The AECOM water and power super highway aka The Natural Grid. David Weight. MRICS.

Transcription

1 The AECOM water and power super highway aka The Natural Grid David Weight. MRICS.

2 Summary of need: o In 2009, the government s chief scientist, Sir John Beddington, warned of a perfect storm of problems by He said, o Our food reserves are at a 50-year low, but by 2030 we need to be o producing 50 per cent more food. At the same time, we will o need 50 per cent more energy, and o 30 per cent more fresh water. Can piecemeal measures work, or do we need a bigger plan?

3 Canal from Southern Uplands to S.E. England Functions: Water storage and supply Transportation Power transmission Communication link to data centres District heating Cooling Opportunities for regeneration on eco-towns / eco-villages Flood relief? Leisure and tourism Biodiversity

4 1942 Pownall Grand Tour Canal planhttp:// Original was close to 300 foot contour throughout. No locks through main route! Many lifts down to existing canals and navigable rivers. Wonderful plan, but we need a bit more fall to facilitate water supply Can we find a more direct route from Leeds to S.E. of Birmingham?

5 Using GIS to find least cost route

6 Water supply Public water supply Serving power stations Industrial processes Rivers, streams, canals and aquifers Agriculture could serve farm reservoirs ICE State of the Nation Water 2012 report shows sustainable abstractions reducing dramatically. Three quarters of our water needs are met by water resources from other nations! BUT Compared with pipelines, have to cope with leakage and evaporation

7 Water demand for food We currently only grow 59% of the food we consume in the UK For farming, irrigation and abstraction, there is huge unmet water demand in Midlands, South and East, not quantified though. If we supply 200mm to 10% of the 37% of England which has been suffering long term water stress, that equals 965m m 3 /year. However, we have rising population to deal with as well Consider that 965m m 3 of water gained through desalination of sea water using reverse osmosis, would need about 4 TWh p.a! Water supply Average rainfall in England is 838mm, so 109 bn m 3 water p.a. falls on England. What we want equates to 0.9% of this. Average rainfall in Scotland is about 1200mm, so 99 bn m 3 water p.a. falls on Scotland. What we want equates to 1% of this.

8 England: Water stress assessment by Environment Agency 2007

9 Drought: April 2012

10 Hosepipe bans in April 2012

11 Rainfall.

12 Overview of plan Say 25m wide x 4.5m deep Flowing at an average speed of 0.6 m.p.h.

13 Forestry:

14 Woodlands

15 Transport: DECC have set a target of using 50m T p.a. of biomass by If we assume that say, 10% of this goes to inland power stations like Drax, via a canal, that s 5m T p.a. If we use 400T barges, that s about 50 return trips per day! Or tonne lorries And that s just one market Potential for low cost, low energy transport where speed is not vital. Materials might include stone, gravel, and waste.

16 Transport:

17 Data centres- linked by fibre-optic cable running under towpath o Despite energy efficiencies, energy consumption for data centres is rising at about 19% p.a o A large data centre can use as much power as a small city! o Lack of space within M25. o Having data-centres in higher Northern areas will save on cooling. o Could be hydro and or wind powered, but o Need 2 secure sources of power, so back-up from power stations

18 Power and transmission - Scottish Generation Policy Statement Target is GW of renewable energy capacity by 2020, But planning 30 GW with a view to export If and when wave and or deep off-shore wind becomes viable, then the potential is way beyond 30 GW. Some routed by Irish Sea, some by North Sea, BUT The canal route would be so much cheaper. German Aerospace say undersea cables cost 7 x cost of overland by pylon. ( Ummel and Wheeler say 5 x as much*. * Desert Power: The Economics of Solar Thermal Electricity for Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, 2008

19 Planned Western Link 2,200MW 420klm to Deeside Approx 1,000,000,000 (Siemens and Prysmian)

20 Power transmission: advantages of canal as a power corridor Much cheaper than under-sea Easier to monitor and maintain More secure than pylons or undersea Fewer joints than pylon route Water will reduce thermal variation, cool and improve transmission efficiency Last will result in smaller, cheaper cables. Very easy to add cables to increase transmission strength as more generation comes on stream Avoids the planning problems of pylons

