May News: Mountains, Lochs, Hydro power and a Tidal turbine

At the start of May Iridescent Ideas embarked on a research trip to Scotland to visit two great examples of community owned hydro schemes and a tidal turbine manufacturer.  The purpose of the trip was to understand how these ideas could be replicated in Plymouth, Britain's Ocean City.

​Thanks to support from Paul Hamlyn's Ideas and Pioneers fund we have been able to develop a study into the potential of a community owned tidal turbine for the benefit of Plymouth.  The funding helped us visit a working example in Scotland and what we learned was fanstatic.

Case study 1:  
Donside Hydro, Aberdeen, Scotland

Purpose of visit: To understand how hydro energy works and how they managed to raise enough money to succeed.

We met Sinclair from Aberdeen Community Energy to find about more about their urban hydro scheme.  Their hydro scheme can power over 100 homes and is built on the site of an old power mill, situated in woodland and a thriving river, home to salmon and a host of birds.

Their scheme is a fantastic example of how community projects can create a legacy for future generations.  Aberdeen Community Energy were successful in raising over £500,000 in community shares and successfully delivered the scheme in Sept 2016.

Thoughts: Why aren't there more schemes like this?  We aren't sure, but hopefully Donside Hydro will inspire more communities to do the same.

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​​Case study 2:
​Nova Innovation, Edinburgh, Scotland

Purpose of visit: To meet the team that installed the world's first community owned tidal turbine on the Shetland Isles.

Nova Innovation design, build and install tidal turbines.  We met Simon Forrest who talked through the company history and explained how tidal technology is still developing, but they are leading on working examples around the UK.

Thoughts: Nova Innovations turbines have the potential to work in and around Plymouth and could be a great example of how current technology could be implemented and owned by the community.

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Case study 3:
Green Energy Mull, Isle of Mull

Purpose of visit: We wanted to visit a different type of hydro scheme and learn how they raised a significant amount of money through community shares.

We met Richard Thorne on the extremely picturesque Isle of Mull.  Richard works for Mull and Iona Community Trust who develop practical support for local projects.

Their hydro scheme is quite different to the Aberdeen scheme. It is not situated on a river, but up a mountain and is feed from a mountain stream.  The technology used is called a Tinck Turbine and sits in a building away from the main water source.

Thoughts: It was really interesting to see another type of hydro scheme working in a completely different environment, but still capable of generating similar levels of energy

It was an extremely worthwhile trip and it was very inspiring to see example of communities coming together to do something great for the benefit of the people who live there.
The challenge for us is to find suitable locations and build a team to help make our idea become a reality.  Watch this space............

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