Boiler House Chimney And Ash Plant

The boiler house, the chimney stacks above it, and the ash plant to one side of it fill the frame at White Bay Power Station, photographed from a vantage on the slope above the bay. The weathered red brick of the boiler-house facade carries rows of glazed bays between brick piers. The chimney stacks rise above the boiler-house parapet to their full operating height. The ash plant building sits to the side, lower than the boiler house, with the ash conveyors and bunkers visible as steel structures along its roof line. The plant runs along the seaward edge of the site, with the harbour visible beyond.

The ash plant handled the residue from the coal-fired boilers, with the ash conveyors moving fly ash and bottom ash from the boiler basement to the disposal area outside the main building. The system ran continuously through every operating shift across the plant's working life from 1917 to Christmas Day 1983. After closure, the ash plant was shut down and the conveyors stopped. The buildings have stood since. The chimney stacks above them are visible from many vantage points across Sydney Harbour and have been part of the harbour silhouette for more than a century.