3 March 2010
Thames Water has started work on a £85million upgrade at Riverside Sewage Works in east London as part of a major scheme to help improve water quality in the River Thames and produce enough renewable energy to power the entire site.
Thames Water is improving the quality of treated effluent returned to the River Thames
The project will involve providing additional treatment processes to improve the quality of treated effluent returned to the River Thames and to meet new Environment Agency standards.
This will help boost oxygen levels in the tidal stretches of the river, improving water quality and habitats for aquatic wildlife.
Steve Shine, Thames Water's Chief Operating Officer, said:
"These improvements will help provide a cleaner River Thames for all those who use and enjoy it.
"This upgrade is part of a £675million programme to modernise and extend London's five major sewage treatment works to increase the amount of sewage each site can treat, and improve the standards to which we treat it.
"On top of this, the works will be equipped to turn solid waste, left behind after treatment, into enough renewable energy to power the entire site.
"To ensure no additional odour on site, we'll be installing tried and tested technology as well as covering up key parts of the plant."
Sewage sludge will be treated through anaerobic digestion, where solid waste is broken down in enclosed tanks in the absence of oxygen. The process generates biogas which can be used to generate renewable energy to use on site.
Thames Water will also build a new wetland area at Riverside to attract species such as water voles and birds. In addition, the existing lagoon will be enhanced, including building bat boxes and planting trees and shrubs.
Major upgrades will take place at Mogden, Crossness, Beckton and Long Reach sewage treatment works.
The work is part of Thames Water's wider London Tideway Improvements programme, which includes the £600million Lee Tunnel project and the proposed Thames Tunnel.
