The wellbeing and quality of life of our residents is our priority. We want to be part of the wider solution around minimising odour in Bromley and we’re committed to working with Environment Canterbury and our operators to achieve this.
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Organics processing plant redevelopment
The Organics Processing Plant is a Council-owned composting facility in Bromley that is operated under contract by Living Earth. The facility receives all the food and green waste collected in the kerbside green bins.
The plant has been operating since 2009 and has helped divert over 400 thousand tonnes of organic material from landfill.
In December 2020 the Council approved the redevelopment of the organics plant [PDF, 27 KB]. This involves upgrading the technology and enclosing all processing of kerbside material, eliminating the potential for offensive and objectionable odour from the facility travelling beyond the boundary.
The additional enclosed area will be kept under negative pressure and all process air treated via a biofilter prior to release. This means all air generated through the process of composting kerbside material will be treated for odour and all processing will happen indoors, eliminating offensive and objectionable odour from the organics plant travelling beyond the boundary of the facility.
The upgrade also involves redesigning and replacing the floors and doors of the plant’s 18 composting tunnels, replacing the shredder and improving the biofilter. No additional tunnels are required under this proposal.
It is estimated the tunnel upgrades and the additional building will cost $21.5 million.
A number of other industries and activities in the area have been identified as contributing to odour in the Bromley-area. These changes will not impact those odours. Environment Canterbury continue to investigate and act on other producers in the area as part of their regulatory function.
We will be asking for expressions of interest in February 2021 and presenting our full procurement plan to the Finance and Performance Committee in March 2021 for approval by Elected Members. We expect to award a contract for the works in June or July 2021.
At this stage, we will have a schedule of works from the successful contractor that will confirm exact timelines for construction. We expect work to begin by the end of this year.
Read more on Newsline (external link)