Adrian Frater, News Editor

A section of the new multi-purpose stadium, at Rock, in Trelawny. - File

WESTERN BUREAU :

THE LOCAL Organising Committee (LOC) for the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup has now received the all-clear on the sewerage at the new multi-purpose stadium, at Rock, in Trelawny .

That move effectively puts the facility into a state of readiness to host the World Cup opening ceremony, which is slated for Sunday, March 11.

The decision was taken following a tour of the facility last week by the National Environmental and Planning Agency (NEPA), which had an obligation to sign off on the project before it could be commissioned into service.

"The treatment plant we have approved is a Membrane Bioreactor Activated Sludge System to treat sewage from 10,000 persons with a peak capacity of 300,000 litres and an average daily flow of 100,000 litres," said NEPA's information officer, Zadie Neufville. "We have also outlined a number of general and specific conditions that should be followed."

Last week, Pauline Nelson, head of communications, at the LOC, told The Gleaner that the sewerage was ready pending a final inspection by NEPA, which had done previous inspections with the Ministry of Health and the Underground Water Authority.

"The system will have a holding tank, an equalisation tank, a sludge thickening tank and ultra-violet disinfectant," said Neufville. "The treated effluent will be discharged into the Daniel Town gully that runs alongside the Daniel Town main road. The dried sludge will be used for landscaping on the site."

Operate above capacity

Based on information provided by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in Beijing, because of the high nitrogen removals owing to the combination of high biomass concentrations and a multi-staged reactor, the system can operate above capacity on a short-term basis.

The Trelawny stadium has a permanent seating capacity of 10,000 but there is provision for another 15,000 temporary seats. It has hosted two international matches since it was handed over to the LOC by its Chinese developers, COMPLANT, last year, and was earmarked to host at least one four-day game in the 2007 Carib Beer regional cricket competition.

However, the plan was shelved so as to not cause interference to the on-going work on the sewerage.