The politics and economics of technology: Bankside power station and the environment, 1945–81

Abstract

Bankside B power station was a controversial post-war addition to London’s cityscape: objections centred on its adverse visual and environmental impact on a sensitive riverside site opposite the City of London. This article argues that an array of state agencies espoused technology as the solution to Bankside’s amenity, pollution and energy-efficiency issues. However, there were tensions and conflicts between the solutionism of actors proposing — and imposing — such technology and the pragmatism of those organis-ations which had to implement and operate, or reject, these proposals. The key consideration for the electricity industry was the provision of an abundant, timely and cost-effective energy supply. Technology ameliorated the environmental impact of the station but engendered adverse long-term issues. From the late 1950s the pollution from Bankside became increasingly intolerable in the context of London’s improved air and river quality; yet economic factors precluded further technological mitigation solutions prior to the station’s closure in 1981.