Bath’s iconic Pulteney Weir could be used to generate electricity for the city in what the council leader has said is “the most exciting and ambitious inner city hydroelectric project in Europe”.
The Pulteney Radial Gate in Bath | Photo © John Wimperis
Built in its current shape in the early 1970s, the V-shaped three-stepped weir is almost as much of a Bath landmark as the historic Pulteney Bridge it lies in front of.
The Pulteney Radial Gate, the sluice gate which is able to let more water downstream to avoid flooding, was built at the same time but is now nearing the end of its life.
Replacing the radial sluice gate has long been discussed. Now Bath & North East Somerset Council is set to undertake a feasibility study for replacing it with a small hydroelectric scheme to generate power for nearby council buildings.
Council leader Kevin Guy told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The money has been allocated to look at the feasibility of removing the current sluice gate and replacing it with a gate that can produce enough hydroelectricity to heat the Guildhall, Guildhall Market, Victoria Art Gallery, and crucially, the leisure centre and its heated pool.
“This feasibility study is the most exciting and ambitious inner city hydroelectric project in Europe and it is part of our commitment for the council estate to be carbon neutral by 2030.”
Making the council’s estate carbon neutral means that the local authority needs to be generating 12MW of renewable energy by 2030, the amount required to make up for that used by council buildings and vehicles.
But Bath is no stranger to looking to its landmarks to help it generate energy.
Heat exchange blades installed in the city’s world famous Roman Baths use the heat from the city’s natural hot springs to provide heating for the Roman Baths and Pump Rooms complex and the Bath World Heritage Centre.
Since 2021, energy from the water has been used for the underfloor heating in Bath Abbey.
At the council’s cabinet meeting on 25th February, where the council set its budget for the next year, deputy council leader Sarah Warren said the local authority would be looking at the feasibility of the hydroelectric project replacing the sluice gate.
She said the council would allocate £50,000 for the next five years to fund its renewable energy development manager — a specific post at the council to find opportunities for renewable energy to bid for funding for.
Councillor Warren, who is also the council’s cabinet member for climate emergency and sustainable travel, told the meeting that they had already delivered 1.5MW of electricity generation through rooftop solar projects, and installed heat pumps to two council care homes.
She said: “This is a really positive investment in our pathway to net zero.
“We continue to investigate all other options such as solar ports on our Park and Ride car parks, which have frustratingly not yet proven financially viable but may yet do as prices and the regulatory environment change.”
The council is also funding the replacement of its bin and recycling lorries over the next few years. They will be replaced with electric vehicles charged by the solar panels on the new Keynsham Recycling Centre.
The investment in renewables comes at a time when demands are increasing on council budgets across the country. But it is expected that using power that the council itself has generated will deliver savings on energy costs.
This is not the first time that a hydroelectric scheme at Pulteney Weir has been considered. In 2013, the idea was floated of installing an Archimedes’ screw-style hydroelectric generator at the weir.
The idea then was that it could generate enough electricity to power the city’s Christmas lights.
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter
