The fun part is that the river flow, the sluice gate, and the power drawn from the generator can all be changed using a standard infrared remote control. This means that you can find out about the effects of drought or flood, and try out setting the sluice gate to the right height to get the most power out without letting the river flow get too low. If there is a computer available, it can be connected to the model, and all of these settings displayed and recorded.

You can see a very brief video at https://docs.google.com/open?id=0ByJbt0g-wxqqdHNpZWh3TU10aVk

Steve's model

We will be bringing it along to some of the summer festivals.

Sheffield Renewables is passionate about environmental issues and committed to the delivery of sensitive local schemes that will deliver real benefits to Sheffield.  We have assessed, and will continue to assess, the impact of our schemes on the local ecology.

See here for a document that provides answers on the most frequently asked questions about the impact on ecology.

This energy and commitment has again been demonstrated thanks to 24 Pioneer Investors whose contributions have made nearly £16,000 available to Sheffield Renewables. These funds will help keep the organisation running as it pushes forward the development and ultimately the build of Jordan Dam Hydro – to be Sheffield Renewables’ first community owned and operated renewable energy scheme, benefitting both the city and its people.

The whole of Sheffield Renewables is currently working hard to secure funding to cover the costs for the build of Jordan Dam Hydro. However, to commit to the build the organisation needs funds to cover up-front project costs and to run Sheffield Renewables as the project is delivered.

Pioneer Investors are exposed to a degree of risk as they are funding activities that are to be carried out before a final decision to go ahead with the Jordan Dam Hydro project. This alone shows the commitment, energy and belief from the people behind the organisation, showing Sheffield is a forward thinking place where people are willing to adopt a pioneering attitude towards becoming environmentally sustainable.

This energy and commitment has again been demonstrated thanks to 24 Pioneer Investors whose contributions have made nearly £16,000 available to Sheffield Renewables. These funds will help keep the organisation running as it pushes forward the development and ultimately the build of the Jordan Hydro Dam - to be Sheffield Renewables’ first owned and operated renewable energy scheme benefitting both the city and its people.

The whole of Sheffield Renewables is currently working hard to secure funding to cover the costs for the build of Jordan Dam Hydro. However, to commit to the build the organisation needs funds to cover up-front project costs and to run Sheffield Renewables as the project is delivered. The Pioneer Investors benefit the organisation by allowing the existing Early Bird Investors to release some or all of their investment to help cover costs such as:

1. Project development work, including review of legal agreements and advice on procurement

2. Core operating costs over the next year, including office, staff costs and if sufficient grant funding is secured, Sheffield Renewables plan to appoint a Chief Executive.

Pioneer Investors are exposed to a much higher degree of risk as they are funding activities that are to be carried out before a final decision to go ahead with the Jordan Dam Hydro project. This alone shows the commitment, energy and belief from the people behind the organisation, showing Sheffield is a forward thinking place where people are willing to adopt a pioneering attitude towards becoming environmentally sustainable

The LEAF programme is clearly intended to benefit the community sector in its efforts to grasp existing and upcoming opportunities provided by the Green Deal, Renewable Heat Incentive and Feed-In Tariff, all of which encourage organisations to use their own initiative to develop sustainable energy schemes that mitigate against climate change.

Ed Davey, Secretary of State for DECC said of the scheme:  “These grants are designed to nurture the ideas and enthusiasm of communities up and down the country who want to cut energy use, cut emissions and save money.”

Despite the LEAF funding receiving a phenomenal amount of interest from groups across the country, Sheffield Renewables managed to secure £7,000 that will help support:

• The development of the Sheffield Renewables Business Plan
• The completion of the Jordan Dam Business Case
• Preparation of the Sheffield Renewables Share Offer
• Funding towards Project Manager costs to help move forward Jordan Dam Hydro.

You can keep up to date on these developments via the Sheffield Renewables website or by signing up as a supporter to receive the Sheffield Renewables Newsletter.

If your community wants to be part of The Co-operative Clean Energy Revolution and needs a bit of free advice and support, you need look no further than The Co-operative Enterprise Hub. Please visit our website to apply for help.

More work will be done on the Archimedes screw, the small wind turbine and the bike generator at our next session on Sunday, March11th.

Some of our new volunteer members with their share certificates

We had a very successful AGM on January 31st, with 30 of our 65 members in attendance.

Rob Pilling gave a very comprehensive Chair’s Report and thanked all the volunteers and our employees who had worked so hard to achieve so much this year.

