Managing our environmental impacts

The size and characteristics of Drax Power Station mean that it has a significant impact on the environment. We recognise this and have put the management of the environment at the heart of our decision-making process. Our full policy is given here, in the panel on the right.

Environmental management system

We manage our environmental compliance under an Environmental Management System (“EMS”) certified to the international standard ISO 14001: 2004. Its purpose is to ensure that we meet our legal and policy commitments to protect and improve the environment in the course of carrying out our business.

The Chief Executive has overall responsibility for the implementation of the EMS and for environmental compliance and performance of the business, with other staff allocated specific responsibilities as determined by the nature of the environmental impacts for which they are responsible.

The EMS contains documented procedures for each significant environmental issue and staff are trained to recognise the legal and operational requirements contained within them.

Environmental compliance

We operate within the conditions of our Integrated Pollution Control (“IPC”) authorisation, granted by the Environment Agency, and we aim to maintain compliance with no significant breaches of the regulatory limits. We recognise that emissions limits will become tighter in the future and our goal is to be ahead of legal requirements whilst recognising the need to uphold our competitive market position.

We maintain an up-to-date understanding of the science underlying our impacts in order to contribute to the development of cost-effective control measures.

Over the last few years, UK industry has been moving towards Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (“IPPC”) regulation, which expands the IPC and Waste Management legislation to cover, not just the discharges from site, but, site issues such as contamination, wastes, energy efficiency, risks, accidents and management systems. In 2004, we applied for a Pollution Prevention and Control (“PPC”) permit to replace the Waste Management licence for the Barlow Mound ash disposal site. In 2006, we applied for a PPC permit for the main power station site to replace the IPC authorisation. It is anticipated that both of these licences will be determined in 2007.

Emissions to air

The principal emissions from burning coal are CO2, sulphur dioxide (“SO2”), oxides of nitrogen (“NOX”), hydrogen chloride (“HCl”), and particulates (“dust”). Our generating units have all been retrofitted with Flue Gas Desulphurisation (“FGD”) equipment which removes, on average, at least 90% of SO2 and HCl emissions before the flue gas is released via the chimney into the atmosphere.

We maintain investment in our emissions abatement equipment and consider this to be a high priority. Our FGD plant already complies with known future SO2 emissions limits to 2016 and we have initiated a programme of retrofitting all units with low NOX technology – Boosted Over Fire Air systems – in order to ensure compliance with the NOX requirements of the Large Combustion Plant Directive (“LCPD”) from 2008. Currently three units out of our six have been retrofitted with work underway to complete the remaining three by mid-2008.

Discharges to water

Procedures are in place to ensure that all discharges and drainage to water are monitored and treated where necessary to meet our discharge consent limits. There are a number of sources of discharge and drainage as part of the electricity generation process, including the cooling water used to cool the condensers, which as part of the steam cycle condense steam to water after it leaves the turbines and before returning to the boilers. Cooling water is abstracted mainly from the River Ouse and boiler feedwater originates from two boreholes on site. Approximately half of the water is returned to the River Ouse at a few degrees warmer than the river water.

The FGD process produces effluent water which is treated in a specially designed plant before it is discharged to the river, and there is also drainage from the main plant, coal plant and roads.

Disposals to land

When coal is burnt, ash is left as a residue. The finer particles of ash, Pulverised Fuel Ash (“PFA”,) are collected from the flue gas by electrostatic precipitators; the heavier ash, Furnace Bottom Ash (“FBA”) falls to the bottom of the boiler. The majority of ash is sold to the construction industry with the remainder sent for landfill at the Station’s adjacent Barlow Mound ash disposal site, which over time has been developed into farmland, woodland and wetland features providing a haven to many species of wildlife and birdlife.

We pay landfill tax on the PFA disposed of to the Barlow Mound. Through the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme, we are able to claim a tax credit against our donations to recognised Environmental Bodies. We have worked with Groundwork Selby since 2001 on projects designed to help mitigate the effects of landfill upon our local community. During 2006, we contributed approximately £23,000 towards local community-based projects designed to bring about sustainable environmental benefits and contribute to the social and economic regeneration of the area.

Alternative fuels

To help maintain our vital role in the UK economy and safeguard cost effective power production, our fuel strategy recognises the need to sustain a ready supply of traditional quality coal and how best to incorporate alternative fuels, including different fossil fuels and renewable materials. The choice of fuels has to be balanced with availability and flexibility of supply.

The trial burn of petroleum coke (“petcoke”) is an integral part of our strategy of developing alternative fuels. It has involved burning a blend of coal and up to 15% petcoke on one of our six generating units.

Petcoke is derived from the petrochemical industry and is produced from oil, it contains higher levels of sulphur than coal but the FGD plant at Drax ensures that, on average, at least 90% of the SO2 is removed before the gases created during combustion are emitted to the atmosphere. Because of this we have the capability to burn petcoke within the permitted sulphur levels set for the Power Station by the Environment Agency.

A considerable amount of work was completed prior to the first delivery of petcoke to the Power Station. This preliminary period allowed an extended period of public consultation during which we collected 12 months’ data on levels of dust, nickel, vanadium and Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (“PAHs”) in the immediate vicinity of the Power Station. We also established further air quality baseline tests and completed a capital investment programme aimed at installing a dedicated coal/petcoke fuel blending facility.

The combustion trial commenced on 27 June 2005 and since then a considerable volume of data has been made publicly available. The monitoring programme was specifically designed to address the issues raised during the public consultation exercise, namely dust blow, health and safety of the general public and staff, and operational and local environmental issues.

The assembly of data from the monitoring programme has been continuous throughout the trial – the volume of data collected is considerably greater than the minimum required by the Environment Agency. Where possible, we have appointed independent specialists to handle all aspects of the monitoring programme, from collection to interpretation.

In line with our policy on openness and transparency, all data are available to the public and we have held regular meetings with the Environment Agency, Selby District Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council, North Yorkshire County Council, and the local Primary Care Trust.

The results of the trial to date indicate that the monitoring programme has been carried out successfully. No significant operational issues have been identified when burning a blend of coal and petcoke and when monitoring handling, transport and transfer operations. The extensive monitoring of both the local environment and the Power Station site has indicated that dust levels have remained similar to those measured during coal-only operation. Importantly, there has been a significant reduction in particulate emissions from the trial unit during the test, resulting in a reduction in overall emissions of nickel and vanadium. The FGD plant has been in service at all times during which a blend of coal/petcoke has been burned.

Overall, the data to date have shown that the total environmental impact for a coal/petcoke blend is similar to that for the plant burning coal only and, therefore, there has been no associated adverse impact on the local environment as a result of the trial.

The collection and interpretation of the data from the trial has been a valuable first step in assembling the case to support our application for full commercial burning of coal/petcoke blends on up to all six units.