WET News

TuesDAY April 1 sT 2014 www.waterindustryachievementawards.info HilTon BirmingHAm meTropole Join us for A nigHT of fun enTerTAinmenT, AnD To see wHo will Be THe Bees knees of THe inDusTrY's leADing innovATors. BOOK NOW! Book Before 15 th feBruary 2014 to save £165 organised by sponsored by February 2014 | WET News | 9 asset management | The UK's drainage problems recently came to the public's attention in the form of a giant 15-tonne 'fatberg' of fat, oil and grease the size of a double decker bus in one of London's sewers. Chris Ricketts, an expert in drainage at BSS Industrial, assesses why the UK's drainage problem is rooted much deeper in society than meets the eye, and what must happen to bring about change. the tip of the 'fatberg' FaTS, oILS and greases (FOG) are common by-products entering the nation's drains on a daily basis and the issues related to them are not new. Whilst many industrial organisations are large users of FOG, processes have been put in place to capture and discharge effluent at monitored levels, reducing the risk to the greater network. The food processing industry is a serious contributor as well as being one of the UK's largest manufacturing sectors, accounting for 5% of our GDP. Yet, as with the industrial sector, the wheels are in motion for legislation to monitor the levels of FOG within this market. For example, as reported in The Guardian in August 2013, each year McDonald's collects more than 600,000l of used cooking oil from its London restaurants and converts it to biodiesel to run part of its fleet of lorries. The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has also called for waste fat to be converted into fuel for London buses, indicating that businesses and the government are aware of the UK's FOG situation and attempting to tackle it. However, the real problem is far closer to home than our industrial and food processing sectors. The biggest factor affecting the UK's drainage systems is actually the sheer volume of FOG, and other substances, flushed into the sewers every day by homeowners. Whilst each household will not produce anywhere near the amount of FOG as a fast food restaurant, it is the cumulative effect of the millions of households' FOG feeding into a common system that poses the real threat to UK drainage. Serious FOG build- up can result in anything from blockages through to odour problems, flooding, pollution and pumping station failures, which can sometimes lead to raw sewage overflowing into residential areas. What's more, as no household will flush the same combination of FOG down the drain there is no 'one size fits all' solution, chemical or otherwise. It is the chemistry of the different substances which form compounds and then cause blockages. It is when this process occurs on a large scale that fatbergs are formed. Another key factor affecting the UK's drainage systems, and perhaps one of the single biggest reasons which resulted in the infamous fatberg discovery last year, is that the current drainage infrastructure – especially in densely populated metropolitan areas such as London – is out of date. Certainly, in the case of the London fatberg, the sewer system could not accommodate sectors, to spark a change in attitude towards the way we deal with domestic FOG. The impetus must come from higher up the chain of command than manufacturers and distributors. If nothing changes on that front, then we cannot realistically expect to see any changes in FOG build-up in the UK's drains and sewers. We have spent more and more time advising contractors on effective FOG management. We have provided support to high- profile construction projects such as The Shard and The Walkie Talkie amongst others and the supply of equipment to help deal with the problem is now an integral part of our drainage offering. However, whilst we have been able to successfully facilitate the supply and installation of reliable and efficient systems within major projects across the country, the fact that the majority are new- build projects mean they only form a small piece of the much larger drainage picture. Our previous 'FOG down the drain' industry campaign successfully hooked into a topical subject and increased discussion on FOG issues nationwide. We have since seen a rising trend in the food processing industry of grease management processes being implemented, however in order for this increase in awareness to take effect in the domestic sphere it needs to be supported by government action. If not, water companies will continue to suffer under the unchanged level of FOG build-up and instances such as London's gigantic fatberg will inevitably become a more regular occurrence. If they do, they will lose their headline- grabbing potential which can, and should, shock those who have power to act into doing so. ■ www.bssindustrial.co.uk Performance guaranteed…a cut above the rest. For reliable 24/7 solids pumping pick a pump with a proven pedigree, a VAUGHAN CHOPPER PUMP. Vaughan has built a reputation as the market leader in the design and manufacture of chopper pumps for the most challenging solids pumping applications. Tel: 01487 830123 - sales@pumpmix.co.uk www.pumpmix.co.uk A CUT ABOVE THE REST Vaughan Chopper Pumps are not to be confused with other types of chopper, cutter or grinder pumps. Take a closer look… An optional disitegrator tool agitates and breaks up large solids to prevent suction blockage. The tool is removable for stringy solids. Solids are chopped by the cupped and sharpened impeller blades turning across the cutter bar, creating a smooth "slicing" effect. The conditioned slurry is easily pumped through the pump and piping system without plugging. Stray solids are trapped in the mechanical seal area are shredded and removed by the impeller vanes turning against the upper cutter. Vaughan's unique cartridge style mechanical seal handles the toughest slurries, outperforming standard single-spring seals by reducing problems associated with wrapping or abrasion. The nut cuts stringy materials that can tend to wrap at the pump inlet. Rag, fat, hair, wet well, dry well, submersible or self-priming…from inlet to outfall think long-term, not short-term and invest in a Vaughan Chopper Pump. the disposal of fats and non- degradable products. The systems were not designed to cope with the magnitude of this waste as they were designed around a Victorian lifestyle, not the modern-day rigours of the 21st century. Whilst the build-up of FOG has a detrimental impact on the UK's sewer and drainage systems, it also affects our water companies, who are left to deal with FOG build-up. Therefore in order to tackle the real issue of FOG, there needs to be a considerable level of intervention higher up the chain within the domestic sphere. Implementing measures such as domestic grease traps on all new build projects could start the process. At BSS Drainage, we have witnessed a rise in demand for prefabricated systems in the social housing and multi- occupancy property market. In reality it would only really be scratching the surface given the ratio of new houses to existing ones. Retrofit could further resolve the issues; however a large scale retrofit movement to install the required equipment would be costly and impractical as it would most likely be part of a new kitchen project. As such, legislation must be put into place, as with the industrial and food processing The chemistry of the dif- ferent substances form compounds that cause blockages The 'fatberg, caused by an accumulation of seri- ous FOG build-up

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