Installation of a local wastewater treatment facility has begun at the site of the closed Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill (BPPM), the press service of the Irkutsk Region government reported following a visit to Baikalsk by Governor Igor Kobzev and Svetlana Radionova, head of the Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources (Rosprirodnadzor).
The treatment facility will process supernatant water from the storage ponds. The water, once treated to regulatory standards, will be sent to the municipal sewage treatment facilities for further processing. In the long term, the level of the ponds’ contents is expected to be reduced by almost half.
"This equipment will make it possible to treat the supernatant water and prevent it from overflowing. It is currently being installed. Once the process chain has been assembled, Rosprirodnadzor personnel will check it for compliance with the declared design," the press service quoted Radionova as saying.
Igor Kobzev noted that, according to forecasts by the Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring, heavy precipitation is possible in the region, posing a risk of the BPPM storage ponds overflowing.
"By 1 October, it is necessary to treat 70 thousand cubic metres of supernatant water. We are interested in ensuring that both the supervisory authorities and the public are involved in this positive agenda," the statement quotes Kobzev as saying.
The local treatment equipment will be able to process up to 600 cubic metres of contaminated water per day. The Rosatom state corporation is currently responsible for managing the mill’s waste.
Details in the report Vesti-Irkutsk.
