Battersea Power Station and environmental issues 1929–1989

From inception (1920s) to partial demolition (1980s) London's Battersea Power Station provoked public concern over environmental impacts. Adverse reaction during the early stages concerned siting and the effects of air pollutants on the urban surroundings. Potential air pollution problems resulted in a restrictive ‘condition’ being inserted in the consent for Battersea which required smoke and sulphur dioxide to be controlled. The ‘condition’ did not reassure either the public or special interest groups who campaigned against the construction of the station. However plans were too advanced to be halted and the official response focused on ensuring successful implementation of flue gas desulphurization. Though the subsequent effectiveness of emission control during the station's working life is arguable, the building itself rapidly became a popular London landmark and an architectural symbol of the fascination that surrounds technology. Objections to its decommissioning and demolition in the 1980s once again placed Battersea Power Station at the centre of public protest. Reactions to the station illustrate the rapidity with which our perception of environmental threats may change.     

Investigations of impingement of aquatic organisms at the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant, 1975–1995

The Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant (CCNPP) in Maryland began commercial operation in 1975. The once-through cooling system pumps Chesapeake Bay water at a maximum rate of 73 m³/s (2.4×10⁶ gallons per min) to the condensers, a total equal to 0.7% of the average tidal flow in the area.From 1975 to 1995, impingement monitoring was conducted at CCNPP. The 21-year record is one of the most extensive of its kind in the utility industry. A total of 73 species of fish were identified. Often, five species accounted for over 90% of the total number of fish collected in any year. Estimates of total annual fish impingement ranged from 79,000 to over 9.6 million with a 21-year average of 1.3 million fish per year. Total impinged biomass was less variable with a range of 1300 to 18,600 kg/yr (9100 kg/yr avg.)Six different survival studies were conducted at CCNPP and species-specific impingement tolerances were determined. Eleven of the 14 species caught most often had survival rates over 50% and blue crabs demonstrated greater than 99% survival. When total impingement estimates are adjusted to account for survival, the fish impact is reduced by over 73%.This impact is small compared with commercial and recreational fishing and other natural causes of mortality. In addition, many of the significant impingement collections were episodic events correlated with high temperature and low dissolved oxygen conditions in the intake water. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources has concluded that CCNPP impingement losses are small and do not represent a significant impact to fish populations in the mesohaline regions of the Chesapeake Bay.     

Integrated benefits of power generation by straw biomass — A case study on the Sheyang Straw Power Plants in Jiangsu Province, China

Power generation using straw biomass has quantifiable benefits from an economic, ecological, and sociological perspective in China. The methods used to construct the assessment models of these integrated benefits were the revenue capitalization approach and the discounted-cash-flow approach. The results indicated that a straw power plant with the capacity of 2.50×10⁷W and burning 1.23×10⁵ tons of cotton straw could annually supply 1.40×10⁸ kWh of power. However, it would not be until six years later that these results could be measured. Over the long term, the gross benefits could reach up to 4.63×10⁸ Yuan. Therefore, the total benefits are expected to be 1.18 × 10¹² Yuan if all available straw resources are used to generate power. The policy implication showed that the long-term integrated benefits of power generation by straw biomass outweighed the short-term benefits. This is the main incentive to use straw biomass for power generation in the future.     

Intake modifications to reduce entrainment and impingement at Carolina Power & Light Company’s Brunswick Steam Electric Plant,Southport, North Carolina

The Brunswick Steam Electric Plant (BSEP) is a two-unit nuclear station located in the lower Cape Fear River Estuary (CFE) near Southport, NC. Once-through cooling water is withdrawn from the CFE and discharged to the Atlantic Ocean. Estuarine-dependent fish and shellfish species are potentially subject to entrainment and impingement during cooling-water withdrawal. Mitigation technologies include a fish diversion structure (9.4-mm mesh screens) at the mouth of the intake canal to reduce impingement of large organisms, 1-mm fine-mesh traveling screens to reduce entrainment of larvae, a fish return system to return impinged organisms alive back to the estuary, and flow minimization. Installation of the fish diversion structure resulted in a 40% reduction in number and 70% reduction in the weight of larger organisms impinged. Use of fine-mesh screens successfully reduced the number of organisms entrained by as much as 80% depending upon species present. Survival of organisms returned to the CFE ranged from <1% to approximately 92% depending upon species and size class. In addition to monitoring the effectiveness of the intake modifications, over 20 years of extensive environmental studies in the estuary indicate that operation of the BSEP has had no measurable adverse effect on the fisheries of the CFE. The species composition, seasonality, and abundance of organisms using the CFE have not changed as a result of operation of the BSEP.