Southampton City Council Refuses to be Biomass Power Station Customer

At yesterday’s full Council meeting the Council debated two issues that relate to the proposed Helius Biomass Power Station.

Firstly the Council approved the Hampshire Waste and Minerals Plan. This is an important planning document which forms part of the Council's planning framework. Back in 2011 the draft plan was amended so that it ruled out very large developments in the Western Docks, such as the Helius Power Station. This change has been retained in the final plan and so this will be a powerful tool in fighting any application from Helius should one be submitted.

Secondly Councillors unanimously supported a motion committing the Council to never becoming a customer of Helius in the future. It has become clear in recent months that Helius would need to be able to sell heat generated by the power station. If it is unable to do this Helius is unlikely to get approval for their scheme. Whilst this does not mean Helius could not find a commercial purchaser of heat, it does rule out a key potential partner. The signal from the council is very clear - that Helius' scheme is not welcome.

Call for Southampton City Council Never to Become a Customer of Helius

On Wednesday Southampton City Council will debate a motion about the proposed Helius Biomass Power Station.

If passed Southampton City Council will commit to never become a customer of Helius Energy to never buy heat and power from the company. It is becoming increasingly clear that any large scale biomass power station in the Western Docks would need to provide combined heat and power (CHP) and be linked in with a buyer of the heat that it generates. 

By making it clear that the council will never become a customer of Helius or another company operating a similar scheme in the docks, the council will put another hurdle in the way of this inappropriate development.

The text of the motion is shown below:

(e)  Councillor Moulton to move

“This Council notes that Helius Energy may need to find significant local demand for the heat energy produced by its proposed biomass power station, if it is to take advantage of potential government funding or subsidies. In light of the Council’s previously stated opposition to the proposed power station, this Council agrees that in so far as is legal it will never become a customer of Helius Energy's heat output or of any companies that might in the future build or operate its scheme or one like it on a similar scale, on the same site or elsewhere in the Western Docks. On the same basis, Council makes it clear that should a large wood burning biomass power station be approved and eventually built in the Western Docks the City Council will at no stage ever directly or indirectly purchase any heat power generated by it.

Council resolves that it will write to Helius Energy to advise them accordingly, with the letter preferably signed by all 4 Group Leaders.”

Civil Service Ground Update

You may be aware that Southampton City Council now owns the former Civil Sports Ground. I would like to take this opportunity of updating you with what has happened and what we intend to do in the near future and in the coming years.

The site has been bought in order to provide more school sports pitches but we are also very keen to look at future opportunities for the land including community use.  To this end, Councillors and Council officers have met with a number of interested parties and this has resulted in the formation of a Working Group.  This group consists of representatives of the Council, St. Mark’s School, Friends of the Field, local residents and some sports organisations and has met throughout the recent months to discuss future opportunities.

Currently we are relocating slow worms which inhabit the site and which are a protected species, meaning that no work on the land can start until they have been removed.  Japanese Knotweed is also growing on the site and has to be treated throughout the year to eradicate it.

We are now looking for contractors to install secure fencing to the field together with some repairs to fencing on the Malmesbury Road side.  It is anticipated that this fencing will be installed in the autumn after the slow worms have been removed and the Japanese Knotweed treated. An estimated timescale is attached to this letter.

Whilst we appreciate that the field has historically been used by the local community, it is currently in such a poor state that it represents a significant health and safety hazard.  A number of local residents are also concerned that the field continues to be accessed illegally and used for anti-social activities by some people. Therefore, we will take steps to ensure that the field will no longer be accessible in the immediate future.  Once the fencing has been installed the land will be secured and only available for school use and some other, occasional, pre-agreed activities by designated users.

In the spring of 2014 the remainder of the field will be dug up, levelled and re-seeded.  Again access will not be possible during this time but once the grass has been established, the field will be re-opened to the local community.  Whilst all of this work takes place the council will continue to engage with local residents to investigate the most appropriate use of the land in the future.

Any additional work would be phased and subject to obtaining external funding. We see this as a developmental programme with exciting possibilities for the local community.  Working together we hope to achieve a high quality local amenity which will encompass the community’s aspirations and provide an attractive outdoor space for the future use of all.

Work	Start date	Finish date
Ground preparation for fencing installation	16 Sept 2013	17 September 2013
Installation of fencing	Oct /November 2013	End December 2013
Site clearance	Early 2014	Spring 2014
Seeding	April/May 2014	September 2014