Skulferatu #38 - Torness Nuclear Power Station, Dunbar, East Lothian

 

Have a Nuclear Time at Terrific Torness!

 

Is it wrong to have a favourite nuclear power station?  Well, I do, and it is Torness Nuclear Power Station situated just a few miles down the road from the town of Dunbar.  It can be reached by car along the A1, or by walking out from Dunbar and then along the coastal path of the John Muir Way.  I took the coastal route and walked there, past Barns Ness Lighthouse, and along through the sandy paths with the sharp grasses that grow there.  Following the coast around I then came to the lime kilns at Skateraw and going up and over the hill by them, arrived at the coastal concrete walkways that lead round and past the power station and on to Torness Point and Thorntonloch Beach.

 

Rural walk to Torness Nuclear Power Station

 

Rural walk to Torness Nuclear Power Station

 

Torness Nuclear Power Station as seen from Skateraw

 

Torness Nuclear Power Station as seen from Skateraw

 

The lower and upper walkway around the coast by the power station were constructed as a sea defence.  Part of this defence are the thousands of distinctive looking concrete blocks that rise up from the sea to the wall of the lower walkway.  These blocks are known as Dolos Units and are used as protection against the erosive force of the waves and rough seas.  They work by dissipating the energy from the wave by deflecting it to the side and thus lessening any erosion or damage. These blocks and the bare concrete of the walkways create quite a stark, yet dramatic feature in the landscape.

 

Torness Nuclear Power Station as seen from the walkway pier

 

Walkway and Dolos

 

Lower walkway around grounds of the power station

 

Torness Nuclear Power Station was the last of the United Kingdom’s second generation nuclear power plants to be commissioned, and it is one of the seven remaining nuclear power stations in the UK.  Like all the remaining nuclear power stations, Torness was built beside the sea, as nuclear reactors need access to large quantities of water to keep the core at a stable temperature.  The sea water is also used to generate steam to drive a turbine which in turn powers the generator.

 

Torness Nuclear Power Station

 

Construction began on Torness in 1980 and by 1988 the power station had been completed and was generating electricity.  The power station has two Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors and supplies around 1,190MW (megawatts) to the National Grid.  In 2019 it generated more than 10TWh (Terawatt-hours), which was enough to power 2.5 million homes. 

 

Torness is expected to operate until around 2030 before being decommissioned.

 

I left the Skulferatu that accompanied me on today’s walk amongst the rocks forming part of the sea defences by the beach at the southeast side of the power station.

 

Torness Nuclear Power Station as seen from beach by Torness Point

 

Skulferatu #38

 

Skulferatu #38 on rock by Torness Point

 

Skulferatu #38 on rock by Torness Point

 

Skulferatu #38 on rock by Torness Point

 

Map showing location of Skulferatu #38

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are –

 

Latitude 55.966443

Longitude -2.399051

 

I used the following sources for information on Torness Nuclear Power Station –

 

EDF Energy – Torness

Torness Power Station

 

Nuclear Generation in the UK

Published by EDF Energy

 

East Lothian Courier – 3 September 2020

 

Wikipedia

Torness Nuclear Power Station

Dolos

 

Article and photographs are copyright of © Kevin Nosferatu, unless otherwise specified.

 

Skulferatu #22 - Ash Disposal Area, Levenhall, Musselburgh, East Lothian

 

In the summer I often cycle from Edinburgh to North Berwick.  Rather than take the roads all the way there I tend to veer off and take the more scenic route along the John Muir Way.  It is more relaxing and offers up lots of great views around the coast and across the Forth over to Fife.

 

Just outside Musselburgh, at the back of the racecourse, the route of the John Muir Way takes you through the Ash Disposal Areas or Ash Lagoons, as they are also known.  These were created by the disposal of pulverised fuel ash from the coal fired power station that was at Cockenzie.  This power station was operational from 1967 until 2013, when it was decommissioned.  It was demolished in 2015.  

 

A view of Cockenzie Power Station from Prestonpans

Demolition of power station chimneys in 2015

 

Some of the Ash Lagoons have been restored and landscaped as wildlife areas, with pools of water created to attract wading birds.  The one that always gets my attention though is yet to be landscaped.  It was, until a few years ago, a grey, crumbly looking mound.  On hot and windy summer days I would cycle past and my eyes would sting in the fine, grey dust that blew off from it.  On rainy days my bike and my legs would be coated with a slimy grey mud.  Then a few years ago some planting took place and there was a whole summer when the lagoon bloomed with hundreds of thousands of poppies.  Now it has returned to a desolate look, though a desolate look with various grasses and scrub.

 

Silver Birch tree and pipes in the Ash Lagoon

 

A view over the Ash Lagoon to Prestongrange

 

Looking out over the Forth

 

Poles around part of Ash Lagoon

Left over apparatus rusting away

 

View over Forth to Fife

Remains of sign that use to warn against walking over the mound of ash

 

Round the top and at the edges of this mound of ash there runs a path.  There used to be signs all round warning people not to walk over the ash as it was dangerous and unstable.  These are now so rusted and faded that they are unreadable.  Lots of people walk over the ash now, but I think it was compacted and made safe…though I may be wrong about that.  If one day it swallows up a walker or two, then we’ll all know it wasn’t safe and be thankful it wasn’t us.

 

Poles and pipe at side of the Ash Lagoon

 

View over grass and industrial remnants in the Ash Lagoon

 

View over Ash Lagoon with Arthur’s Seat in the distance

 

There are plans for this area to be landscaped to extend the wildlife haven that has already been created. 

 

Pipe in the centre of the Ash Lagoon

 

The Skulferatu that accompanied me today was left by a pipe sticking out of the compacted ash.

 

Skulferatu #22

 

Skulferatu #22 by pipe in Ash Lagoon

 

Google Map showing location of Skulferatu #22

(Map shows Lagoon as being an area of water – it is not)

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are –

Latitude 55.950414

Longitude -3.014697