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It was therefore with some misgiving that the Council received a notice from the British Electricity
Authority that they intended to extend the Willesden (Acton Lane) Generating Station by the installation
of
(a) One 30,000 kW. M.C.R. turbo-alternator, complete with the necessary ancillary plant;
(b) Two 240,000 lb./hr. boilers, complete with the necessary ancillary plant;
and the construction of
(a) One reinforced concrete cooling tower, having a cooling capacity of 2,250,000 gallons/hr.
and a height of 230 ft.
(b) The necessary buildings and civil engineering works;
and the addition to the existing site of the Generating Station of a plot of land having an area of approximately
3½ acres.
The reasons for extending the station were the increasing demand for electricity, the fact that the plant
and existing station was reaching the end of its useful life, and the difficulty of finding an alternative suitable
site with a constant supply of water and adequate facilities for the delivery of large quantities of coal and for
the removal of ashes.
The British Electricity Authority also has plans for the extension of Taylors Lane to increase the present
output from 70 MW. to 90 MW.
The proposal with regard to the Acton Lane Station was to remove the existing old plant as the new
plant was installed so that the new station would gradually replace the present one. The Authority promised
to take the following precautions to prevent nuisance:
(1) Two High Efficiency Multi-Cyclone Grit and Dust Arrestors would be fitted to each boiler.
(2) The chimney height would more than comply with the recommendation of the Chimney
Emissions Committee and would obviate any nuisance from fumes.
(3) The new coal store would not be any nearer to dwelling houses than the present coal store.
All the handling operations of the coal from the railway wagons and into the station would be
under cover to obviate dust nuisance.
(4) The cooling towers would be liberally rated up to the highest modern standards, and
consideration would be given to a design of the Irrigation System which would reduce, even
further than present-day designs, the possibility of the precipitation of moisture from the
towers. It was also proposed to couple all the towers to a common intake culvert so that the
heat burden on the towers was shared whatever the load on the station.
(5) The siting of the cooling towers relative to each other would ensure the best performance and
minimise the possibility of precipitation. The proposed new towers would be further from
the public highways than the existing towers.
No definite guarantee could be given with regard to the sulphur nuisance; flue gas washing could not
be instituted because it was very expensive and there was insufficient water on the site. The Authority
promised to install in the future any newly discovered system to eliminate sulphur if it proved cheaper and
more effective than the present methods.
In the meantime, the Electricity Authority put their faith in the tall chimneys and the unbiased expert
opinions which were satisfied that no nuisance from fumes could arise from them.
The Council became alarmed at this new development, for they had previous experience of the British
Electricity Authority's interminable delays in making any improvements. A sub-committee had been
appointed in June, 1948, to attend informal meetings with the British Electricity Authority and the London
Transport Executive to try to obtain improvements in the nuisances created by the various power stations.
Several meetings were held under the chairmanship of a representative of the Ministry of Health, but, apart
from general promises of action for the future, no practical progress was made. This sub-committee was
instructed to protest against the extension of the power station in a residential area and, as a minimum, to
obtain an assurance that before any construction commenced, all modern methods would be included to avoid
the serious nuisance that the neighbourhood had suffered for many years. They were to press for an undertaking
that effective grit-arresting plant and smoke and sulphur controlling equipment would be installed.
Following these protests, the Minister of Fuel and Power held a Public Inquiry at the Acton Town Hall
on February 22nd, at the Willesden Town Hall on February 28th, and at Gibbons Road School in the evening
of the same day in order to give the public an opportunity to give evidence. The Willesden and Acton Councils
were represented jointly by Counsel. At the inquiry the experts of the Electricity Authority stated that the
present plant was nearing the end of its natural life and was out of date and unsatisfactory. They agreed that
certain promises made to the Willesden Council were not carried out; because of lack of materials. The
witnesses representing the public complained of the contamination of their food, the difficulty of keeping their
homes clean, the rotting of their curtains, the failure to grow flowers in the gardens, and the general effect on
their health: sulphur-gas fumes irritating their lungs and particles of grit entering their eyes. Some of the
witnesses produced packages of grit which they had swept from their window ledges and from their attics.
The Council pressed for the new station to be built in the open country, but if the Minister sanctioned
the extension of the Acton Lane Power Station an assurance should be given that the existing plant would be
taken completely out of use by a definite date and special up-to-date equipment installed to reduce the
atmospheric pollution to a minimum.
By an instrument dated September 28th, 1949, the Minister of Fuel and Power approved the extension
of the Acton Lane Power Station, and the following assurances were obtained from the British Electricity
Authority:
(1) The whole of the existing plant would be taken out of commission by the end of 1959, or such
later date as might be approved by the Minister;
(2) The total output of the station would not at any time without the Minister's consent exceed
180 MW.; and
(3) The cooling towers would be liberally rated up to the highest modern standards and all the
towers would be coupled to a common intake culvert so that the heat burden of the towers
would be shared whatever the load of the station.