Thames Water in London, England plans to construct a HUGE sewage storage tank miles below the city to store all the city's human waste.
True, the human sewage needs to go somewhere. But I find this proposed solution to be a truly obtuse way to deal with the problem.
The key decision-makers of society need to start realizing that waste is not something to be thrown out, but something to be re-used in different ways.
They should watch this talk, given by Mark, one of the founders of the ISH, about redefining "waste".
There are myriad other ways to deal with human 'waste' in a more sustainable manner.
For 4 billion dollars/pounds, an amazing wastewater treatment facility can be built that turns solid wastes into compost to sell to farms (currently being done in Calgary).
The nitrates/phosphates in the liquid waste can also be turned into liquid fertilizer for plant growth.
Gasses produced by the microbes digesting the waste (methane, etc) can also be harvested and used as fuel.
It's a shame that this sewage super-tank is even being talked about and campaigned for.
If it does get built, I can only hope the methane accumulating under London doesn't volcano its way out and blow London into smelly smithereens!!!
By Yan Y.
By Yan Y.
Great post Yan! Just curious, how much will it cost to build the proposed storage tank in London? Is it significantly cheaper than the treatment facility currently being used in Calgary? Surely there must be some reason why London hasn't considered the more sustainable solution? I always thought London had strong policies to improve sustainability (i.e. Congestion Zone tax).
ReplyDelete3.6 billion pounds (5-6 billion cdn dollars) for the London tank.
ReplyDeleteCurrently, tons (or as the Brits say, Tonnes) of raw sewage from the city is being pumped into the Thames each day.
Thames Water claims the super sewer will reduce the amt of raw sewage entering the Thames by 96% (solve the problem for 100 years) The UK government wants this sewer b/c it will be fined by the EU if the Thames pollution continues.
Source (confirmed by other links as well):
http://thelonggoodread.com/2011/01/19/londons-super-sewer-causes-a-stink/
So I guess this may be an example of a quick-fix trumping long-term sustainable thinking.
But this is WAY costlier than what Calgary spent - $100 million (granted its for an expansion, and its over 10 years ago, so there's inflation etc), but still, much more sustainable solution at far less the cost.
http://content.calgary.ca/CCA/City+Hall/Business+Units/Water+Services/Water+and+Wastewater+Systems/Wastewater+System/Wastewater+Treatment+and+the+Environment.htm