It's "all systems go" for Waterside Green Energy (WGE) in their mission to decarbonise St Neots through their proposed hydroelectric water turbine in Little Paxton.

WGE, a charitable community benefit society, hosted a public meeting on October 26 to update people about the project, which the group hope will be up and running by 2024.

The plan is to install a hydroelectric turbine in the Little Paxton Mill Lane sluice site on the River Great Ouse, which will convert kinetic energy from the river to generate renewable energy.

The project chair, Phil Sandell, said: "The meeting went very well. We had a very good turnout, and we were able to give an updated presentation of exactly what was happening, where we were up to, where we were going next and what the trajectory is.

"It’s all systems go, it’s really optimistic, and hopefully, in 2024, we’ll see the opening.”

More than 60 people attended the meeting at the Hub in Little Paxton and were able to ask questions and learn more about the group run entirely by volunteers. 

WGE was set up in 2019 in response to St Neots Town Councils Climate Emergency Declaration, and its 50 members are dedicated to achieving carbon neutrality in the area.

Mr Sandell added: "Previous attempts to do this have been commercial, but we are not for profit and are there to benefit people in the community who need support in energy-related matters through the profits generated by the project."

The electricity generated will be sold to the national grid, and profits distributed to sustainable projects and solutions.

According to WGE, the sluice in Little Paxton is ideal for hydropower generation and has the potential to generate 860,000 kWh per year.

That is enough energy to power more than 300 homes and reduce CO2 emissions by 257 tonnes every year.

Some residents shared concerns at the meeting about environmental factors, but it was explained there will likely be a limited impact from habitat loss and that a species and habitats survey identified no major issues.

The project would also benefit the river ecology by providing fish, eel and otter passage at the site whilst improving flood resilience.

The next phase for WGE is to work on a financial package to get installation sorted and secured to ensure they hit their 2024 target.

For more information about the project and WGE, visit www.watersidegreenenergy.org.