8:22am Thursday 11th March 2010
By James Williams
Victorian technology could be used to create a renewable energy source, new businesses and more jobs in a west Wiltshire town.
Property developer Malaby Martin Ltd wants to use the technology as part of a bid to redevelop redundant buildings at Bore Hill Farm in Deverill Road, Warminster.
Their plans will see old farm buildings replaced with new business units, which will be powered by renewable heat and electricity generated on site by a newly-built biogas plant, which turns waste, including cow muck, into electricity.
The plant would produce enough energy to power 1,000 homes, and any surplus electricity would be sold to the National Grid.
There are only six plants of its kind in the UK, compared to 8,000 in Germany.
Thomas Minter is a co-director at Bradford on Avon firm Malaby Martin,with his brother Toby.
He said: “It’s a new initiative but using old technology which was used by the Victorians to convert sewage into gas to power street lights.
“It makes renewable energy out of food waste and cow slurry to produce methane.
“We want this to power the business development. There’s a farmhouse on the road, which we have redeveloped and now have tenants in. There are also farm buildings that are falling apart, so we will redevelop those into business units.
“Hopefully this will create businesses and jobs in the town.
“Before this we’ve specialised in residential development, redeveloping rundown rural properties, but we wanted to diversify into renewable energy.”
In the past Malaby Martin has redeveloped buildings in Warminster including the Beckford Centre, a former day centre which was turned into sheltered accommodation.
The latest application includes a visitor centre to educate the community about sustainability issues such as global warming, waste management, renewable energy and business development.
The biogas plant, which will also produce bio-fertiliser for local farmers, will take 12-18 months to build. A planning application has been submitted to Wiltshire Council and should be decided before June.
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