Working to overcome Whitianga odour issues

CDC working hard to overcome Whitianga WWTP odour issues

Problems specific to Whitianga and not occurring at sister plants in Pauanui or Whangamata

Thames-Coromandel District Council has been actively trying to overcome odour issues that have been an intermittent problem at the new Whitianga Waste Water Treatment Plant and hope that recent initiatives will bring them to an end.

Group Manager Service Delivery John Whittle says the cause of the odour has been difficult to isolate and is not replicated at the Pauanui or Whangamata waste water treatment plants which are of the same design and operate in the same way.

"All waste water plants can experience odour issues during commissioning, but these are usually overcome reasonably quickly. However, at Whitianga, the odour issue has continued long after commissioning and we can only apologise to the plant's near neighbours who have had to put up with it while we try to find and fix the problem."

Specific actions taken have included capping the old aeration pond which had been an identified source of bad smell on occasion; and deodorant dosing in the sludge handling area.

"The deodorant dosing appears to have made a significant improvement in reducing odour levels in the sludge handling area and we will now be monitoring it closely to see how long this remains effective," Mr Whittle said.

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