by tresoc | Jun 2, 2021 | Latest Blog Post, Latest TRESOC News, News
TRESOC was delighted to be back in schools at the end of May, running its free renewable energy education programme for primary schools. The Renewable Energy Experiential Learning (REEL) programme ran with Year 6 at St Christopher’s Prep School in Staverton over two days.
On the field trip day, the children visited the Marley Head wind turbine (grateful thanks to South Brent Community Energy Society), Totnes weir hydro (with thanks to Dart Renewables Ltd), and the Dartington solar farm and woodfuel boiler (thanks to Dartington Hall Trust). TRESOC is extremely grateful to its sponsors for their ongoing support and access to their installations. As our Operations Director Sally Murrall-Smith said, “I’m aware of how lucky we are in Totnes, to have so many innovative organisations and embedded renewable technologies on our doorstep – organisations that are very happy to engage with the programme and enrich it. As a result, the children learn about renewable energy and wider energy issues. My hope is that the REEL programme empowers children by presenting positive ways to address climate change and busting some of the myths about renewable energy technologies.”
During the workshop day, the children took part in three workshops looking specifically at solar, wind and hydro technologies. For the solar workshop, the children carried out chemistry and physics experiments using electronics equipment. They also learned how important battery technologies are for renewables; without the them the energy is only available at the time it is being generated.
Alexandra Cottell, Head Mistress of the school thinks that ‘The REEL programme is a fantastic STEM project, that brings together physics, chemistry, maths and engineering into one place. It has been an enriching experience for all the children. It is the fourth time that the school have taken part is in the programme and we hope to continue to do so into the future.”
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Children testing the moisture content of the wood chips for the Dartington biomass boiler, which heats the buildings in the medieval courtyard on the estate. The drier the better; a high moisture content creates more smoke and harmful particles of air pollution.
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Busting the myth that you can get electrocuted by simply touching a PV panel. The children understood that the panels do get hot on a sunny day.
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The children were surprised how quiet the turbine was compared to the traffic on A38, despite being stood 100m away when it was operating at full power. South Brent Community Energy Society said they have carried out a study on bird strikes and found no evidence of it happening.
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The students were impressed to see the two turbine at Totnes Weir Hydro working flat out, providing enough power for a 3rd of all homes in Totnes.
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The first experiment was to create a battery from a piece of fruit and explored voltage and current using multi-meters.
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They then used their batteries to examine the effects of location (sun direction and intensity) and direction on the voltage and current produced by a mini-solar panel.
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The children made their own Savonious wind turbine cut out of cardboard. This involved producing a technical drawing of the panels and using geometry to work out required angles.
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Wind turbines assembled.
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In the hydro workshop, the children made an Archimedes screw out of plastic tubes and elastic bands, to move water up hills, the way Archimedes originally intended!
The children were also lucky enough to take part in a craft workshop to make renewable energy artwork that works using the energy from the sun. The Cyanotype session was run by Chloe Uden and Naomi Wright from Art and Energy Collective. They are the inspiration and driving force behind the Moths to a Flame movement that is turning calls for urgent action on the Climate Emergency into a magnificent mass-participation art installation at COP26 in Glasgow this year, using the moth as a metaphor for our relationship with energy. They are inviting everyone to help make 20,000 moths and record messages for COP26 delegates, which will be exhibited at the Glasgow Botanical Garden during the COP26 and then in Plymouth. TRESOC will be running community moth making events in the summer.
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Cyanotype prints use a mixture of iron compounds exposed to UV light. Washed in water, the iron oxidises to create beautiful Prussian Blue images.
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by tresoc | Dec 18, 2016 | Latest TRESOC News
On Saturday, October 15th 2016 the first ever Archimedes Screw Fest took place at the Hydro Power Station on Totnes Weir.
The event marked the Hydro Station’s first birthday and a year of green electricity generation.
There were several family activities running throughout the day providing an opportunity to learn first-hand about the local ecosystem and the amazing renewable energy source right on our doorstep. Tresoc’s Director of Engineering, Alastair Gets, led tours/talks around the site throughout the day, which included a close up inspection inside the plant and of the fish pass.
