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NK’s latest food hygiene ratings p8-9 inside
The newspaper for all North Kesteven residents
Straw-burning power station generates community benefit
Council praised for securing the best possible deal of local wellbeing from plant The pioneering renewable energy plant North Kesteven District Council secured for Sleaford has been officially opened by a Government Minister. After touring the £165m plant she described as being at the vanguard of sustainable energy production, Energy and Climate Change Minister Baroness Sandip Verma, said the Council had been ‘visionary’ in its actions to ensure maximum community benefit from the operation. This included millions of pounds worth of free heat, apprenticeships, infrastructure improvements and significant local project funding. Eight years after initially being proposed, the Sleaford Renewable Energy Plant has entered commercial operation as the UK’s first straw-burning combined heat and power plant. It will turn 240,000 tonnes of locally grown wheat straw into enough electricity to power 65,000 homes annually, pumping surplus heat and hot water into five local facilities for free – including the NKDC offices and Sleaford Leisure Centre.
Prime Minister David Cameron said it was ‘an exemplar of the future of UK energy generation’ and owners Glennmont Partners describe it as the ‘jewel in the crown’ of their portfolio of renewable energy solutions. After identifying North Kesteven as the ideal place to locate, renewables developer Eco2 undertook an exhaustive process to secure planning permission in November 2008, which engaged the Council’s economic development and planning teams closely in securing maximum community benefit through a wellbeing agreement. Council Leader Cllr Marion Brighton OBE said the District was ‘very proud’ to have been chosen as the home of this new technology and ‘very grateful’ for all of the positive outcomes achieved for community wellbeing. She expressly thanked Fran Mackereth from Anwick Forge for her perception-changing support in securing, “a win, win project that not only generates renewable energy, but also supports the agricultural sector, local employment and broader community and provides more than
£2m in free heat to public facilities.” Baroness Verma said the Sleaford plant was a model for how other areas could benefit from the development of renewable energy, which was a credit to the Council and developers for working in such close partnership. “This plant is a great example of the
potential benefits to a local community, including ongoing investment in jobs and fuel sourcing and the supply of free heat,” she said. “I have been extremely impressed by everything I have seen and heard of how it generates community benefits alongside heat and power.”
Economic boost
Environmental boost
Community boost
Broader boost
The plant is a £165m investment generating an extra £9m annually to the local economy. Having created 350 jobs during construction, it now supports 80 local people – 30 operating the site and 50 through fuel sourcing, taking 240,000 tonnes of straw a year, mainly from farms within a 30-mile radius. These contracts are worth around £6m a year. The free heat supply to five public buildings will also save them more than £2m over 25 years.
Through clean, efficient burning of straw, the plant generates power for 65,000 homes, saving 240,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over conventional generation. The free supply of surplus heat and hot water to five public facilities will shave their carbon outputs too. The operation is carbon neutral. A five-hectare green belt planted with trees, shrubs and grasses, has further positive impacts and ash is returned as crop fertiliser.
An overall package of community benefits is valued at £285,000, including £120,000 to be shared across community groups in Sleaford and Kirkby la Thorpe over three years. It paid for the £125,000 children’s splash pool at Sleaford Leisure Centre, gave £10,000 to Kirkby la Thorpe School for interactive teaching boards and committed £20,000 to a project to build a model of the plant and promote sustainability in schools.
The plant has also financed three apprenticeships and will go on to support another two apprenticeship placements. It commissioned a £50,000 piece of public art for the plant entrance involving local schools, developed a walks scheme to link the public art around Sleaford and also – further to the community fund – financed a £200,000 footpath upgrade, A17 junction improvements and paid for the £2m heat supply infrastructure.
Our Communities
page 6 & 7
01529 414155 / 01522 699699
Baroness Verma, Cllr Marion Brighton OBE and guests at the Renewable Energy Plant’s opening
Our Economy
page 10 & 11
info@n-kesteven.gov.uk
Winter 2014
High scores for food hygiene Almost all of North Kesteven’s food businesses score the highest ratings for food hygiene standards. Of the 775 ratings issued by NKDC to District businesses on the quality of hygiene and food handling, all but 18 are now a three or above. A staggering 531 achieve the top score of five - which is almost 100 more than at the same time last year; and that was almost 100 more than in the year before. Cllr Richard Wright, Executive Board Member with responsibility for environmental health matters, said: “This steady and continued rise in standards is a clear indication of the care and consideration taken by most businesses in their operations. “It demonstrates the support the Council gives businesses and the importance placed on the ratings by discerning consumers.”
Energy from waste The county’s new Energy from Waste facility at North Hykeham has also been officially opened. Business Secretary Vince Cable toured the plant built to generate power by burning waste which would otherwise go to landfill. Since operations began in July 2013, 123,500 tonnes of nonrecyleable waste material have been burnt, exporting 58MW of electricity to the National Grid – enough to power 26,500 homes for a year. Employing 33 staff, the £125m plant was built using a Government loan and is operated by FCC Environmental under a 25 year Lincolnshire County Council contract. This makes effective use of the residual waste from residents’ black bins. Every day it saves 462 tonnes from being put into landfill, generating valuable sustainable energy and saving taxpayers’ money.
Our Homes
pages 12 – 13 www.n-kesteven.gov.uk