“They’re gone:” End of an era as Liddell coal plant chimneys demolished in spectacular explosion

It was quiet. Very quiet. Everyone stood or sat still, and the only sound that could be heard was the gentle lapping of the water on the shores of Lake Liddell.

Then suddenly, across the water about 2 kilometres away, one of the 169 metre tall chimneys next to the now shuttered Liddell coal plant began to lean, and the ricochet of sound from 260 kg of explosives arrived a few seconds later.

After four seconds, the second tower began to lean and fall and another volley of sound from another 260 kg of explosive arrived, followed by a third volley of smaller explosives set under 38 large ponds of water that created a wall of water to help absorb the dust plume.

Then there was silence again, as the audience pondered the symbolism of what they had just witnessed.

“They’re gone,” whispered David Channon, standing next to his wife Margaret, whose father helped lay the concrete foundations of the very same chimneys more than 60 years ago, and whose son still works at the Bayswater power station on the other side of the New England Highway.

“It’s the end of an era,” added Margaret after a few moments. “Incredible,” added Jeff Drayton, the mayor of Muswellbrook who was standing a few metres away.

And then, after a few moments more of quiet reflection, a ripple of applause from the dozens of former and current AGL workers, and the campers and caravaners staying at the Liddell Recreation Reserve who had come to see the spectacle. Another 6,000 or so watched the events unfold live on YouTube.

Unlike the raw emotion of the actual closure of Liddell three years ago, when long time employees cried in the control room as they were forced to use a “kill switch” to close down the last generator that didn’t want to go, this was a moment of memories and new hope for the future for those who came to watch.

See: “She didn’t want to go:” Tears and hugs as oldest coal generator shuts down for last time

“It’s been a wonderful plant for a long time, but I don’t think it was supposed to last this long,” David Channon told Renew Economy before the explosion.

“It’s always been a great part of the community … and like a lot of other young blokes, I came from outside of the area and we did apprenticeships and became part of the community. I met Margaret, we married and had kids, but we’re not going anywhere.”

Margaret Channon also thought that the chimneys would never come down. She says Liddell was special because of the good working opportunities and good conditions for women. “We weren’t paid like Woolworths and McDonalds,” she says.

“There were good people there, some we call legends. A lot have come and passed away, there were good and bad stories, but it was good for the local community. It thrived because of the power station and the mines that built up around here. But nothing lasts forever.”

Margaret now hopes that the green industries that replace them will provide similar support. Liddell already has a big battery, but that doesn’t employ many people. Mayor Drayton says jobs will come from the industries that are looking to set up in the area, attracted by its infrastructure, power supplies, and rail lines. 

Drayton is frustrated that just in the last week, the council missed out on a $5 million grant from the precincts and partnerships program of the federal government to help devise a master plan for Liddell.

“We thought it would be a flagship thing. I’m not happy,” he told Renew Economy.

But Drayton says industry is flocking to the area – more than 40 different businesses interested in manufacturing, including for renewable energy components, recycling, as well as agribusiness such as meat works and chicken farms.

And despite the closure of Liddell, and the expected closure of Bayswater in coming years, Drayton says energy remains the area’s strong point.  “All the renewables from the renewable energy zones have got to come through here, even as coal closes,” he says.

Three years ago, when Liddell was shut down, then Nationals leader David Littleproud stood out the front saying it should stay open and be replaced by nuclear. But Drayton says the community has moved on.

“Some people say they don’t know what they doing, but I think that sentiment is changing and people start to understand what renewable companies now understand – that the jobs are not in the operation themselves, apart from construction, but they are enablers to other industries. Those are the real jobs.”

Brad Williams, the head of site transition for AGL, says all went as planned, despite minor delays to ensure that the wind was blowing in the right direction (away from Bayswater and the big battery), and that the site was clear. (One person joked that local MP Barnaby Joyce might try to climb up the chimney).

The 60 cm thick concrete walls had been weakened to ensure that the 169 metre high chimney stacks fell as planned, diagonally across each other’s path, four seconds after the other, towards the lake some 200 metres away.

It took three years after the shut down of the coal plant to get there – clearing nearby buildings, removing asbestos, getting approvals, and then waiting for the right conditions. There were suggestions that the chimneys be kept as a sort of monument, but Williams says it was not safe.

“The stacks are designed to be kept warm, and that keeps condensation out of the stack, and particularly out of the reinforcing inside the concrete,” he told Renew Economy.

“So what you find is that when power stations retire, infrastructure starts to deteriorate quite quickly. So these particular stacks are in relatively good condition, but they would continue to deteriorate over the years.”

And AGL wanted to bring them down quickly while they could. In Western Australia, at Kwinana, power company Synergy has had to dismantle its chimney stacks brick by brick because of the new big batteries that have been built next door.

And, as the plume from the Liddell chimneys cleared, the four ancient boiler towers that still stand came back into view. It will be their turn next, likely before the end of the year, with another round of explosions.

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