The Environment Agency
will be carrying out repair work on the
Station Road Bridge, in Exeter, which crosses
the River Exe flood relief channel, this
week.
The Environment Agency
will be carrying out repair work on the
Station Road Bridge, in Exeter, which crosses
the River Exe flood relief channel, this
week.
The bridge, owned and maintained by the
Environment Agency, needs urgent repair
including the replacement of the parapets
and minor repairs to the concrete bridge
deck.
The repair project will take a couple of
weeks to complete.
The current parapets are heavily corroded
and these will be replaced.
The minor repairs include the replacement
of expansion joint seals to prevent bridge
becoming damaged as a result of water getting
inside the structure.
‘This maintenance will prolong the life
of the bridge and ensure that it is safe
to use but it will result in some inconvenience
to people living nearby as it will be closed
to vehicles throughout the night while the
parapets are replaced. We look forward to
completing the works and re-opening the
bridge for use by the community and visitors
in two weeks, ‘ said Mark Goldingay, Project
Manager for the Environment Agency.
The bridge will be closed to vehicles between
the hours of 7pm to 7am on weekday nights
from Monday March 28. Pedestrian access
across the bridge will be maintained at
all times.
Any media queries should
be directed to the Environment Agency press
office on 01392 442084.
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Agency investigation
finds changes to Prenergy biomass plant
permit will not harm air quality or local
people
Environment Agency Wales
is to allow changes to the environmental
permit for Prenergy’s power station in Port
Talbot after an investigation revealed these
changes will not pose a risk to local people
or air quality.
In August last year
(2010), Prenergy submitted an application
to change some conditions to the Environmental
Permit for their planned wood burning power
station in Port Talbot.
The Agency has carried
out an in-depth investigation to see if
there would be any risk or harm from the
proposed permit changes to the health of
local people and the air quality in Port
Talbot and nearby communities.
As part of this investigation,
key agencies including the local Health
Board, the local authority’s Environmental
Health Department and other consultees were
asked for their views.
Abertawe Bro Morgannwg
Health Board was advised by Public Health
Wales and the Health Protection Agency that
the proposed increases in these pollutants
or emissions are unlikely to impact adversely
on public health.
The Agency will now
allow the changes after confirming that
they will not harm air quality or the health
of local people.
Comments from interested
parties and the local community have also
been considered during the investigation.
The specific changes
requested by the company are:
*1 increasing the emission
limit for nitrous oxide (N2O);
*2 increasing the emission limit for sulphur
dioxide (SO2) and hydrogen chloride (HCl)
and;
*3 allowing the use of wood pellets as well
as wood chip
Although the changes
are increases to the emission limits, they
are all well within the guidelines suggested
by UK Government. In particular, the rise
in Sulphur Dioxide to 50mg/ m3 is only a
quarter of the guideline figure of 200mg/m3.
Mary Youell, Environment
Agency Wales, said:
“After an in-depth examination
of the changes that Prenergy applied for,
we are confident that the permit will continue
to require the high standards needed to
protect local people and air quality in
Port Talbot.
“If we thought these
changes would compromise air quality standards
or the communities we protect, we would
not be accepting them.
“We have discussed these
changes with health professionals from the
Local health Board and other key organisations
who have endorsed our decision.”
