New wastewater treatment plant for Ballyjamesduff

Irish Water has lodged plans for major upgrades to the wastewater treatment plan in Ballyjamesduff.

Concerns have been raised about the current plant, with an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report showing it was not compliant with regulations as discharge from the plant was not meeting standards.

Documents submitted with the planning application show concerns over the Mountnugent River system, which is currently classed as having a “poor” water quality status, with the plant putting “significant pressure” on the system.

The current plant was designed with a capacity in the region of 2,200 people but is currently believed to be “organically overloaded” as it is dealing with waste from over 3,000 people. The new plant has been designed on 25-year population projections for the Ballyjamesduff area and will have capacity for 5,200 people.

The facility is located at a site off Market Street in the town, located in the Derrylurgan townland.

Irish Water has now applied to Cavan County Council to demolish the existing treatment plant and replace it with a new one, which it’s expected will boost capacity.

It plans to knock the existing above ground tanks and kiosks, as well as some other structures located below ground.

In their place a new treatment plant and other associated structures will be built. The existing oxidation tank will be repurposed to provide more storm water storage capacity, the sludge tank will be demolished and replaced with a sludge thickening unit and sludge holding tank.

A biological treatment tank will also be provided, along with pumps and drainage sumps to be built underground, with an odour control unit also included.

A back-up generator and bunded diesel tank is also planned and other ancillary works.

A Natura impact assessment was included in the application to Cavan County Council. It says there is the potential for a number of species, including the Great Crested Grebe and Tufted Duck and habitats, including nearby raised bogs, to be impacted if pollutants were to enter the Mountnugent River system.

However, it says if measures, including the compiling of a Construction Environment Management Plan, are put in place they should mitigate against potential environmental effects.

An archaeological assessment report also submitted with the plans says that while the development site is located beside a stream, an area described as having “archaeological potential”, it has been developed since at least the 1950s and “any archaeological remains that may have existed in the area have since been removed”.

A decision on the plans is expected by early June.

If approved, it’s expected construction work would begin in March 2023 and take 14 months. Temporary systems and tank storage would be put in place onsite to allow for the decommissioning of existing infrastructure. The Annual Environmental Report for Ballyjamesduff wastewater treatment plant for 2020 showed it was not complying with regulations set down, specifically the emission limit values for such plants.

The report highlighted a drop in water quality in the area, however, this may not be solely due to the treatment plant itself, with a number of other factors highlighted.

“A deterioration in water quality has been identified, however it is not known if it or is not caused by the WWTP. Other causes of deterioration in water quality in the area are: There are other pressures in the area such as agriculture, urban diffuse including misconnections, industrial discharges and domestic wastewater treatment systems,” reads the report.

Nonetheless, the plant failed to meet the required criteria.

In November, Irish Water said ongoing investment in wastewater infrastructure across Cavan, including in Ballyjamesduff will “lead to improvements in water quality, while also supporting housing and economic development in these areas”.

Virginia plant

A lack of capacity at some plants, including at Virginia, has seen housing and other developments blocked over fears of the potential environmental impact.

Work is ongoing on the drawing up of plans for the new plant in Virginia, with a planning application expected to be lodged shortly.