient form of energy recovery. This could be with the fuel being used in a Combined Heat and Power (‘CHP’) plant, located close to where the energy demand is.”
The NWLA have provided updated details of the three bids, all of which utilise CHP technology  on the following news release.

  • Covanta Energy project is the only one based in London and is proposing a Combined Heat and Power plant at the Tate & Lyle sugar refinery site at Silvertown, East London. The Covanta proposal involves the transport by barge of SRF from Edmonton to Silvertown and this will support the further development of London rivers for freight transport use. Covanta will shortly begin consultations with the local community and relevant authorities ahead of a planning application in mid 2012.
  • E.ON/Wheelabrator Technologies is proposing a CHP plant at DS Smith Paper’s site at Kemsley Mill, Sittingbourne, Kent.
  • Veolia Environmental Services (UK) wants a CHP enabled power plant at an existing industrial site in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire.

The winning proposal will be selected from one of the three shortlisted candidates during the next 12 months using an evaluation framework that focuses on the quality and cost of the solution.
Further information on how SRF is produced is set out by the NWLA here.

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First Solar panels power Hackney estate

Posted on October 12, 2011 by Admin

October 2011: Hackney Homes has installed the first solar panels as part of its Green Estate pilot in a 50 property block in Haggerston. Further information on news release here.

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Evaluation of Hackney Carbon Emissions Reduction Pilot

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Admin

September 2011: Over fourteen months in 2010 and 2011 the Association for the Conservation of Energy (ACE) Research Team, in partnership with Blooming Green and Dr Joanne Wade, carried out an rolling evaluation of a pilot project aiming to promote energy use and carbon reductions in the housing stock in the Hackney Downs ward. The project was commissioned by the Sustainable Environment Group of Hackney’s Local Strategic Partnership. The evaluation report brings together the lessons from all stages of the project evaluation and sets this learning in the context of the future landscape that Hackney partners will face when continuing with work to reduce energy use in the future. 

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Walking Tour of Renewable Energy Generation in Dalston

Posted on September 15, 2011 by Admin

September 2011: Arcola Energy’s Green Sunday event is to host a walking tour of renewable energy generation in Dalston. The Dalston Renewable Energy Walk will:

“meet at Arcola Theatre at 1.30pm for a walk around several inspiring projects in the neighbourhood. Our tour starts with the solar panels at the Dalston Roof Park, where Sam Aldenton from The Bootstrap Company will explain how they went about creating one of the largest solar roofs in the UK. From there, we move on to quietrevolution’s wind turbine installation at the Kinetica building on Ramsgate Street to hear from the company’s Stephen Crosher on how turbines can be installed on new and existing buildings. After a stop at the Dalston Square Energy Centre to check out their biomass-fired combined heat and power (CHP) system, we’ll head back to the Arcola around 4.15pm for a discussion of  the different systems we have seen and our plans for greening the theatre’s systems.”

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