Eco Evolution Blog

It was also announced that ESB would finally begin requiring payment for eCar charging points around the country. Earlier this year, the utility postponed seeking €17 per month for usage of the almost 1,000 charging points nationwide. The utility are now communicating with eCar customers about the imminent introduction of charges and are currently looking at appropriate tariffs.

The utility said “Ultimately, everything has to be paid for. We need to reinvest and keep the system up to date. We will have to charge

Due to the global warming and the increase of both global power consumption and oil prices, generation of renewable and environmental energy is being promoted and subsidized worldwide. There are many forms of harvesting eco friendly and renewable sources, with hydropower being its most mature and largest source of renewable power. The power plants simply convert the energy from flowing water into electricity, in most cases using a dam/weir on a river to retain a large reservoir of water. This water is then released trough turbines in order to generate electricity. Hydropower plants produce no air emissions but in most cases affect the water quality, wildlife habitats and especially prevent the fish migration.

However the highly efficient Archimedean screw has been “re-invented” to generate electricity all year round at 24 hours per day, whilst obtaining the natural flow of the river, in combination with its natural fish friendliness and a small fish trap it is one of the few systems that is able to maintain or even improve the wildlife in and around the river.

Overview of an Archimedean Screw ~ Photo Credit: Landustrie

A hydropower screw is a profitable source of income and entirely environmental friendly, once you possess the water rights of a flow. The  hydropower screw can be used in places or areas where there is a low head ≤10 meters and a flow of ≤15m³/s

Examples of the types of sites suitable for the installation of an Archimedean Screw:

• Rivers
• In an existing spillway, lock or in a weir system
• To replace existing waterwheels or other types of generators
• Old Mill sites
• (Waste) Water treatment inlets / outlets
• Cooling water outlets of power stations
• Industrial process water (i.e. Paper industries or steel mills)
• Anywhere where water is available at a higher level

If you own any of the above site types and would like to find out more about how the Archimedean Screw Hydro Turbine can be of benefit to you please contact us here and we will endeavour to point you in the right direction.

During the Summer we spent some time visiting various water mills around Ireland with The Mills and Millers of  Ireland – the society for the preservation of ancient and traditional Irish water mills. We have visited several mills over the years and Riverdale Water Mill has to be one of the most breathtaking of all the renovated mills we have visited to date.

Situated close to the shores of Lough Neagh on the River Goudy the beautifully restored Riverdale Water Mill is over 200 years old. All its original machinery, including the water wheel itself, is in full working order. Visually breathtaking, Riverdale surpasses all expectations.

Restaurant and Courtyard

The magnificent Water wheel

The working water wheel

The Millrace

The millrace on the right converges with the River Goudy as it leaves the mill pond.

View of barn and sluice gate

The Sluice Gate

The exquisitely landscaped grounds are stunning and full of delightful surprises at every turn. Riverdale Dam is truly a world unto itself , an ideal location for photographs throughout the year.

Stepping stones along the dam

The Goudy river waterfall

The Elevated pond

View of Mill and Mill pond

Enjoying life on the pond

The pathways through the beautifully landscaped gardens

A haven for wildlife

Across the road in the gardens of Riverdale House there is a stone and brick built shower house which was used by the workers at Riverdale Water Mill.  After a long day of  threshing the mill workers would step into the shower and once inside another worker would throw a bucket of water on them from the top of the building.

Frank inspecting the shower

The fully restored farmyard which includes both a restaurant and a barn can accommodate functions such as local heritage events and weddings.

If you are the owner of an old mill or indeed a mill site and would like to find out more please contact us here for further information and we will endevour to point you in the right direction.

All photographs are copyright of Eco Evolution

Howsham  Mill is a Grade II listed building, built in 1755 and attributed to the architect, John Carr of York.  It was both a folly and a working grist mill on the Howsham Hall estate.  The mill was powered by a breastshot waterwheel connected by a gear wheel to millstones, that ground the grain into flour. Grinding ceased in 1947 and by the 1960s the mill had fallen into serious decay.

Over grown and lost to the world the derelict mill lay hidden in the trees on a small island in the River Derwent, in North Yorkshire until one day in 2003 it was discovered by Mo McLeod and Dave Mann who fell in love with the ruin and bought it in 2004. They had plans to renovate it and turn it into their home but they soon discovered that sadly this was not to be as they were turned down no matter what road they took.

Howsham Mill in 2003 ~ Photo Credit – Renewable Heritage Trust

Undeterred by all the set backs they decided to change tactic and formed the Renewable Heritage Trust with the help of the local residents with the aim of restoring the mill as an environmental study centre promoting renewable energy and local history and wildlife. It will also be available for use as a community venue for local people.

Photo Credit – Renewable Heritage Trust

The first phase of the restoration was completed in 2007 and involved installing the new waterwheel and  an Archimedean screw as well as rebuilding the walls and roof of the granary to the north of the main building, allowing the installation of a kitchen and toilets as well as housing the control equipment for the hydro generation. Fund raising and grant funding enabled the installation of a new waterwheel and  the Archimedean screw to generate electricity and help fund the project in the long term. Much of the hard work of restoring the mill was done by enthusiastic volunteers, with families joining in for work days, and regular groups of trainee soldiers and school parties  helping out at the mill.

Archimedean Screw hydropower at Howsham Mill

Both the waterwheel and the Archimedean Screw generate electricity from the fall of water over the weir. The reinstatement of the waterwheel will again harness the power of the river, but rather than driving millstones, this time will generate electricity. Both the water wheel and the Archimedean Screw are grid connected and excess electricity generated is sold to the National grid.

A view of the water wheel taken from inside Howsham Mill

In June 2012 work began on restoring the main part of the building. Today, a decade on, Howsham Mill has been returned to its former glory as it was when it was abandoned in 1947.

Howsham Mill restored to its former glory

Howsham Mill

The magnificent restored ceiling in Howsham Mill

The magnificent Gothic windows and stone work at Howsham Mill

The aim of the Renewable Heritage Trust is to make the building totally self-sustaining for the 21st century using revenue from power sales to fund future restoration and conservation work at the site.

The mill has underfloor heating beneath the flag stones which is a wet system with a sealed network of pipes connecting to a coil in the hot water tank, which is heated partly by the solar thermal panel installed on the roof of the mill and topped up by an immersion heater run from their own electricity.  A wood-burning stove connected to a flue liner has been installed in the original fireplace and will burn logs from the island.

Solar Thermal panels supplement the underfloor heating in the mill

The final stage of the restoration was the placing of the statue of Diana the huntress created by wire-mesh sculptor Nikki Taylor which replaces the original lead sculpture of the Roman goddess, most of which was taken for scrap.

Sculpture of the goddess Diana – Photo Credit www.yorkpress.co.uk

Howsham Mill is located in a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Special Area of Conservation (SAC). The small wooded island has a wealth of native trees including ash, sycamore, oak, wych elm and hawthorn trees.  Above and below the weir are beds of water crowfoot, teeming with invertebrates eaten by fish and birds. Otters were re-introduced to the river in the mid-1980s and can occasionally be spotted from the island.

The weir on the River Derwent

A rich diversity of plant and animal life

Photographs unless otherwise credited are copyright of Eco Evolution