The annual accounts were presented and accepted, and two new rule changes were agreed.

Two directors, Rob Pilling and Richard Collins, were re-elected and a new non-executive director, Steve Barnard, was also elected.

Nine new core volunteer members were welcomed and share certificates given out to those present (see photo).

We hope you enjoy reading it and post any public comments in the space provided below.

Artist's Impression of Kelham Island Hydro

Sheffield’s Kelham Island Hydro project was granted planning permission yesterday. The scheme has been developed by Sheffield Renewables [1] with support from Regeneration Officers at Sheffield City Council and Kelham Island Museum, part of Sheffield Industrial Museums Trust. Gaining planning permission is the first milestone towards installing a new water wheel near Kelham Island Museum.

Rob Pilling, Managing Director at Sheffield Renewables said “The Kelham Island Hydro scheme will bring an iconic renewable energy scheme to this popular site in the heart of the city. The project is driven by local volunteers, inspiring members of the community to contribute their time and work together. Gaining planning permission is a huge boost to our efforts and we are hopeful that we could see a water wheel return to Kelham Island by 2014″.

The Kelham Island Hydro scheme comprises a ‘modern’ water wheel to be located in an existing wheel pit and channel system that was used for water power as far back as the Middle Ages. The replacement wheel will be designed for a flow of 2 tonnes of water per second, generating around 75,000kWh of electricity per year. This is the amount of electricity consumed by about 20 typical family homes [2], providing a saving of around 40 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year [3]. Alongside generating clean energy, it will be an inspiring attraction, reviving part of Sheffield’s industrial heritage to stimulate interest in renewable energy.

Initially there were some concerns about the plans, expressed by people living nearby, including the design of the protective structure surrounding the wheel. As a community and volunteer led social enterprise, Sheffield Renewables relies upon and values the support of local Sheffield people. They responded to comments by re-designing the protective structure to reduce its height, ensure that its appearance is in keeping with the local area and encourage people to view the wheel as an attractive feature. Gaining planning permission shows that Sheffield City Council and the Environment Agency are happy this and other issues have been satisfactorily addressed.

Sheffield Renewables can now continue to obtain the other permissions and licenses needed to develop Kelham Island Hydro. They gained planning permission for the Jordan Dam Hydro scheme [4], a second water power project near Meadowhall, in March 2011. Jordan Dam Hydro is more advanced, with a Community Share Offer [5] expected later this year. The Community Share Offer will give people and organisations the opportunity to contribute to the half a million pound building costs. Together the two projects highlight the potential for community led renewable energy generation in Sheffield.

Ends

Media Contact Details

info@sheffieldrenewables.org.uk

0114 250 8367

Editors Notes

[1] Sheffield Renewables is a community and a social enterprise that develops, funds, builds, owns and operates renewable energy schemes. This means that we are run by and for local people and also that we are not-for-proffit. Any surplus money generated is re-invested to support local sustainability. Much of our work is carried out by volunteers, which helps to reduce our costs.

Our schemes will contribute to sity wide efforts to meet targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and for increasing local renewable energy provision. We reinforce these direct carbon savings through local outreach, communications and education. Our work also helps to strengthen social cohesion and community resilience by encouraging people to work together and to share a common purpose,as well asby developing community owned assets. In pursuing our aims we work across the city for the benefit of everyone, while giving an additional focus to those areas close to our project sites.

[2] This is based on an average UK household electricity consumption of 3,935kWh per household per year. Provided by the Energy Saving Trust (see their website).

[3] Based on a carbon dioxide emission rate of 0.537kg CO2/kWh of grid generated electricity from The Carbon Trust (see their website).

[4] Jordan Dam Hydro Scheme: Sheffield Renewables’ initial assessment suggests that the scheme might cost around £450,000 to build and could generate around 380MWh/year. Sourcing this much electricity from hydroelectic generation rather than the national grid would save about 200 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. Further information about our ongoing development work at Jordan Dam can be found in the Jordan Dam Hydro project section of our website.

[5] Sheffield Renewables is offering ‘Community Shares’ as a social investment for public spirited and environmentally aware individuals and organisations. The aim is to provide an attractive ethical investment opportunity: investors receive a modest return, complimented by wider social and environmental benefits. The ‘Community Shares’ concept has been developed through a joint initiative of the Development Trusts Association (now Locality) and Co-operatives UK (see their website).