Treatment Plant Sampling and Testing
We have been called out many times to a site where a customer is utilising a package sewage treatment plant, this can be either domestic or commercial properties. There can be varying circumstances for the call to The Tank Sampling Company to sample and test a sewage treatment plant.
We tend to classify these site visits as either proactive or reactive.
Reactive Sampling and Testing –
The EA or local authority may have contacted the client stating that their plant may be in breach of their consent to discharge. We can sample the final discharge to confirm whether this is the case. If there is an issue with the plant, then the manufacturer or a servicing company can be called to investigate the problem.
Once the problem has been rectified we continue to sample the final effluent periodically. Monitoring the ongoing performance of the plant will produce a record of the compliance over time. Regular sampling also demonstrates that the plant owner is taking due diligence to ensure that the plant is not polluting.
The sampling of the plant can also indicate the required frequency of emptying. Whilst the STP may have been designed to standards, the optimal emptying schedule may vary from the manufacturer recommendations. Regular sampling and testing of the final effluent can determine if this recommended timescale is correct. Ongoing sampling will indicate whether the plant is performing to consent.
Proactive Sampling and Testing –
This has gradually become a larger proportion of our work. Companies, mainly as a part of their Environment Management Systems, need to ensure that the consents at all of their properties are not breached. We visit all of a company’s sites on a regular basis to sample and test their package treatment plants (and potentially all of their other treatment assets). This may be quarterly, half-yearly, or yearly.
We have also provided sampling and testing for newly commissioned treatment plants. This gives an independent analysis of the initial performance of the plant against the consent, thus ensuring it is working as designed. We would then sample the plant at 6 or 12 month intervals.
Contact The Tank Sampling Co to discuss your requirements…
