Securing Your Future Is Our Main Investment

Updated: 28-03-2024 - 12:00PM   8 6 CLOSED

Financial News

Jun 2004 Financial News

THE Caribbean Cement Company Limited has commissioned its $5.2-million sewage treatment plant

Jun 23, 2004

THE Caribbean Cement Company Limited a subsidairy of TCL has commissioned its $5.2-million sewage treatment plant that produces clean water that can be recycled, reused or returned to water-bodies without harm.

The plant, which was designed by the Scientific and Research Council (SRC) and constructed by EnviroPlanners Limited for the cement company, utilises anaerobic (active in the absence of free oxygen) technology and the natural environment to treat sewage in an environmentally-friendly manner.

Julia Brown, process development manager at the SRC, said some of the issues that were taken into consideration before the construction of the plant were cost-effectiveness, sustainability and environmental soundness.

"We looked at low cost in terms of implementation, low maintenance cost. And this means that at the end of the day when we put this system in, there is little or no manual input to the system, little or no moving parts to the system and most importantly, energy should not be involved in the operation of the system," she said, adding that they also utilised existing resources.
"....At the end of the day, we incorporate all these factors and we came up with a system like this."
She explained that the waste that comes from various sections of the plant passes through an equalisation tank and an Imhoff tank (semi-anaerobic system) before entering two reed beds. It is then exposed to UV lights which kills all the bacteria after which the water is then returned to water bodies.

The plant was officially launched last Friday.
"Probably one week after we commissioned the system we were exceeding NEPA's standard form for reed bed one," Brown boasted. "For the organic matter and biological oxidens demand, it's 1.9 and the standard is 12," she added.
Most of the system is below ground level, and the reeds assist with evapo-transpiration and the removal of nutrients that will cause algae (a kind of seaweed) to grow and deplete oxygen where the water flows into a body of water.

Brown pointed out that the system was done at a cost three times less than the bid closest to the SRC. "This is testimony to say that low cost and simplicity is not a reflection of poor quality, and this is what SRC is all about as it relates to waste water management."
Meanwhile, Conrad Douglas, chairman of the SRC board, said the sewage treatment plant represents cutting edge technology. "We ought to be very proud of it because it was developed in Jamaica by the SRC working in collaboration with the German Government through their agency."

Douglas said the SRC was particularly proud of the sewage plant because it addressed a number of areas. "It addresses waste management and therefore environmental management. It also addresses water conservation, energy conservation and it has tremendous potential for the generation of energy as a by-product of the operation."

Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/html/20040621T030000-0500_61546_OBS______MILLION_SEWAGE_TREATMENT_PLANT_COMMISSIONED.asp