Pea pong - odour misery!

YORKSHIRE WATER has written to customers in the vacinity of their Waste Water Treatment Works in Saltend to explain the background to the recent increase in odours from the site and to apologise for this.

Yorkshire Water spokesman and Community Engagement Manager Richard Sears explains that the increase in odours has resulted from the concentrated effluent produced from the seasonal pea harvest. The recent dry weather has further increased the concentration of the effluent and smells. 114 complaints from residents have been logged since 27th June 2011.

The company is investing £3.5 million in a new odour control unit which will be more capable of dealing with odorous material, however, Mr Sears says: "In the short term we are chemically dosing various parts of the treatment process and have stopped any non-essential operational activities on the site in order to lessen odours."

The politicians meanwhile have been attempting to address the recent problems. East Riding Councillor John Dennis states on the Hedon Blog that both he and Graham Stuart MP have been in touch with key officials from Yorkshire Water and the East Riding Council to explain and tackle the current incidents.

Councillor Dennis suggests that people continue to report odours: "My suggestion is that, when the smell arises again – particularly when it can effects your homes, can as many people as possible complain to Yorkshire Water telephone 0845 1 24 24 24 and East Riding Council on 01482 396301. The more complaints they have logged, the higher a priority it becomes."

A useful guide to reporting the smells has been published on the Hedon Blog.

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Smells: MP tours Saltend Waste Water Treatment Works

GRAHAM STUART, MP for Beverley and Holderness has recently toured the waste water treatment works Saltend as a guest of Yorkshire Water officials. The treatment works is one of the biggest in Europe and treats 40 million gallons of waste water every day. It has been a source of controversy in the local HU12 area due to persistent problems with bad smells from the site.

The tour led by Yorkshire Water's chief executive, Richard Flint, on Friday 26th November, was staged to show the MP just how the company plans to reduce odours at the site. Mr Stuart heard more about the company's £3.25million project to tackle odours through the installation of a new, state-of-the-art odour control unit which will be the biggest in the region and twice the size of the current system at the plant.

Construction on the new odour control unit is expected to begin in February 2011 and completed by December in the same year.

The company has recently made a number of changes to the way it manages the day-to-day running of the plant to help minimise odours. These include regular inspections, including carbon sampling to predict potential changes alongside regular maintenance of the current odour control unit to ensure it's performing exactly as it should. Richard Flint, said about the visit:

"We were delighted to welcome Mr Stuart to the works and hope the tour we gave him helped convey just how committed we are to tackling the problems of odours at the site. Due to the sheer size and nature of the works, it's likely that there will always be some odour, but we're confident that our carefully considered investment will ensure we meet industry standards. I'd also like to say thank you to our customers in the area. We recognise the site has had its problems and they've shown a huge amount of patience whilst we've been working on solutions. Now we are in position to make a positive difference and that's exactly what we intend to do."

Customers will be kept up-to-date on the latest progress at the works through opt-in email and text alerts with further details around these being communicated in writing. Yorkshire Water has also said that it will continue with its weekly odour management meetings with environmental health officers from the East Riding of Yorkshire Council and its quarterly liaison meetings with ward and local parish councillors.

For more information on Yorkshire Water's investment into its Saltend works, visit Hull and Saltend News.

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Yorkshire Water to attend Council Cabinet on Odour Problem

YORKSHIRE WATER have been invited to attend East Riding Council's ruling Cabinet meeting to address concerns about the persistent foul odours that emanate from the Waste Water Treatment works at Saltend.

The invite to Yorkshire Water was issued following the Cabinet Meeting on 20th July which had highlighted the long standing odour problems from the site. The meeting had agreed that "if necessary" the Council would review an earlier decision not to pursue the odours as a Statutory Nuisance at this stage.

The Council has previously agreed to work with the water company - rather than treat the company as a public nuisance - on measures to manage the smells, including Yorkshire Water's proposed £3m 'odour mitigation works' on the site.

The Cabinet Meeting will take place on Tuesday 19th October at 10.30am at County Hall, Beverley. The public are entitled and welcome to attend these meetings.

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