Christmas and New Year Update:
The site closed on Christmas Eve and barring a small amount of work on 29 and 30 December, it remained closed for the Christmas and New Year period, reopening again on Monday 5 January.
We are aware of some odour issues over the period, but this was not caused by work on site and Melton CLP, the gas operator, had staff on site over the period to manage gas extraction.
During the very cold weather, there was an issue with pipes freezing when the temperature dropped to -4oC overnight, which reduced gas extraction capacity. Any odours then tend to hang in the cold still air. Melton CLP has a winter maintenance plan (the “winterisation programme”) as defined in the Gas Management Plan, which includes:
checking of gradients – ensuring pipes fall to manifold/knock-out pots and elimination of low spots
- insulating exposed pipework – targeting high flowing wells, knock-out pot condensate discharge points and flow line control valves
- maintaining condensate control – keeping drains, back-dewatering, and sumps clear
- daily checks in freezing weather – looking for ice build-up, monitoring booster suction and flare performance
- isolation of affected section, thawing safely (no naked flames), and recording incident if freezing occurs
- post-winter review – inspection of insulation, reviewing freezing events, and implementing necessary improvements
The gas extraction system is now running at full capacity, and we have also reduced the waste inputs (number of lorries) into the site to try and keep on top of the situation.
