A hydro power scheme which includes turbines that can generate enough power to run approximately 690 households a year has been upgraded at a Scottish Water water treatment works in South Lanarkshire.
The green electricity generated there will be used to off-set the site’s power consumption and either be used on site or exported to the grid and will avoid the emissions of almost 360 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent this year. Treating water is an energy intensive process - Scottish Water’s carbon footprint is dominated by electricity at around 69%.
The scheme at Daer Water Treatment Works (WTW) near Elvanfoot includes four turbines, the largest number at any Scottish Water asset, which are generating enough electricity to run the WTW and sell surplus power back to the National Grid.
They are among a mix of renewable technologies thewater company is adopting to help achieve its target of becoming carbon neutral by 2040.
The site serves 250,000 customers in Lanarkshire and parts of Greater Glasgow.
Between 90 and 120 million litres of water are drawn down from the Daer reservoir each day and processed through two inlet turbines where electricity is generated to power the water treatment process. A compensation turbine powers the on-site sludge treatment works and surplus electricity generated through a spill turbine is sold back to the National Grid providing an income for the site.
View of Daer Reservoir
The recent optimisation works on the turbines included the installation of a heat exchange system at the WTW. This means that some of the excess electricity can be harnessed and used to augment the current oil heating system, with a financial saving of around £73,000 per year.
Speaking about the renewable technology at the site, Claire Chapman, Renewable Asset Manager at Scottish Water, said:
“As well as the income earned here for Scottish Water, the site is really important in terms of the direction we’re moving in with our carbon footprint and trying to reduce the amount of electricity we use. Using renewable technology like hydro and getting greater value from our day-to-day practices is helping us play our part in tackling the climate change emergency. Hopefully the model we operate here at Daer Water Treatment Works can be used as a blueprint elsewhere across the country.”
A range of renewable initiatives like the scheme at Daer are helping Scottish Water make a significant contribution to Scotland’s national economic, carbon and renewable energy targets.
More than 70 of the company’s water and wastewater treatment works are either self-sufficient or partly sufficient in their power requirements, leading to lower operating costs and a more sustainable business.
Click here to learn more about the hydro scheme on the Waterbriefing Watch channel
“SAS (Surplus Activated Sludge) is a bit weird and 
Owen Mace has taken over as Director of the British Plastics Federation (BPF) Plastic Pipes Group on the retirement of Caroline Ayres. He was previously Standards and Technical Manager for the group.
PureTec Separations, the Ledbury-based water treatment engineering firm, has appointed Dan Norman as its new Sales Manager – Water Process Systems, supporting the company’s continued growth in the UK and international markets.
bNovate has launched BactoCloud, a secure cloud-based platform that connects and manages its BactoSense instruments, enabling real-time monitoring and optimization of microbial water quality.
Hear how Scottish Water has completed its £235 million Ayrshire Glasgow Resilience Project - customers across Greater Glasgow, Ayrshire and East Renfrewshire will now benefit from a more secure and resilient water supply.
Hear how United Utilities is accelerating its investment to reduce spills from storm overflows across the Northwest.
Find out more about the remarkable career opportunities on offer at WSP - scroll down to watch the inspirational video.