Britain's most unlikely day out? A trip to the power station with its own nature reserve

"Who would have thought the power station once vilified as the UK’s biggest carbon emitter could be so much fun?"
"Who would have thought the power station once vilified as the UK’s biggest carbon emitter could be so much fun?" Credit: getty

It looks like a pony nut; a tiny, shiny-sided cylinder of compressed fibre. This is a biomass pellet, made of leftovers from the American sawn-timber industry and shipped over here in bulk to fire three of the six units at Britain’s biggest "half and half" power station at Drax, near Selby in Yorkshire

You can pick up a handful from a tub in its newly-refurbished visitor centre, where you can also power a virtual city using an exercise bike, build a turbine using Faraday’s principles (which are on the national curriculum) and fulfil the energy requirements of the National Grid, shown in huge digits, by frantically winding handles labelled "nuclear", "hydro", "gas", "solar", "wind" and "biomass".

Biomass pellets, made of leftovers from the American sawn-timber industry
Biomass pellets, made of leftovers from the American sawn-timber industry Credit: VISMEDIA/DANIEL LEWIS

Who would have thought the power station once vilified as the UK’s biggest carbon emitter could be so much fun? Tours continue on an electric bus, beetling between colossal structures: to the north, six cooling towers pluming water vapour; to the south six more; to the east, the National Grid sucking in its megawatts via mighty cables; to the west, banks of the coal that once fired the entire complex now being whittled down to its disappearance by 2025. Nearby are four biomass domes.

The tour bus shuttles visitors around the site
The tour bus shuttles visitors around the site Credit: DANIEL LEWIS

"There was a day in April when the UK was powered without coal for 24 hours," said Rachael Baldwin, Visitor Centre and Communities Manager. "That was the first time since the Industrial Revolution. We’re aiming to convert one more coal unit to biomass and the remaining two to gas."

Biomass pellets arrive at Drax on sealed trains, using the branch line that once brought coal, and drop 49ft into sealed underground silos. If the biomass gets damp it swells and causes problems. It’s also inflammable so the system is enclosed: suction removes dust and gigantic magnets any stray metal (including, allegedly, some suspenders). As the pellets travel on conveyor belts to the turbine hall, a system called Firefly injects potential "hotspots" with water.

"It’s not the obvious addition to a holiday, I know; I went because I was staying nearby. But it was spectacular."
"It’s not the obvious addition to a holiday, I know; I went because I was staying nearby. But it was spectacular." Credit: Jonathan Banks/VisMedia

You feel constantly dwarfed at Drax. We marvelled at the biomass containers, effectively 213-ft high inflated plastic bags sprayed solid with concrete and pumped full of carbon dioxide to remove any oxygen. They have vibrating floors to shake down the pellets on their way to the turbine hall to be milled and fed into boilers steam-powering turbines so huge they are angled to fit the building. Each one could power Leeds. We stood on the high walks, wearing ear defenders, silent and awed.

In the old days, the boiler ash formed a heap called the Barlow Mound, now grassed over and so big that Drax has its own nature reserve with views of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Humberside. The ash now goes to the building industry and lime slurry becomes gypsum for use in insulated board.

Drax has its own nature reserve with views of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Humberside
Drax has its own nature reserve with views of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Humberside Credit: getty

If the turbine hall was the icing on the cake, the control room was the cherry on the top: decorated in clashing blue and green with low ceilings, it felt like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise crossed with Life on Mars. Engineers sat at huge consoles, absorbed in wall-sized flat screens and multiple desk monitors. All of them are trained on the analogue system as well as digital and in the unlikely event of a UK-wide power outage, Drax can do a "Black Start" using batteries to start gas turbines. Over on an unseen trading floor, dealers traded electricity with global markets 24 hours a day.

It’s not the obvious addition to a holiday, I know; I went because I was staying nearby. But it was spectacular. And while I can’t confirm Drax’s sustainability credentials (surely an 80% reduction in carbon emissions must be a good thing), it’s got me thinking about the nuts and bolts of power.

Now I’m on the hunt for other power plants to visit. Time to really go compare.

How to visit

Drax Power Station, Selby, Yorkshire (01757 618381; www.drax.com ) runs up to six free public tours per day.

The Skylark Visitor Centre and Nature Reserve opens on Saturdays and Sundays (closed December 23/24 and 30/31). On December 3 and 10 there’s a free Winter Wonderland.

Other power stations you can visit

Nuclear: Sizewell B, Suffolk

One of eight EDF Energy power stations you can visit (including spectacular Dungeness in Kent), it’s the UK’s only Pressurised Water Reactor and our most modern nuclear power station. Monday to Friday, weekends by prior arrangement. Minimum age: 11. 

Sizewell B: come for the Pressurised Water Reactor, stay for the lovely beach
Sizewell B: come for the Pressurised Water Reactor, stay for the lovely beach Credit: ALAMY

Hydro: Hollow Mountain Cruachan Visitor Centre, Argyll & Bute

This is like an Enid Blyton adventure story, with its cavernous tunnel into the mountainside, and water-powered turbines providing electricity for Scottish Power. £7.50 adults, £6.50 concessions, £2.50 children aged 6 to 16, under-sixes free. Daily April to October, Monday to Friday in winter.

Hydro: First Hydro Co, Snowdonia

Another spectacular mountain tunnel, in this case the gateway to a tour of Dinorwig Power Station, with a café and visitor centre. Open daily except for December 15, 24, 25 and 26 and from December 31 to mid-January, hours vary according to season. £8.50 adults, £7.65 concessions and £4.35 children.

You can climb inside that wind turbine
You can climb inside that wind turbine Credit: GETTY

Wind: Green Britain Centre, Swaffham, Norfolk

This charitable trust has the only wind turbine you can climb in the UK (possibly the world) and has 300 steps up to a platform designed by Lord Foster. £6 adults, £5 concessions, £4 children, £18 families (two adults and two children). Open Monday to Saturday from September to July and daily in August, with three Windmill Tours per day.

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