TUTBURY ECOPOWER
Temporary site by Norris Management Ltd
BY THE COMMUNITY FOR THE COMMUNITY
A Mini Hydro Scheme on the River Dove and Carbon Reduction for the community
An environmentally friendly way to create electricity
Where Have We Have Come From
Brief History of Water Power in Tutbury
The ancient trade in Tutbury was wool combing. This later changed to the spinning of silk. An early mill is recorded in 1314 but the site is not known. The Fleam is around 1000 years old, excavated by hand to supply water power for mills. The Fleam was also known as “The Little Dove”.
1780: John Bott and Co obtained permission to divert part of the fleam to drive water wheels for his new cotton mill.
1829: New water wheels installed including a third wheel.
1831: To obtain a greater fall for the tail of water, a considerable amount of gravel was removed from the river bed near the present bridge. This was when 100,000 silver coins were discovered.
1880: Water turbines replaced the old water wheels. T hese were manufactured by Macadams of Belfast. One was twin and known as Bass and Wiggin after the names of two Liberal MPs. T he other single turbine was named Gladstone after the Prime Minister of that time. There was a capability of around a 1000 horse power. The transmission from the turbines was interesting. A twelve feet diameter wheel and a single manilla rope 360 feet long, connected to the main flat belt and pulley drive shafts. The rope drive was believed to be the longest of its type in the country.
1888: The cotton business was moved to the mill at Rocester and the mill lay idle for several years. The company leased it for the manufacture of plaster using gypsum from the mine at Fauld. Many types were produced including Plaster of Paris.
Little known is the fact that there were three turbines. The third one, rated about 20 horse power, was used to drive a pump. This transferred water from the river to two large tanks near the railway. These supplied water for the main line steam engines, probably part of a deal to allow the company to transfer its goods to the railway sidings.
1962: The mill was originally a five storey building with an overhead bridge transferring goods to and from warehouses where the farm buildings are now. T his fifth storey was pulled down for safety reasons. Soon afterwards plaster production ceased and the mill was demolished in the mid sixties.
2007: East Staffordshire Borough Council built another access bridge over the Fleam adjacent to the other which has been left in position to protect the habitat of some rare bats.
The Present Day - The old gypsum site, was donated to the East Staffordshire District Council by British Gypsum plc and it is now an amenity area that includes a lovely cricket field and clubhouse, as well as two play areas and a small car park. The Fleam, alas, is overgrown and neglected......
1780: John Bott and Co obtained permission to divert part of the fleam to drive water wheels for his new cotton mill.
1829: New water wheels installed including a third wheel.
1831: To obtain a greater fall for the tail of water, a considerable amount of gravel was removed from the river bed near the present bridge. This was when 100,000 silver coins were discovered.
1880: Water turbines replaced the old water wheels. T hese were manufactured by Macadams of Belfast. One was twin and known as Bass and Wiggin after the names of two Liberal MPs. T he other single turbine was named Gladstone after the Prime Minister of that time. There was a capability of around a 1000 horse power. The transmission from the turbines was interesting. A twelve feet diameter wheel and a single manilla rope 360 feet long, connected to the main flat belt and pulley drive shafts. The rope drive was believed to be the longest of its type in the country.
1888: The cotton business was moved to the mill at Rocester and the mill lay idle for several years. The company leased it for the manufacture of plaster using gypsum from the mine at Fauld. Many types were produced including Plaster of Paris.
Little known is the fact that there were three turbines. The third one, rated about 20 horse power, was used to drive a pump. This transferred water from the river to two large tanks near the railway. These supplied water for the main line steam engines, probably part of a deal to allow the company to transfer its goods to the railway sidings.
1962: The mill was originally a five storey building with an overhead bridge transferring goods to and from warehouses where the farm buildings are now. T his fifth storey was pulled down for safety reasons. Soon afterwards plaster production ceased and the mill was demolished in the mid sixties.
2007: East Staffordshire Borough Council built another access bridge over the Fleam adjacent to the other which has been left in position to protect the habitat of some rare bats.
The Present Day -
Tutbury Eco Power Brief History
In 2008/9, Steve Rhodes, who lives adjacent to the Fleam had a vision to restore the Fleam as an amenity for use by the
community rather than see it lost forever by neglect. The Fleam had been a well-fished water course with anglers from far and near enjoying the tranquil environment. In recent years, however, the fishing had fallen away largely due to the state of the Fleam.
Steve and a few friends including Gary Rowe and Leigh Sharp then looked at ways to fund the restoration and they chose to utilise the small weir area by the bridge to generate power using Archimedean screw generators in the same way that Torrs Hydro has set out to do in North Derbyshire. The new government inducement of the Feed in Tariff (FiT) and the latest technological developments made this a potentially practical proposition as a fund generator for the community.
The matter soon snowballed with support from all sections of the Tutbury community and large organisations including E Staffs Borough Council , Staffs County Council, Midlands Co-op, Trent and Dove Housing Association and many others.
After a feasibility study by Derwent Hydro Ltd, TEP teamed up with Water Power Enterprises to develop a 15kW generator at the Fleam Site within the amenity area. This was presented to the community in a launch event in February 2010 at Richard Wakefield School in Tutbury.
Following further detailed design and financial studies in 2010 culminating in a viability report in November 2010 by Water Power Enterprises, it became clear that, whilst it was possible to generate at the Fleam site, the costs of maintaining the Fleam to deliver flow made the scheme unviable. However, the report identified that a 75kW scheme by the main Dove weir some 1 km to the west would be a viable proposition.
Consequently in early 2011, a pre-application for an abstraction licence was submitted to the Environmental Agency and a favourable response was received.
Since that time, the TEP team parted company with Water Power Enterprises and the Team have been developing the scheme further. In August 2011, TEP has received project support grants from Midlands Environmental Agency and are now working close with them and SharEnergy to develop the scheme to the construction Phase. In parallel, negotiations with landowner, the Duchy of Lancaster are progressing well.
TEP continue to enjoy great support from the community, local, regional and national government to develop not only the flagship hydro scheme, but also to develop photovoltaic Solar energy on community buildings and by other initiatives to reduce Tutbury community's carbon footprint and to reduce energy costs for the community’s benefit.
