Mendip Power Group

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The Mendip Power Group is a group of owners installing micro-hydroelectric turbines in a number of historic former watermills in the Mendip area of Somerset, England. [1] The Group is one of several formed after the concept was developed by the South Somerset Hydropower Group.

Watermill structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process

A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production of many material goods, including flour, lumber, paper, textiles, and many metal products. These watermills may comprise gristmills, sawmills, paper mills, textile mills, hammermills, trip hammering mills, rolling mills, wire drawing mills.

Mendip Hills Range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England

The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Chew Valley and other tributaries of the Avon to the north. The hills give their name to the local government district of Mendip, which administers most of the area. The higher, western part of the hills, covering 198 km2 (76 sq mi) has been designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), which gives it a level of protection comparable to a national park.

Somerset County of England

Somerset is a county in South West England which borders Gloucestershire and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east and Devon to the south-west. It is bounded to the north and west by the Severn Estuary and the Bristol Channel, its coastline facing southeastern Wales. Its traditional border with Gloucestershire is the River Avon. Somerset's county town is Taunton.

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The first to start electricity generation was Tellisford Mill, on the River Frome, which began operating in April 2007 and which is ultimately expected to produce 75  kW.

Electricity generation Process of generating electrical power

Electricity generation is the process of generating electric power from sources of primary energy. For electric utilities in the electric power industry, it is the first stage in the delivery of electricity to end users, the other stages being transmission, distribution, energy storage and recovery, using the pumped-storage method.

Tellisford Mill watermill in Somerset, England

Tellisford Mill is a 55 kilowatts (74 hp) installed capacity micro hydro run-of-the-river power station on the site of a former watermill in the village of Tellisford in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The mill lies on the River Frome, 5 1⁄2 miles (9 km) north-east of the town of Frome.

River Frome, Somerset River in Somerset, United Kingdom

The River Frome is a river in Somerset, England. It rises near Witham Friary, flows north through Blatchbridge to the town of Frome, and continues in a generally northerly direction to join the Bristol Avon at Freshford, below Bradford on Avon.

Other mills in the Group, together with initial assessments of their capacity, include: Stowford Mill (37 kW) and Shawford Mill (31 kW), Jackdaws Iron Works (10 kW), Glencot House (5.8 kW), Burcott Mill (5.2 kW), Bleadney Mill (5.4 kW), Coleford Mill (6.6 kW), Old Mill (5.2 kW) and Farrants Mill (9.9 kW). [1]

It has been calculated that harnessing the power from all the streams and rivers in the UK could generate 10,000 GWh per year, enough to supply 3% of national generating capacity.

See also

The current energy policy of the United Kingdom is set out in the Energy White Paper of May 2007 and Low Carbon Transition Plan of July 2009, building on previous work including the 2003 Energy White Paper and the Energy Review Report in 2006. It was led by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, then headed by Amber Rudd. The current focus of policy are on reforming the electricity market, rolling out smart meters and improving the energy efficiency of the UK building stock through the Green Deal.

Energy conservation reduction in energy usage

Energy conservation is the effort made to reduce the consumption of energy by using less of an energy service. This can be achieved either by using energy more efficiently or by reducing the amount of service used. Energy conservation is a part of the concept of eco-sufficiency. Energy conservation reduces the need for energy services and can result in increased environmental quality, national security, personal financial security and higher savings. It is at the top of the sustainable energy hierarchy. It also lowers energy costs by preventing future resource depletion.

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Hydroelectricity electricity generated by hydropower

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Manitoba Hydro

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Solar power in the United Kingdom

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The South Somerset Hydropower Group (SSHG) is a group of 10 owners of former watermills in the South Somerset area of England who are installing micro-hydro turbines for electricity generation. The Group was founded as a result of an initiative by South Somerset District Council, and was the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. The Group won one of the 2005 Ashden Awards, and the concept has been adopted by a number of other similar groups.

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References

  1. 1 2 Mendip Mills Energy Makeover Archived 2007-06-07 at the Wayback Machine , Centre for Sustainable Energy, accessed 2007-06-11
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