New purification system for existing leachate treatment plant in England
Make new from old – WEHRLE integrates a new leachate treatment plant in an existing system with beneficial advantages for the operator.
The landfill of Marston Vale, a small town near Bedford, treats approximately 450 m3 of leachate per day, consisting of the leachate produced on the landfill itself as well as on many other landfills, disposed of by tankers every day.
Due to the increasing volume of leachate and the excessively high operating costs of the existing plant, the British waste management company and plant operator, FCC Environment, has assigned the construction of a new leachate treatment system to WEHRLE.
The new plant will be a Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) based on WEHRLE’s proven BIOMEMBRAT®concept, replacing the old conventional flotation system. Leachate with a COD concentration of 1,500 mg/l and a solids load of 900 kg/d will be treated and decomposed in the new MBR plant. In the future, 600 m3 of leachate per day can be treated.
Manuel Leibrecht, Project Manager at WEHRLE, points out: “The biggest challenge will be the integration of our technology into the existing plant, which will be partly dismantled after commissioning of the new plant.”
Although the leachate treatment plant will be installed in the largest possible container unit, the footprint of the new plant will only require 25 % of space, compared to the existing treatment plant. Another significant advantage of the future plant will be the considerable reduction of the operating costs – even though the plant capacity will be increased to be able to treat the increasing leachate volumes from surrounding landfills.
WEHRLE already carried out several projects for FCC in the past and the customer’s satisfaction prompted them to once again rely on the expertise of WEHRLE’s employees.