Optimising operational controls while managing a conflict of land use
Urban Utilities needed to find a solution to avoid odour impacts on the nieghbouring port facility, along with regulatory consequences and unfovourable publicity.
Urban Utilities (UU) is a statutory authority of the Government of Queensland that is responsible for the delivery of retail water supply and wastewater services across five local government areas in Southeast Queensland, in Australia.
Industries
Platforms
Challenge
UU manages a large sewage treatment plant in Brisbane. Due to a planning decision, the new Brisbane Cruise Ship Passenger Terminal was located at a site immediately adjacent to the existing plant. Now, even during routine operations, under certain adverse weather conditions the plant can produce undesirable odours from its sludge drying pans and impact the nearby Passenger Terminal. The plant is also now accepting an increased volume of solid waste from a secondary plant following flood damage, significantly increasing emissions.
Solution
UU worked with Envirosuite to implement a solution that guides the odour control methods that are already available at the site, and to provide UU with a dynamic approach for predicting and assessing impacts. Envirosuite worked with the team at UU to understand the nuances of the facility and its location relative to the neighbouring site and adverse weather conditions.
An example of Envirosuite’s Omnis odour dispersion modelling and virtual alert points at a sewage treatment plant.
"We are incredibly happy with Envirosuite software and the information it provides, particularly the detailed reports. The platform makes it easier to carry out day-to-day operations and get a better understanding of our site emissions”
- Kathryn Turner, Manager Asset and Planning Co-ordination Treatment and Production.
Result
Since implementing Envirosuite solution, STP used the platform’s hyperlocal weather forecasting to schedule operations at times not likely to impact port visitors or neighbouring communities. In addition to avoiding financial penalties, UU receives real-time alerts when weather conditions and current odour emission levels could impact the Port Environs.
UU can now also respond to enquiries from regulators and other third parties with scientifically robust data at any given time. Data and reports generated via Envirosuite platform are also highly useful for internal assurance purposes, communicating large volumes of complex material in graphs and charts easily digestible by non-experts.
Download our case study to find out how the sewage treatment plant:
Avoided financial penalties
Reduced costs of odour control
Shorten investigation time of emissions events
Digitised manual data collection
Click here to download our free case study.
