A plan to address odour at the plant has been released.
Plan to address Wastewater Treatment Plant odour
An odour mitigation plan for the Wastewater Treatment Plant has been released by Christchurch City Council.
The plan was produced in response to issues raised in a Compliance Monitoring Report from Environment Canterbury, following reports of odour in areas close to the plant.
Christchurch City Council Head of Three Waters Brent Smith says the plan outlines the many actions the Council is taking to address the issues, improve the performance of the plant and lessen the impact on the community.
“We’ve had a hot and dry summer which means the sewage entering the plant is more concentrated and anaerobic . When you combine this with hotter temperatures you end up with an increase in odour.”
“An intensive monitoring programme has helped us identify a range of sources at the plant, and we have work underway or planned to address these.”
“One of the main sources of odour is the primary settlement tanks, which haven’t performed well over the summer period. We’ve decreased the amount of time sewage is held in the tanks and early indications show this has reduced odour.”
“The recent increase in smell is a significant cause of stress for the community and we’re committed to doing everything we can to minimise this.”
“Keeping the plant running in its damaged state is challenging and there will always be an element of unpredictability, but our team is experienced and quick to respond to whatever is thrown at them.”
“As we move into winter, the biology of the ponds will change, which is likely to result in a couple of weeks of increased odour. We can’t predict exactly when this will happen, but we’ve got a plan ready to go to minimise odour through this period,” says Mr Smith.
Hydrogen sulphide monitor results
The graph for this week shows that H2S is being detected in the Shortland Street area, and this occurs at times when the wind is coming from the treatment plant itself rather than the direction of the ponds. This is particularly so when wind conditions are light.
Our staff continue to do all they can to reduce the odour as quickly as possible and are making changes to processes at the plant.
There are no readings for the dog shelter as that meter is being used at another site.
Detections at the South New Brighton School might be from decomposing sea lettuce in the estuary. We're continuing monitoring in this area to investigate this.
Where to get help
If you need health support, we have information available on our website. This includes information on Pegasus Health's Partnership Community Workers and contact numbers for Healthline and counselling services.
Stay updated
We want everyone to be able to stay updated on our response and recovery from the treatment plant fire, and we regularly post new information and reports on ccc.govt.nz/wastewaterfire
You're welcome to send this update to your networks. If you know someone in the community who doesn’t have email or internet access, please print this newsletter off and pass it to them.
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If you have any questions, or would like further information on the project, please call us on 03 941 8999 or 0800 800 169 or email wastewater@ccc.govt.nz
Thanks for your patience and understanding. We’ll be in touch again soon.
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