The Gryphon interviews Professor Loveridge: what is on-campus geothermal drilling?

Zara Lake on 29 March 2024

Walking around campus the last few weeks, you may have seen what seems like a very elaborate science experiment more suited to the laybrinth-like halls of the Engineering Building than the pavements of the university campus.

However, this drilling is part of the university’s new geothermal energy drilling project. Confused? Us too.

Seeing as for many of us, it’s been more years since science GCSEs than we’d like to think about, The Gryphon’s Zara Lake caught up with Professor Fleur Loveridge from the School of Civil Engineering for a back-to-basics guide to what all of this means…

Zara: “When did all of this begin and how long is it expected to continue for?”

Professor Loveridge: “We have been planning this for quite a while, but work started here on site just after the exam period in January and is due to run through till probably May this year.”

Zara: “Could you summarise what the geothermal project is?”

Professor Loveridge: “We are investigating the thermal and hydrogeological properties of the ground, beneath the campus, with the hope that they will be able to design a shallow geothermal energy or ground source heating system to decarbonize different parts of the campus”.

Loveridge then explained what some of these scientific terms mean for the non-STEM literate amongst us...

“Geothermal energy is a wide term to describe heat obtained for the ground, when working
at a shallow depth, as we are here, at 100-200m, when the heat is taken out the ground we
pass it through a heat pump in order to increase the temperature that is available to make it
more useful”


“Through the small amount of electrical energy and the ground heat we are able to step up
the temperature to something usable for heating as well as being very efficient. For the
amount of electricity put in you can obtain four times as much energy to heat the buildings.”

The geothermal project is a cornerstone of the University of Leeds’ Net Zero by 2030 pledge.

Zara: “And how exactly does geothermal energy benefit the environment?”

Professor Loveridge: “At the moment, most of the buildings on campus are heated through direct burning of fossil fuels, which is obviously not a good solution going forward. As part of the climate plan, the university is hoping to decarbonize it’s estate by 2030. These new systems will allow us to
take buildings off the central heating system and allow them to be supplied with heat from
the ground via electricity supplied to the heat pumps”.

“The thing about the electricity grid in this country is that it has substantially reduced its
carbon intensity over the last 10 years and it’s only going to become more and more green.
Therefore the efficiency factor of getting 4x as much heat compared to the electricity you put
in and the fact the grid is ‘greening’ fast means that this will be a really low carbon solution.”

Zara: “Is this just the first stage of the geothermal project, will we be seeing more projects
like this on campus in the future?

Professor Loveridge: “Yes, absolutely. The investigation that is happening now will support other ground source heat systems for parts of the campus. In the future other decisions will be made on other buildings on the campus but ultimately they will all need to be decarbonized.”

Zara: “People often confuse drilling and fracking, could you explain the difference
and why we shouldn’t confuse them?”

Professor Loveridge: “Fracking is traditionally used for oil and gas exploration which is one of the reasons it gets a very bad rep, understandably. However, what we are doing here is totally different. We are just drilling holes in the ground and we are using the fact that the ground is naturally
fractured and naturally contains groundwater to allow us to extract water for use in the
energy system.“

“It is also important to note that water we extract is reinjected into the ground. Therefore, It is
a very sustainable system with no environmental impacts.”

Zara: “Is the project common across the country, including at other universities?”

Professor Loveridge: “Yes, there are a few other university campuses that are starting to take on schemes like this such as at Oxford Brookes and Sheffield University. All over the world we are seeing universities in particular starting to investigate these options more. Essentially, as we look to
decarbonize and meet our net zero target by 2030 we will see these schemes becoming
more common.”


“We are definitely at the leading edge here, and it is hoped that we can learn from our
experiences here on campus to decarbonize our estate as well as roll this technology out
across the city and region, and potentially wider.”

Zara: “Finally, how can students get involved and what opportunities are available?”

Professor Loveridge: “As part of the investigations we are going to be gathering an awful lot of data so there will be opportunities for student research projects at all levels, undergraduate and master and also PhD projects. If you are interested you can get in touch with the geothermal solutions
team to talk about that.”

“There is also the ambition that once we decarbonize the buildings we will have a living lab
that will allow us to monitor the building and gain operational data from the energy systems
and the temperatures in the ground to check on the sustainability of the system”.

The geothermal energy drilling plan has not been without some controversy. It commanded attention in November 2023 when Student Rebellion staged a 24 hour occupation of Esther Simpson following the university’s talk on the Net Zero Delivery Plan.

Whilst acknowledging it was a step in the right direction, the group said the university’s strategy overemphasised technical solutions and fell short of their demand to completely cut fossil fuel usage on campus.

More information on the geothermal drilling project can be found on the university website under the following link: https://estates.leeds.ac.uk/portfolio-item/geothermal-drilling/

Calls for increased glass attack prevention after former Leeds Rhinos star blinded on Call Lane

Zara Lake on 28 March 2024

Former Leeds Rhinos player, Matthew Syron, has been leading a campaign to ban glass in bars and nightclubs after 9pm. This comes after he was brutally attacked in Leeds city centre on Boxing day by a glass bottle, leaving him blind. 

Gareth Dean, aged 37, smashed a bottle into his face at Revolucion de Cuba on Call Lane and is in jail for the offence.

Following this devastating attack on 27th December, 2023 Matthew is campaigning for a change of law around glass, as it has potential as a weapon that is readily available and easily can cause life changing injuries. He began a petition for the ban, which as of the 28th March 2024 has 10,000 signatures out of a 15,000 target.

Shockingly it has been revealed that over 87,000 people a year in the UK are victims of glassing attacks. This figure amounts to over 10,000 attacks per week. 

