Time to look to River Moy for hydropower once again ^Featured

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Ballina Town councillor, Barry McLoughlin, says that we are not utilising the great natural energy resource that is the River Moy, which he believes, along with greater utilisation of wind, solar and biomass energy, would contribute to providing a cheap and reliable long-term renewable energy source for Ballina.

The Fine Gael councillor says that it now feasible to install the latest generation of micro-hydro turbines to tap into the huge volume of water that passes through the famous fishery weirs that were upgraded in 2011.

And altough the amount of electricity generated by the river might be limited it could for example power street lights -  or even cut down on the new Arts Centre's electricity bill.

Donegal County Council has led the way in this regard by using water powered street lights on a footbridge over the River Finn in Ballybofey.

 

At a time of ever increasing costs of fossil fuels, Cllr McLoughlin believes that both the residential consumer and industry in Ballina would embrace alternative energies - not just as a cost-saving measure, but also to put Ballina out in front in the move to green energy.

Regarding solar power, Cllr McLoughlin can speak from experience explaining that solar panels on his family home provides all their hot water requirements during the summer - despite the almost complete lack of sunshine we have experienced during the last three summers.

 

When he raised the matter at the January meeting of Ballina Town Council he received widespread support for his Ballina green energy plan.

Ballina has a long tradition of tapping into the River Moy for electricity.

 

The biggest hydro-plant in Ballina was at Murphy's Flour Mills on the east bank of the river where the FAS offices now stands and from 1935 until 1963 the turbine provided much of the electricity required for the operation of the five-storey mill.

 

On the opposite bank, Beckets Sawmills where the new Arts Centre is sited also had a mill race powering the timber merchant's machinery.

Sadly, the only remaining mill race in Ballina is located on the much smaller Bunree River where the turbine once powered Murphy's Mills which was able to sell its surplus electricity to the ESB.

Up until the 1960s these three hydro power plants were features of  the industrial scene in Ballina. And Foxford Woollen Mills also had its own hydro-plant.

 

 

The Moy Drainage work of the early 1960s was the final nail in the coffin for these turbines, but tecnological advances and the urgent need to source renewable energy makes it necessary to look to the River Moy once again, says Cllr McLoughlin.