Hull and Saltend news
Welcome to our Hull and Saltend web page where you'll find all the latest news about what's happening in your area.
If you'd like to know about developments as we add them to our website, you can subscribe to this page - click on the link at the top of the page and you'll be notified by email whenever there's something new.
Early warnings and notices
Maintenance
Occasionally we need to do essential maintenance or health and safety checks on our machinery at our treatment works which might result in increased odours in the area. We keep such work to a minimum but we'd like to keep you well informed about what we're planning to do.
Weekly reports
Number of verified complaints
(24/09/12 - 30/09/12): 0
Odour report (15kb) - 24/09/12 - 30/09/12
Odour report (15kb) - 17/09/12 - 23/09/12
Odour report (15kb) - 10/09/12 - 16/09/12
Every odour report received from our customers is thoroughly investigated using combined data including site operations reports, weather information and the location of the odour. We hold a meeting every week with the Environmental Health (EVH) department to discuss each report and work towards reducing future odour problems.
Where have people detected odours?
The pins on the map show roughly where complaints were made last week. In some cases a pin will represent more than one odour report.
Further investment
We take reports of odours seriously and appreciate the impact strong smells can have on the quality of life of those who live close to the site.
We've already invested significantly in improvements both to the existing odour control units and the inlets at the plant, improving the efficiency of both.
However, an additional £3m is to be spent at the site. The money will be spent on the construction of a new odour control unit, with construction work expected to begin in late spring 2011.
To keep up to date with the project use our 'subscribe to this page' link.
How we monitor odours
Odour Control Unit
A new odour control unit will significantly help to reduce odours from our Hull waste water treatment works in Hedon, is now up and running.
After three weeks of successful trials, engineering specialist Morgan Sindall have confirmed that it is operating as it should and given the go-ahead for the unit to 'go live'.
At twice the size of the current on-site facility and costing £3.5 million, the new unit is the biggest in the region. Operating alongside the existing facility, it will take air from the sludge processing part of the plant - typically the most odorous area - and treat it using Turkish pumice infused with natural 'good' bacteria in 10 large black tanks.
Tests carried out at the stack over the trial period have revealed that no hydrogen sulphide - the gas that gives off 'a rotten egg' like odour - has been emitted from the facility's 28 metre high chimney.
The odour control unit's primary purpose is to pull air and associated odour from specific areas around the site and treat this air to reduce the odour in the atmosphere.
The odour control unit extracts 40,000 cubic metres of air per hour. The air is then sent through three chemical scrubbers which dose with sulphuric acid in the primary stage, sodium hypochlorite in the second stage and caustic sodium hydroxide in the third stage.
After being treated in the chemical scrubbers the air is then forced through two carbon filters which reduce any final odours to a minimum.
Hydrogen sulphide levels are monitored before we use the odour control unit and afterwards to assess the performance of the unit continuously. The incoming gases are measured in parts per million-ppm and the outgoing gases in parts per billion-ppb.
We sample the carbon filters regularly to assess how much it has been used and replace it at a determined level.
Odour Control Unit - air inlet pipe monitoring
(14kb)
Odour Control Unit - air outlet pipe monitoring
(14kb)
Odour Control Unit - Chemical dosage
(20kb)
Odour loggers
We've installed small odour loggers around the local area to monitor odours.
They test the air for Hydrogen sulphide levels and store these results within the unit, which are collected and downloaded every four weeks.
The results from these loggers are very useful to us to confirm the strength of the odours at each point, and help us to work on solutions to the odours reported in the area.
Wind direction and weather
The weather can determine how strong the odours are in the region. Similarly, the speed and direction of the wind might also influence who's affected by the odours.
The
MetCheck website provides regular updates on the weather where our treatment works is located, including temperature and wind speed and direction.
Contact us
It's exWind direction and weather
The weather can determine how strong the odours are in the region. Similarly, the speed and direction of the wind might also influence who's affected by the odours.
The
MetCheck website provides regular updates on the weather where our treatment works is located, including temperature and wind speed and direction. It's extremely unlikely that your health will be affected by any odour issues in your area.
If you'd like to contact us about issues in your area please phone us on
0845 1 24 24 24 .