Ballynacor Wastewater Treatment Works

 

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Ballynacor’s on site lagoons are being restored back to grassland. This will prevent the contents of the lagoons potentially polluting the environment in the future. Work on this project is now underway.

Why restore the lagoons back to land?

In the past, it was common working practice to empty the byproduct of the wastewater treatment process into lagoons. This practice ceased several years ago, but the lagoons at Ballynacor still remain. An ongoing environmental assessment shows that there is no evidence that these lagoons are causing environmental damage. They do, however, contain a number of contaminants which need to be dealt with in order to safeguard the environment for future generations.

Environmental experts and engineers have been working together, carefully monitoring the lagoons and devising a plan to restore the area. This plan meets the requirements of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency as the best environmental solution for this brownfield site.

About Ballynacor

The Ballynacor Wastewater Treatment Works processes wastewater from local homes and businesses. Wastewater comes from a variety of sources such as flushing toilets and washing clothes to commercial food processing.

The on-site treatment will result in good quality water being returned safely to the environment. The wastewater sludge byproduct, is then removed from the site for further treatment. First used in the 1960s, the Ballynacor site has been upgraded a number of times over the years. In 2007, Northern Ireland Water Ltd. appointed Glen Water (and it’s operator Veolia Water) to deliver a range of upgrades to several wastewater treatment sites. Work at Ballynacor has included operational improvements and most recently upgraded odour control provision, completed in late 2012.

This final stage of work at Ballynacor is now underway and will see the restoration of the on-site lagoon area back to grassland. This will safeguard the environment for future generations.

Process Overview

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Some questions answered

How long will this work take?

The work will take about 18 months and we will keep everyone up to date as the project develops.

Is all of the work taking place on the site?

Yes.

Will there be an increase in traffic to and from the site?

There will be a small increase in traffic with peaks at the start and the end of the project.

Will this create an odour?

There is the potential for an increased risk of odour. In order to minimise the risks, we have installed odour supression equipment and will utilise best practice to mitigate against the risks even further.

What will happen if you do not carry out this work?

The Northern Ireland Environment Agency consider the lagoons a potential future risk to the environment that must be dealt with now.

Want to learn more?

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