Government of Gibraltar PROPOSED NEW POWER STATION LATHBURY BARRACKS GIBRALTAR FEBRUARY 2009 ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT NON TECHNICAL SUMMARY INTRODUCTION This Non-Technical Summary provides • A description of the need for the project; an overview, in non-technical • Details of the proposals and alternatives language, of the fi ndings contained considered; in the Environmental Statement for • The assessment of potential signifi cant the proposed new power station at environmental effects; and Lathbury Barracks, Gibraltar. • Details of any required mitigation. The Environmental Statement records the fi ndings This is a public development project proposal of an Environmental Impact Assessment of the new by the Government of Gibraltar. power station, and includes: Approximate Site Location 1 NEED FOR THE PROJECT Gibraltar will require a new power station to The 3 power stations (Waterport on the North There is a growth in the demand for electrical provide for growing energy needs and to replace Mole, OESCO in the building adjoining the energy from existing users in Gibraltar. There are 3 existing power stations whose engines have Europa Business Centre and ISGS situated in also several large scale developments planned reached, or are rapidly reaching, the end of their HM Naval Base) need to be replaced by 2011 from which the energy demand is predicted to operational lives. due to a combination of their age, condition and outstrip the current supply. environmental concerns as the generators are very old and are close to residential areas. OESCO Power Station Waterport Power Station 2 ALTERNATIVES Gibraltar is constrained by the limited amount of reliant in providing its own energy. Any source of Low sulphur diesel oil is currently used in Gibraltar land available for building a new power station. energy needs to be reliable, secure and sustained. as the only fuel for power generation and so is This is due to the small size of the country, the sheer already widely available and can be stored readily. landscape of the Rock, protected wildlife and its Alternative Power Technologies It does not pose a particularly high explosion or high density of population. Additionally Gibraltar fi re risk as it is not fl ammable. needs a sustained and secure supply of energy. Renewable sources of electrical energy could not satisfy the predicted demand on their own, and Natural gas is not currently available in Gibraltar In developing the proposals for the new power based on current technology would not provide a and would need to be piped in from another station, a number of alternatives were considered: secure and sustained supply. country, which could lead to signifi cant political and transboundary issues. If risks were considered A ‘Do-Nothing’ Scenario Renewable sources will be phased into the overall acceptable, it would take several years to organise Gibraltar power supply strategy to add to the and construct a pipeline connection and it would Delays to the planned retirement of the 3 existing main supply. Gibraltar is investigating the use of not be available in time for start-up of the new power stations could not be sustained for long wind turbines, energy from burning waste, marine power station in 2011. and would result in increasing unreliability and current generators and purchasing renewable potential for unplanned power outages, and energy from sources from outside Gibraltar. By Liquefi ed natural gas is natural gas that has been greater emissions to the environment as demand 2032 Gibraltar will provide at least 12 per cent converted to liquid form for ease of storage or increases. Future energy demands have also of its energy demand from renewable sources. transport. It is not considered practical or safe to been calculated to outstrip current supply. These site a receiving terminal in Gibraltar, which rules two factors would threaten Gibraltar’s security of Alternative Fuels out its potential use. energy supply. The available fuels for the proposed new power Biodiesel is an organic chemical produced by the Importing power from neighbouring countries is not station are diesel oil, natural gas, liquefi ed natural chemical reaction of a vegetable oil or animal possible for Gibraltar due to its geographic and gas and biodiesel. fat with an alcohol such as methanol. It can be political setting which means that it has to be self- used as a substitute for petroleum diesel. The 3 ALTERNATIVES use of biodiesel has already been considered in down the possible location of the power station to sites on project costs and schedule. Gibraltar but it has been diffi cult to fi nd a cost several sites that could accommodate the power effective supply source that is from a guaranteed station infrastructure requirements. The location The site at Europa Point is not available for transfer renewable source. If a suitable source is located options were: from the MoD, and also has the highest estimated it will be possible to use this, blended with diesel costs, and would require a change in use of the oil in the new power station and attain part of • Governor’s Cottage; area from residential/recreational to industrial. Gibraltar’s commitment to renewables. • Lathbury Barracks; Use of this site, if it did become available, will • NATO Distillery; potentially result in signifi cant visual, air quality Alternative Technologies • Tunnels at Arrow Street and Powers and noise effects on the surroundings. Due to Drive/Beefsteak Magazine; these constraints it is considered unlikely that High, medium and low speed diesel engines, gas • Western Beach Area – New Reclamation; this site can be developed within the required turbines and steam turbines have been considered • Windmill Hill Flats; timescale. for power generation. Medium speed diesel • Europa Point; and engine units in the power output range 6.5 to 8 • Aerial Farm. The site at Windmill Hill Flats has been Megawatts (MW) are deemed as appropriate discounted as it does not provide enough area because all of the units can be located within Space available at Governor’s Cottage, NATO for the required power station. Other constraints the available space and units of this size can be Distillery, Tunnels at Arrow Street and Tunnels at include its ongoing use by the MoD for training, operated satisfactorily at minimum loads in order Powers Drive were deemed too restricted and its unknown geology, its location within a to follow Gibraltar’s varying electricity demand. inadequate to house a power station, therefore European protected wildlife site and potential these sites have been removed from the alternative use as a wind farm site, along with the second Alternative Locations site assessment. highest of the capital costs. This site was not considered to be viable within the required Once the type of fuel and technology had been The remaining sites have been assessed for timescale. considered, the area of land required for the practical and logistical suitability, environmental power station could be calculated. This narrowed and planning constraints and the impact of the The potential site at Western Beach would 4 ALTERNATIVES be situated very close to the airport runway, power stations are operating engines that have, Preferred Arrangement residential properties and the land frontier. In or shortly will be, exceeding their design life order to build a power station at this site, land and are therefore likely to be major contributors Following the site selection process, it was would need to be reclaimed from the sea for to the reduction in air quality in the area, as well considered that the Lathbury Barracks site offered which a more detailed EIA would be required as the fact that peak energy demand is rapidly the most suitable location for the new facility, as as well as the undertaking of a project specifi c approximating present generating capacity. it has suffi cient space for development and it is Aeronautical Study. Past aeronautical studies There is therefore considerable pressure on considered to have a lower degree of specifi c for reclamation at this location have identifi ed the Government of Gibraltar to expedite the problems when compared with other sites. potential impacts on airport safety which may construction of the new power station and opting take time to manage and remove. In addition, for this site would not, at the moment, provide The Lathbury Barracks site was considered to be this site will be severely constrained with any certainty of the programme to complete. the most viable site for Gibraltar’s power station regards to the positioning and heights of the when the various planning and consenting issues chimney stacks due to its close proximity to the The Lathbury Barracks site will have slightly were evaluated with the required runway. There are also planning issues such lower costs than the Western Beach site, but project timescale. as the impact on the surrounding residential is more diffi cult to access. It is environmentally properties and visual impact effects at close sensitive due its close proximity to a European Diesel oil is the only fuel that is likely to be proximity and the adjacent Airport, all of which protected wildlife site and also to new and available in time for commissioning in 2011. The may prove diffi cult to mitigate. A power station proposed residential and public use areas. With future use of biodiesel could easily contribute to at this location will give rise to signifi cant appropriate assessment and strict application Gibraltar’s renewable energy obligation and will transboundary environmental effects relating to of mitigating measures, these issues were not be investigated further. air quality, visual impact and water quality. This considered to be insurmountable within the will require due consultation and the timescale required timescale and this option has been for such consultation (and public participation) considered in more detail.