Co-op opens Britain's first hydro-powered store

The Co-op has underlined its green credentials by opening what it claims to be the Britain's first hydro-powered store. The food shop at New Mills, Derbyshire, is running its electricity through a link with the nearby river Goyt. The small-scale hydro scheme is expected to generate 240,000 kilowatt hours of electricity a year, enough to provide more than half of the 7,340 sq ft (680 sq metre) store's needs. The project is probably the first in Britain owned and funded by locals through a share scheme. It led to the community forming an industrial and provident society to control the scheme. Terry Macalister