Hidden Horsham - Stanley Street Works Incinerator

A view of the incinerator

the same view in 2008

With the ever increasing financial and environmental cost of disposing of household and other waste in landfill there is pressure for the Horsham area to be served by an incinerator. A modern incinerator would burn waste material thus reducing the volume going to landfill. Poisonous fumes would be removed before venting to atmosphere. The heat would be recovered for other purposes. Southern Water already use combined heat and power (CHP) units on some of their sewerage works

But, of course, this is not new to Horsham. A century ago there was an electricity generating plant in Stanley Street Works that incinerated waste materials to provide heat. The heat was used to turn water into steam to drive the turbines that generated electricity for the town at a profit. In 2008 there is still electrical distribution carried out on the site

Local historian Frank Holmes provides some information in his book 'Horsham Town & Country Stories' from which the above photograph is taken. Before being burned the rubbish was sorted for metal and other items that could be re-used or recycled; this providing some extra income for the workers. Metal of a lesser value was compressed into blocks and sold. Even the waste from the furnace was used on the local roads

To back up the waste burning there was also a coal fired furnace used to drive the five steam turbines. Two diesel engines could also be brought into play to deal with peak loads. Frank Holmes also records that he cannot remember noticing any smells from the chimney despite living close to it

1962 Town Guide Map

The two main pictures show that there has been little change in the streets since A Ticehurst of Crowborough took the earlier picture. Clearly the chimney has gone as have some of the buildings to the left. The building in the centre is now the home to Horsham's branch of St John Ambulance, the buildings to the right are in residential use

Hidden Horsham has not been able to put any dates on this incinerator and would appreciate further information via the contact page. The 1962 Official Town Guide map shows the area as the Stanley Street Works

Horsham continues to lead the campaign for a greener environment. As well as the doorstep collection of metals and plastics for recycling it is continuing to encourage home composting. If you buy a composting bin you can be entered into a £50 prize draw. At the time of writing this feature, May 2008, Horsham District Council has installed can and bottle recycling bins in the town centre. Shoppers can dispose of their recycleable drinks containers in a more effective way, reportedly 79% efficient to date. It has also mounted special bins on lamp posts to collect chewing gum and cigarette butts. See external links below

Contributions, comments and suggestions are welcomed. Please use the contact page to let us know your thoughts. More information on the images is always welcomed