After the attack, Syron underwent emergency surgery on both eyes at St James Hospital in which he needed 40 stitches. Three months later, his left eye is awaiting a cornea transplant but cannot be operated on for at least 9-12 months due to the severity of the injury. His right eye is only beginning to see some colour and sight. 

Syron was visiting family and friends for Christmas here in the UK when the incident occurred. He was due to be in the UK for two weeks before returning back to his family in Australia. However, due to the attack he has gone through multiple operations and required constant medical scrutiny so was unable to return back to his family. 

In Matthew’s interview with Leeds Rhinos he describes that he is “taking things day by day” and still trying to adjust to everyday life. He goes on to say that the rehabilitation process has no guarantees for his vision and that he is only hoping for the best. 

In his interview he speaks about how he hopes that no one should have to live through the traumatic mental and physical effects of the event. 

Matthew also talks about the laws and restrictions put in place in his home country. In Australia, glass is banned after 9pm and strict ID measures are conducted in all pubs, bars, and clubs. He says that glass attacks have never been a problem in Australia and people feel safe. 

He says that stricter laws will prevent trouble and keep people safe, meaning this won’t happen to anyone else.

Some Leeds venues already use plastics- especially businesses with outside areas. However, other venues may feel that a switch from glass to plastic or reusables impacts how they operate as a business and could change the drinking experience. The Gryphon reached out to multiple bars and pubs in Leeds to discuss this but as of publication has not received a response.

The link to Syron’s petition can be accessed from the following link: https://www.change.org/p/ban-glass-from-nightclubs-and-bars-in-the-uk-after-9pm-to-prevent-violent-glass-attacks

What is the consensus on scrapping HS2?

Zara Lake on 23 October 2023

In the Conservative conference in Manchester Rishi Sunak officially announced cancelling the rest of the HS2 project. He now promises to reinvest “every single penny” into new transport projects in the North and in the Midlands that will make a “real” difference. 

This multi-billion high speed rail route was meant to bridge together the north-south divide, connecting northern cities like Leeds to the economic centre, London.

Sunak has now announced that everything beyond Birmingham will now be cancelled, even though it is already under construction. The project will now create £36bn worth of savings which will be switched to more spending on local transport based projects under the Network North scheme.

His words were “the facts have changed, and the right thing to do when the facts change, is to have the courage to change direction”. He has now vowed to create a “Midlands rail hub” that will connect 50 different stations, including building a tram system in Leeds along with upgrading a series of major roads and extending the West Midlands metro.

The High Speed Rail Group criticised Sunak saying he has caused the “biggest and most damaging U-turn in the history of UK infrastructure”. Scrapping a 14 year project that has been plagued by delays and cost overruns cannot just be done because “we’ve changed our mind”. 

A key question would be, what has been the reaction of the North to Sunak’s decision? Collectively, the newly announced smaller transport projects could positively affect a wider area and benefit people in smaller northern towns. Such as Sunak pledging a £2.5billion investment in a new tram system for Leeds alongside a number of other schemes in Yorkshire.

Tees Valley Conservative major, Ben Houchen said “good riddance” to the cancellation of the project as he believed it would offer ”absolutely no benefit” to wider regions in the North. 

Alternatively, towns such as Crewe in East Cheshire that were promised so much now worry about its future. Mrs Mellor says that “the railway was what kept the town running”. The hopes of brighter opportunities for jobs for younger generations has now been left forgotten. Conservative MP of Crewe spoke of his “extreme disappointment” as the HS2 project would have transformed their local economy.

Ultimately, whilst the government has proposed new and exciting plans they have continually been accused of ‘broken promises’ and could be seen to have a lack of trust with its voters. So will these new projects actually happen? After the scrapping of the eastern leg from Birmingham to Leeds in 2021, who is to say we may not have a similar circumstance.

The northern population needs reassurance that transport schemes will take place to improve their connectivity and standard of living in the most beneficial way.

If these projects fall under it will have a substantial impact on the way people vote and view the government from the North.

Leeds Bradford Airport: plane veers off runway whilst landing – all fights suspended

Zara Lake on 20 October 2023

A TUI plane arriving from Corfu skid off the runway during a landing at Leeds Bradford Airport this afternoon (Friday, October 20th).

The aircraft arrived amid Storm Babet, with conditions of heavy rain and strong winds forcing it off the runway.

A spokesperson at the airport said, “We can confirm TUI flight TOM3551 arriving from Corfu at LBA this afternoon has moved off the runway while landing”.

The incident happened at around 13:50 with an aircraft capacity of 189 passengers.

The flight is now at a standstill on ‘boggy grassland’ leaving nearly two hundred passengers stranded.

A large emergency response has been undertaken with the attendance of West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue as well as the Yorkshire Ambulance Services’ Hazardous Area Response Team.

In a statement, West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said: “At this time, there are no reported injuries or fires” and that “remaining crews are now assisting in evacuating all persons from the aircraft to the terminal”.

Air traffic control has closed the runway after the incident after Yorkshire was hit by Storm Babet. With flights halted or diverted to other airports including Manchester.

TUI released a statement, saying “We are aware of an incident at Leeds Bradford Airport this afternoon, in which upon landing flight TOM2551 slightly veered off while turning into the taxiway”. Commenting that “there are no reported injuries, and our ground team are on hand to support passengers”.

Passengers have raised concern on social media, commenting on the incident.

Malcolm Fell wrote on Facebook posting photos from his passenger window, captioning: “Oops overshot runway at Leeds Bradford airport […] interesting landing greeted by fire engines and airport authorities […] going to be here for a while”.

Another passenger posted on X that “no one was hurt and everyone is fine”.

Fiona Marr witnessed the event from within the airport. She described it as a “hard landing.”

“Straight away there was a really loud alarm coming from the airport which I’ve not heard before”.