Could new power station near Castle Point pollute air in south Essex?

8:30am Friday 19th March 2010

By Sarah Calkin

CONCERNS have been raised that a new £600million natural gas power station could cause pollution in Castle Point.

The Gateway Energy Centre, a 900-megawatt natural gas-fired power station, is planned for previously developed land on the north bank of the River Thames at Coryton, near Corringham.

The site is less than a mile away from the existing gas fired power station on the border of the two local authority areas.

Julian Ware-Lane, prospective Labour MP for Castle Point, said: “Throughout the year, the prevailing winds are from the west 70 per cent of the time – this means any airborne pollution will, for that 70 per cent of any normal year, be carried into Castle Point.

“Thurrock will benefit from the development; Castle Point could get the pollution.”

The power station would meet all the energy demands of the new superport being created, as well as powering a million homes across Basildon and Thurrock.

InterGen, the company behind the power station, must gain Government approval for the scheme.

He said: “I am aware that in the previous decade we had a refinery closed in this area, but that is no reason to accept new unwanted sources of pollution without putting up some comment.”

A meeting between InterGen, the company behind the proposals, and Castle Point Council is due to take place next month Bosses at InterGen say the power station would be one of the most efficient and environmentally advanced in the UK and promise it will bring benefits to the wider area, not just Thurrock.

Spokeswoman Melissa McKerrow said: “InterGen recognises that naturally, the community may have concerns about emissions from the proposed Gateway Energy Centre.

“The state-of-the-art technology used in constructing the plant will result in minimal emissions and preserve local air quality. Once the plant is operational, emissions from the stacks will be continuously monitored by specialised emissions monitoring equipment and reported to the Environment Agency on a regular basis.

“The proposed Gateway Energy Centre will bring benefits, not just to Thurrock, but to the entire region, with up to 600 jobs created during construction and 60 long-term direct and indirect jobs once the plant is operational.”