A former gas works in Bootle could soon be demolished.
The site at Litherland Road in Bootle, is currently home to six unused gas holders and other redundant infrastructure and is owned by National Grid, who submitted the application to Sefton Council as the “first step towards the site being brought forward for other uses.”
The demolition could take around 18 months and would involve dismantling the gas holders and associated buildings and infilling the site. While the demolition could pave the way for new uses, there are none currently identified according to a Sefton Council planning report produced ahead of a meeting of the borough’s planning committee next week, which will consider the application.
The scale of the work required to complete works on the site mean that as part of the demolition, which would require a 20-strong team of contractors on site, 20 HGVs will be required to carry out 35 visits to the site daily to remove waste material and bring in material for filling in the site.
The site had been home to a gas works from the 1890s. The current gas holders, which reach up to 11m below the ground, were “mothballed” in 2009 after becoming obsolete and incompatible with modern gas network infrastructure.
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The planning officer report notes that National Grid are required by Ofgem to remove the redundant gasholders, leading to the application for demolition.
The gasholders currently contain “existing water seal and ‘sludge’” which have accrued over a 140 year period, which will be removed and treated as part of the dismantling process.
The below ground tanks would be retained, with holes being drilled in to allow for rain water drainage, to help retain the stability of nearby gas works, according to the report.
Due to potential and known contaminants on the site, a management plan has been requested by environmental health, including details of processes and monitoring to reduce the risk of the release of contaminants during demolition.
A highways plan has also been submitted, detailing routes for the HGVs to take in and out of the site through the existing access when delivering and removing materials, which includes travel along Litherland Road, the A566, A5038 and onwards to the motorway.
A traffic survey has identified four points at which the level of HGV traffic could have an impact, with conditions recommended to limit the hours of operation in order to reduce potential traffic issues in the local area. Other options were considered but deemed unsuitable.
The application will be discussed at a meeting of Sefton’s planning committee at Bootle Town Hall next Wednesday October 18 where councillors will decide whether to approve or reject the plans.
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