An 800-ton fatberg was removed from a sewer in Cardiff Bay, Wales, according to itv.com. The blockage was caused by residents illegally putting fats, oils and greases into the city sewer.
Special equipment was brought to the site to clean up the fatberg as part of an ongoing effort to repair the city’s sewer system.
Wastewater director Steve Wilson tells itv.com that the project is challenging due to the large quantities of FOG in the sewer. “It has built up in the sewer and caused a number of sewer collapses along Bute Street and Stuart Street. While we know this is a busy area, the sheer volume of this material we’ve taken out of the sewer shows the scale of the issues we are tackling.”
See photos of the fatberg here.
Century-Old Water Main Breaks, Flooding Los Angeles Neighborhood
A century-old water main in South Los Angeles broke recently, flooding the streets of a neighborhood and causing 50 people to evacuate their homes.
The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power had to shut off the main slowly over the course of four hours to prevent other pipes in the system from breaking.
“When you have this much energy in a 24-inch water main, you have to shut it down slowly otherwise it can have some reverberations through the system,” Eric Shavely, utility superintendent, tells the Los Angeles Times.
There were some reports of natural gas odors as firefighters helped residents out of their homes, but no one was injured in the incident.
Wisconsin City to Repair One of World's Largest Submersible Pumps
One of the largest submersible pumps in the world will be shut down for repairs in Waukesha, Wisconsin. The pump provides 3.8 mgd.
By the end of January 2019, a temporary well and motor will be installed that can deliver half of the well’s regular capacity while the well undergoes up to six months of repairs. Other wells will be used as necessary to cover the additional capacity needed. Utility General Manager Daniel Duchniak says he’s confident the utility will still meet the water needs for the community.
“We believe Well 10 is among the largest submersible pumps in the world. It is pumping water from over 600 feet below the surface. The pump will take about six months to repair,” Duchniak said in a press release. “In order to have the repair completed by summer, when the highest demand for water occurs, the utility is announcing a special procurement procedure so that a streamlined repair process can be implemented.”
The utility got permission from the Great Lakes governors to switch to Lake Michigan water under the Great Lakes Compact and is currently obtaining other needed permits. Three years of construction for the pipelines needed to access and return the water will begin in 2020.
