Anti odour scheme gets underway at Siddick

Engineers have started work on a £3m anti-odour scheme at a Workington sewage works. The major project by water company United Utilities is in response to complaints from local people.
The project involves completely covering two major processes on site, which experts say will vastly reduce the risk of lingering smells.

Workington Wastewater Treatment Works, at Siddick, was built in 1996 to help clean up the Solway coast and beaches by improving sewage treatment.

Treatment manager Roy Dunbar said: "There's no doubt the plant has been great news for the environment but it serves a large community, including a number of industries, and in certain conditions we have had complaints that it smells. It's something we want to sort out."

The new project comes on the back of a £4m project to install an odour control system over the smelliest parts of the site four years ago. Although it reduced smells, some problems continued.

"This new project will mean that all the primary processes on the site are completely covered over. There will be new rotating covers fitted to the primary settlement tanks and fixed plastic covers over the activated sludge tanks. Both will be connected to the odour control unit so that air that passes through the tanks will be thoroughly cleaned," said Roy.

Work on the project is expected to last until the end of the year.