AVR comes up roses as smell sticks to Cork County Council
By Christy Parker
The unsavoury odour of blame for the ongoing stench that has been permeating the Youghal air for over a year seems to have wafted away from sludge treatment plant AVR. September’s Town Council meeting had heard vociferous complaint and suspicion that the Foxhole facility was a major contributor to the nauseating smell. However, Youghal Town and Cork County Cllr Barbara Murray says current reports indicate culpability lies, perhaps exclusively, with the adjacent Cork County Council landfill.
AVR Environmental Solutions,Foxhole-Youghal
EPA inspectors have spent considerable time at the landfill in recent weeks and while no report has yet been furnished, it is understood that all aspects of operations there were monitored. In particular, the ‘flaring off’ of gas was scrutinised.
It remains unclear as to what exactly has been the prime cause of the malodorous problems, though most likely there have probably been several factors, including enormous waste intake, inadequate covering and inefficient flaming off. Personal accountability for the disruption of townspeople’s lives is less evident, while four-legged seagulls are more likely to be seen hovering over Foxhole than wind reaching anyone of compensation.
In any case, the worse may be over. “The facility’s last cell has now been opened but the rate of waste accepted will be down to just 10% from next week,” says Cllr Murray. “The other 90% is being sent to the Kinsale roundabout landfill. In about six to eight month’s time, Kinsale should be full and Youghal will then return to large-scale waste acceptance until that too reaches full capacity and close about December 2009.” Thereafter, all waste will go to Bottle Hill in Cork, but that’s a story for another day.
AVR Environmental Solutions,Foxhole-Youghal
Meantime gas flaming off will continue in Youghal for several years, a process that the councillor says is now being much improved upon. Again, one questions who is the blame for inadequate flaming off that has apparently long persisted. Independent reports have suggested that gas pipes had long been incorrectly installed.
AVR’s February fuss.
AVR management will doubtless feel relief that false blame has been lifted from their operations. The company opted to remain silent following the recent accusations, though it had conceded that emissions had been detected at the plant last February. That the EPA’s subsequent report was not publicly aired did not help to avert subsequent suspicion against AVR.
As it transpires, last February’s inspection found two incidences of non-compliance. One involved an access door leading directly from the sludge drying area being left open, to facilitate a temporary pipe carrying cooling water out of the building towards a storm water drain. It had been open “for some time”, contrary to providing “a fully enclosed sludge drying building” as required.
Secondly, an unplanned shutdown of the plant had occurred at 8.30 a.m. on 19th February, the morning of the inspection. Management claimed the shutdown had caused odour release but did not report it to the EPA until February 21st, which was also non-compliant.
Though not regarded as non-compliant, further note was taken of the following:
Odours from biofilter: A strong localised musty type smell as detected on-site at the facility in the vicinity of the biofilter
Effluent composite sampler: No sampling bottle evident in the treated effluent composite sampler. The licensee should confirm that the composite sampler is set to sample on a flow-proportionate, rather than a time-proportionate, basis.
Air Emissions Stack: As noted during a previous inspection, the air emissions stack from a biofilter was quite short and lacked long sections of straight pipenecessary for accurate measurement of flows. A gap in the pipe was also noted (apparently to allow rainfall/condensate to drain out) which could introduce dilution air or cause turbulence in the stack.
Corrective action was required in all circumstances. One hopes it has been forthcoming or the whiff of culpability may once again change direction.
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As someone who intends to move to Youghal in the near future, can I say how glad I am that this type of professional, investigative journalism still exists, like in Christy Parker’s article above. How rarely do we find newspaper articles that report factually, without sensationalism or personal opinion getting in the way! How assuring to know though that someone is willing to ask the tough questions and look for honest answers, rather than having to toe a particular editorial line! Long may it continue, whenever and wherever Christy smells (pardon the pun!) a rat!