14 October 2009
North West water giant United Utilities said today it had brought forward a further £1 million cash injection to install two of the four primary settlement tanks - the firm is already pumping £70 million along the Fylde Coast to upgrade waste treatment facilities - subject to planning permission.
Spokesperson for the Warrington based firm Shaun Robinson said, "Accelerating the installation of two of the four tanks would help achieve earlier odour reduction for Fleetwood residents.
"We're committed to making sure our facilities in Fleetwood can cope with the demand placed upon it by a growing population along the Fylde Coast."
Jameson Road sewerage plant is already on a two-year major refurbishment with £55 million investment to tackle the needs for Fylde Coast. The site first operated during the mid nineties, designed then to manage waste for 300,000. Prior to the programme of works, the plant was coping with 350,000 populations. The new Fleetwood plant will have facilities to cater sewerage for 427,000 populations.
Blackpool North and Fleetwood MP Joan Humble put UU under the spotlight this week by visiting the huge cofferdam on the beach at Cleveleys to inspect progress to fix their crushed outfall pipe following the £2 million pound damage caused when the 6,000 tonne Riverdance ran aground. Later in the week, the Environment Agency and senior management from the water firm presented a progress report to the MP during a tour of the Jameson Road site.
She said after the visit, "After seeing the site first hand, I spent several hours questioning senior management over their odour abatement plans and will be monitoring the situation closely. I was encouraged by what I heard but will be expecting United Utilities to deliver."
The Environment Agency has now granted UU a Variation of Consent to Discharge to the Lune Deeps, Irish Sea following the wastewater firms' application to the agency. Bosses at UU had undertaken an extensive modelling study assessing impacts on the discharge to the sea environment with the scientific specialists Metoc, and presented the findings to the agency as part of their application.
In a separate move today, UU bosses confirmed the call-in centre in Fleetwood would close on the 23rd October. The office opened in September 2008 on Lord Street but since then only 288 customers had visited, averaging two people per day, with only11% of people visiting the shop to talk about odours.
Shaun Robinson from UU added, "Given the limited use of the shop by the public, the cost to maintain cannot be justified, so we committed to the local MP, Wyre councillors and local actions groups that the freephone will remain, a new quarterly update printed in the local free papers and the successful United Utilities Forum will be kept going." / ends
UU Fleetwood Smells freephone hotline: 0800 781 7134
Fact Box Info:
United Utilities has completed the following works at Jameson Road wastewater site as part of its £50 million odour reduction programme:
- Rebalancing the site wide ventilation system
- Sealing manholes where odours can come from
- Replacement of large numbers of corroded personnel doors
- Installation of chemical dosing on the inlet and sludge treatment
- Installation of a temporary scrubber unit on the inlet building
- Replacement of key pieces of kit on existing chemical scrubbers
- Installation of a brand new gravity belt sludge thickener which is completely sealed vastly reducing risk of fugitive emissions from sludge building
- Completion of the installation of four new escalator screens at the inlet works.