Stanwell Power Station, Queensland
Encyclopedia
Stanwell Power Station is Stanwell Corporation
Limited's major operating site which is located near Rockhampton
and one of the largest industrial developments undertaken in Queensland
. With a capacity to generate 1,400 megawatts (MW), Stanwell Power Station supplies electricity for distribution to customers via the state's high voltage electricity grid.
Stanwell became fully operational in 1996 and is located on 1,600 hectares of land. Construction of the station took seven years, with infrastructure built to withstand cyclonic winds.
The station features a 210-metre-high-chimney stack which was constructed using approximately 750,000 bricks. Two of the station's most impressive structures are the cooling tower
s. Each tower stands 130 metres high (about the height of a 40-storey building) and is 100 metres in diameter. Fifteen thousand cubic metres of concrete was poured for each tower. The plume seen coming from the cooling towers is steam, lost through evaporation during the water cooling process.
. The IPCC
says that developed countries should reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 to 40% by 2020 and by 80 to 95% by 2050. The Australian government has announced a target for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions of 60% from 2000 levels by 2050. because of the harmful effects of global warming on Australia
.
Carbon Monitoring for Action
estimates this power station emits 9.67 million tonnes of greenhouse gases each year as a result of burning coal
. The Australian Government has announced the introduction of a Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme
commencing in 2010 to help combat climate change
. It is expected to impact on emissions from power stations. The National Pollutant Inventory provides details of other pollutant emissions, but, as at 23 November 2008, not CO2.
Stanwell Corporation
Stanwell Corporation is an electricity generation company in Australia. It is fully owned by the Queensland Government, and has a portfolio of generating sites using thermal coal, wind, and hydroelectric power in Queensland....
Limited's major operating site which is located near Rockhampton
Rockhampton, Queensland
Rockhampton is a city and local government area in Queensland, Australia. The city lies on the Fitzroy River, approximately from the river mouth, and some north of the state capital, Brisbane....
and one of the largest industrial developments undertaken in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
. With a capacity to generate 1,400 megawatts (MW), Stanwell Power Station supplies electricity for distribution to customers via the state's high voltage electricity grid.
Stanwell became fully operational in 1996 and is located on 1,600 hectares of land. Construction of the station took seven years, with infrastructure built to withstand cyclonic winds.
Design
There are four generating units at Stanwell Power Station, each with a capacity of 350 MW. The four units and their components are housed in a 20 storey boiler house and a turbine hall the length of three football fields. The power station is highly automated and achieves both an efficient, effective workplace and high asset performance through the application of innovative technology and organisational design. These innovations have been recognised both nationally and internationally. Stanwell Power Station currently holds a world record for 1,073 days of continuous operation on Unit 4.The station features a 210-metre-high-chimney stack which was constructed using approximately 750,000 bricks. Two of the station's most impressive structures are the cooling tower
Cooling tower
Cooling towers are heat removal devices used to transfer process waste heat to the atmosphere. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation of water to remove process heat and cool the working fluid to near the wet-bulb air temperature or in the case of closed circuit dry cooling towers rely...
s. Each tower stands 130 metres high (about the height of a 40-storey building) and is 100 metres in diameter. Fifteen thousand cubic metres of concrete was poured for each tower. The plume seen coming from the cooling towers is steam, lost through evaporation during the water cooling process.
Emissions
The power station emits 9.67 million tonnes of greenhouse gases each year as a result of burning coalCoal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
. The IPCC
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is a scientific intergovernmental body which provides comprehensive assessments of current scientific, technical and socio-economic information worldwide about the risk of climate change caused by human activity, its potential environmental and...
says that developed countries should reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 to 40% by 2020 and by 80 to 95% by 2050. The Australian government has announced a target for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions of 60% from 2000 levels by 2050. because of the harmful effects of global warming on Australia
Effects of global warming on Australia
Predictions measuring the effects of global warming on Australia assert that climate change will negatively impact the continent's environment, economy, and communities...
.
Carbon Monitoring for Action
Carbon Monitoring for Action
Carbon Monitoring For Action is a website that contains a searchable database that estimates the carbon emissions of power plants and power companies around the world. Launched in November, 2007, its database is updated quarterly. It is produced and financed by the Center for Global Development....
estimates this power station emits 9.67 million tonnes of greenhouse gases each year as a result of burning coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
. The Australian Government has announced the introduction of a Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme
Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme
The Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme was a proposed cap-and-trade system of emissions trading for anthropogenic greenhouse gases, due to be introduced in Australia in 2010 by the Rudd government, as part of its climate change policy. It marked a major change in the energy policy of Australia...
commencing in 2010 to help combat climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
. It is expected to impact on emissions from power stations. The National Pollutant Inventory provides details of other pollutant emissions, but, as at 23 November 2008, not CO2.