Australian adventurer Sacha Dench dropped in to Sittingbourne as part of a marathon 3,000-mile Guinness World Record attempt in an electric-powered flying machine.

The conservationist, dubbed the 'human swan', now lives in Devon and was the first woman to cross the English Channel by paramotor - a paraglider with an engine.

She is taking part in the six-week Round Britain Climate Challenge meeting people working on sustainable projects to help the UK achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Her support crew is travelling in electric vehicles and staying at camp sites at night.

Sacha visited a new battery storage depot being developed by Pivot Power, part of EDF Renewables, alongside the National Grid’s Kemsley substation on Friday.

She said: "This is the first time an electric paramotor has been used for such a long journey. It is already proving to be an exciting challenge. I’m enjoying meeting people, like those at Kemsley battery storage site, hearing their stories and talking to them about climate change solutions."

She added: “It is beautiful up there. I get incredible views. I’m getting to see how the landscape and its features, including coastal landmarks like wind farms, power stations, rivers, farmland and wilderness, all fit together."

She asked: "If Britain drove the Industrial Revolution, can we drive the Green Revolution, too?"

Battery storage is becoming essential to manage peaks and troughs in supply and demand to protect the UK’s electricity network. The system at Kemsley will store up to 50MWh of electricity – enough to power almost 60,000 homes for an hour.

Matt Allen, the chief executive officer at Pivot Power said: “Battery storage is a vital piece of the puzzle when it comes to accelerating a net zero future and supports EDF’s position as Britain’s biggest generator of zero-carbon electricity, generating power from wind, nuclear and solar.

"I am delighted Sacha has chosen to visit our Kemsley battery storage site as she highlights the people and places of Britain engaged in the fight against climate change.

"Pivot Power is right behind Sacha and her team as the Round Britain Climate Challenge continues its amazing journey.”

Peter Hancock, lead project engineer at National Grid, said: “Great Britain’s grid is changing with record levels of renewable sources generating our power.

"We’re using innovative new approaches to connect these new sources to our network and battery storage such as Pivot Power’s Kemsley site can help make the most of this green energy, ensuring it can be stored and used all year round.”

A compilation of Sacha's stories will be presented at COP26 climate change talks in Glasgow in November. Her flight around the UK, which began in Glasgow in June, is also highlighting a campaign to encourage 140,000 people to sign up to CountUsIn global carbon initiative in one month. For information visit www.count-us-in.org

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