21 What we don t have to do! Note that, being buried, this cable does not benefit from water flow taking away the heat

22 Canal section

23 Power transmission: disadvantages of canal as a power corridor Less direct, as canal needs to meander to follow contours, (though transport and power transmission needs may make a straighter route more viable). May be best to follow phase 2 of the HS2 route for the link from Leeds to Birmingham Need for liaison and cooperation on access for maintenance

24 Canals in England England.htm

25 Reservoirs o Mainly in Southern Uplands of Scotland, but initially from Kielder reservoir (just south of border), which has spare capacity o May need water from Western Highlands as well, with pipe feed south, using siphons for flow (using capped reservoir tanks with airrelease valves over high points). o Reservoirs should used pumped storage system wherever possible. (Round trip efficiency around 70% 85% and very fast response). Growing need to store and balance energy as a consequence of using more of our very variable renewable energy. o Need for above recognised by Scottish government

26 District heating, and cooling! o Our power stations lose more heat than we use in our houses o Since canal will supply biomass and back-up water to power stations like Drax, can take heat from power stations and steelworks, and distribute. o Use an insulated pipe to serve urban areas like Leeds. o Towards, the south, can use canal water for cooling.

27 Steelworks to support district heating KEY: Integrated plants: combined steelmaking and rolling mills. Other rolling mills. Coating plants. Wire plants. Note: a large number of smaller plants are not shown. Tube mills.

28 Help with flood relief? (through both storage and discharge) Use sluice gates to tee off reservoirs and rivers, when levels are to high. Use the canal and adjoining basins and reservoirs to balance waters levels. Try to have low levels before wet periods, ready to store excess, and high levels after, to supply in dry periods. Use, gravity and siphons as much as possible, but may need pumps also.

29 Reservoirs and water transfers- current ideas: imvns&tbnid=s7ardltrrfihim:&imgrefurl= 9&dur=23726&hovh=238&hovw=212&tx=122&ty=144&sig= &page=1&tbnh=137&tbnw=122&start=0&ndsp=16&ved=1t:42 9,r:6,s:0

30 Costs The estimate, based on costs at 2 nd qtr 2012, is between 11.1bn and 18.0bn, with a most likely figure of 14.1bn. Phase 1, from Kielder reservoir down to the Leeds area, is estimated at between 2.6bn and 4.3bn, with a most likely figure of 3.4bn. Excludes reservoirs, HVDC and comms

31 Economic aspects: Low tech nature of most work generates high economic multiplier effects. Could be done in labour intensive manner to save energy and carbon emissions. Could be funded largely though uplifts in property prices and rental values. Good opportunities for eco-towns / villages around basins / pounds

32 Risks Crossings and obstacles Rights of way, planning consents for canal Address potential corridor route for invasive species Effects of warm water on habitat / fish. (EA are conservative and their regulations may block the warming of canal water) Planning consents for reservoirs in Scotland. General difficulty with terrain, particularly in higher areas, needing meanders, perhaps aqueducts, cuttings, and perhaps even one or two tunnels Terrorism E.g. What if an aqueduct is blown up? Affects on catchment areas of rivers near where reservoirs are to be built Political and financial risks, and stakeholder management And all the stuff that no-one has thought of!

33 Conclusion The only proposal for large scale water transfer without pumping Hydro power and energy storage billions of savings for power transfer, with improved upgradability Energy savings for data-centres Transport, and opportunities for regeneration Possibility of flood relief in some areas Source for tackling fires Leisure and tourism opportunities International variants?

34 Next steps Progress so far: Distributed by Government Chief Scientist David MacKay awaiting feedback Commencing study to explore possible routes Internal marketing External marketing Collaborate and gain funding for a series of supporting studies Develop economic model Costs Build it Benefits Who might fund what, when?