Thames Tideway Tunnel
(asked on 1st February 2016) - View Source
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what (1) proportion, and (2) volume, of excavated spoil from each of the Thames Tideway Tunnel construction sites will be transported from them by river.
The Development Consent Order for the Thames Tideway Tunnel (TTT) requires 100% of the specified materials to be transported by river for construction sites on the Thames foreshore, unless an approved derogation is in place. Derogations could include periods when it is not possible to use river transport due to factors such as river closures, incidents, weather and supply chain failures, and for material not suitable for river transport such as contaminated material that needs specialist disposal or material that is too wet for safe transit without specialist vessels.
The commitment to transportation by river from the construction sites was secured through the River Transport Strategy, which was included in Thames Water’s application for Development Consent for the Tunnel, although it only applies to specific material listed in the Strategy (including excavated material from the main tunnel at main tunnel drive sites and material excavated from the shafts at foreshore sites).
Bazalgette Tunnel Limited (operating as Tideway), the company appointed to design, finance, build and operate the TTT, has estimated the proportion and volume of excavated spoil that will be transported by river from each of the TTT construction foreshore sites (see Table 1 below). The percentages shown for each site demonstrate the anticipated effect of derogations on the amounts of excavated spoil they will be able to transport by river.
However, Tideway and appointed mains works contractors have made commitments to maximise their use of river transport and are therefore working on opportunities to increase the extent of river transport further in liaison with the Local Authorities, Greater London Authority, Port of London Authority and Transport for London.
Table 1 - Excavated specified material percentage and volume by river transport
SITE | % of all excavated specified material transported by river | Volume to be transported by river (m3) |
Putney Bridge Foreshore | 90% | 14,000 |
Carnwath Road Riverside | 90% | 353,400 |
Cremorne Wharf Depot | 90% | 9,000 |
Chelsea Embankment | 90% | 44,400 |
Kirtling Street | 81% | 693,600 * |
Heathwall Pumping Station | 82% | 16,300** |
Albert Embankment | 90% | 56,300 |
Victoria Embankment | 90% | 27,900 |
Blackfriars Bridge | 90% | 72,100 |
Chambers Wharf | 90% | 416,100 |
King Edward Memorial Park | 90% | 57,500 |
*excludes shaft and excavated material from ‘other' minor structures, due to restricted river frontage
**excludes 'excavated material from ‘other' minor structures', due to site constraints