Jane Brady, as Director of Communications, has been working to deliver an information signage board for the site. Part of the day’s event invited visitors to add their comments and preferences to how that sign could take form. Stories and knowledge of the River Dart were shared, whilst children crafted salmon shapes that then were woven into a hand-made fish net. The inspiration continued, as the net went on to take residence at St John’s primary school for future class lessons of a river focus. Citizen scientists could also sign up to become active members of the community taking care of the health and future of the river ecosystem; with the WestCountry Rivers Trust on hand to respond to queries about the River Dart. The Totnes Rubbish group led a volunteer litter pick along the river walk to the Weir.
Sadly, Archimedes, the man who pioneered the screw technology, was not able to join us on the day; [reported to have had a cold from staying in the bath far too long]. Instead, we sampled his favourite dish, arancini (provided by the Kitchen Table), in his honor.
Tresoc worked in collaboration with Dart Renewables, the Hydrosense consortium and Triodos bank during the development of the weir and launched an exclusive share offer to its members earlier this year, helping to secure local community investment in its local renewable resource.
Tresoc is now developing Staverton Leat Hydro in partnership with Hydrosense, The Dartington Hall Trust and Triodos Bank. There will be more on this at the upcoming AGM on November 30th, when guest speaker, Karen Williams, the Chief Operating Officer of the Trust, joins the evening to talk about working in partnership with Tresoc.
Thanks to Landustrie and Dart Renewables Ltd, who sponsored the Archimedes Screw Fest, and to all those who joined us at the weir and made the day so special. Archimedes Screw Fest was part was part of TTT Open Eco Homes weekend.
by tresoc | Mar 18, 2016 | Latest Share Offer
Tresoc Members invested just over £300,000 in the iconic 300 kW Totnes Weir hydro power plant. Because the target was reached through local investment, there was no need to open up the share offer to a wider audience—local investment works! Triodos have sent out share certificates. If you missed out on this opportunity, don’t fret, more good things are on the way. We have a working partnership with the Hydrosense consortium, developers of the Totnes weir site, and we are moving forward with a new, local hydro project and more on-roof solar. Get in touch if you’d be interested in investing.
View the Dart Renewables information sheet on the scheme.
by tresoc | Jun 18, 2015 | Membership
Fantastic news! Dart Renewables Bond Issue raised £1.3m and has now closed.
The Dart Renewables 2015 bond issue to raise capital to finance completion of this iconic Totnes hydro scheme closed ahead of schedule as the target total of £1.3m was reached with 9 days to go. About a fifth of the funds raised came from local investment. Congratulations to Dart Renewables, who have worked diligently on the project for many years.
by tresoc | Mar 27, 2014 | Latest Blog Post
We’re kicking off the discussion with great news about our 1 MW for Totnes & District Share Issue. Those of you who came to the AGM in December will know that following refusal of the Totnes Community Wind Farm planning application last year (see previous blog entry) we’ve been extra busy with other projects. All this hard work is now paying off in the form of new consented solar pv and hydro power projects. Specifically, we have reached agreement with South Devon Rural Housing Association to install solar panels on all of their suitable properties. The Survey work is nearly complete and over 100 households will soon enjoy a source of free electricity, helping out some of those most at risk of fuel poverty and supporting growth in the local economy through our project partnership with BECO Solar. TRESOC will benefit from the Feed in Tariff income, enabling payment of dividends to our members.
We’ve also secured agreement with Dart Renewables for a £500,000 community investment in the hydro project at Totnes Weir, and more at other hydro power sites on the Rivers Teign and Dart. With extra solar schemes in the pipeline this adds up to a TRESOC investment package in consented local renewable energy projects with a combined value of more than £1.5 million.
With the Government’s Community Energy Strategy and other measures supporting growth in community renewables this is a huge opportunity for local people to earn a healthy income from large and small investments in local renewable energy installations. It will also provide TRESOC with working capital to develop more projects in solar, hydro and various forms of biomass – and who knows – maybe another wind project one day!
We’re finishing off the detailed legal agreements necessary to realise these fantastic opportunities in our Share Issue, scheduled for April. Meanwhile, we’ll keep you informed of progress and look forward to hearing more from our members.
Many thanks and best wishes to all TRESOC members and supporters,
Ian Bright, Managing Director
