Water Industry Capability The key staff behind Environmental Innovations have decades of experience in the design and delivery of solutions in and around the water industry. This experience is wide and diverse and because we own the intellectual property and patents behind our technology we are able deliver bespoke affordable solutions based upon sound technology that works! Our collective experience includes:
Pollution - The design and manufacture of low cost retro-fit pollution and flow control valves
Flood Alarms – Design of both Cabled and Wireless Systems for local assets such as sub-stations and pump houses, plus community wide automated flood warning.
Sensors – Bespoke sensors designed including to the ATEX standard.
Wireless Communications Systems – Both above ground and Below Ground Systems.
CSO – Monitoring, Transducers and Containment Valves.
Security and Asset Protection – Design of wide area wireless security systems for small asset monitoring and protection.
Counter Terror – The design and supply of covert monitoring systems to detect intrusion through the drainage systems and the supply network.
Vehicle Management – The control and monitoring of delivery / collection traffic using wide area RFID technology – with automated valve closure and go/no-go traffic lights.
Remote Condition Monitoring – Non-evasively monitoring fixed plant and assets and reporting exceptions.
Automatic Meter Reading – The design of wide area AMR technology with integrated leakage detection.
RFID Tagging of Assets – For maintenance scheduling and asset control.
1.0 Water Industry The UK Water Industry is faced with the constant battle of meeting performance and financial targets set by OFWAT, the UK Water Industry Regulator which includes keeping on the right side of environmental legislation. From the environmental perspective, two of the biggest challenges/threats faced by the water industry are pollution caused by sewage (CSO discharges and blocked sewer spills) and to it by industry/farming which constantly threatens to contaminate precious water supplies with nitrates, chemicals, spills and firewater. A third and deliberately less publicised challenges is security. 2.0 Water Supply 2.1 Supply Security The threat from terror attack, blackmail and vandalism is constant and real. The way the water utilities prepare themselves to deal with the inevitable crank caller or the real thing can have a massive impact in terms of public relations, costs and consequential damages. PSYWAR (psychological Warfare) is probably number one fear of most water supply companies as it is only too easy for a “group� claim they have tampered with the supply, leaving the supply company the daunting task to prove beyond reasonable doubt otherwise. Failure to do so leaves them exposed to criticism from the press and the utility is faced with the awkward choice of cutting off the supply and/or to trying to inform the public about the scale of the risk, which because of dilution may in reality be zero. However, whichever way it decided to deal with the issue, there is always a negative cost impact because of the placebo effect leading to potentially hundreds of calls and claims from the public attributing every ailment to the water supply. Recognising this threat, we have developed a range of low cost, self powered security transmitters that can be fitted non-evasively to assets such as reservoir access hatches and valve handles etc to warn real-time of intrusion or tampering. The systems can be designed to either utilise the existing water companies telemetry infrastructure via a gateway or to operate totally independently reporting back using our AlertComms system that offers a choice of SMS text, email and PSTN dial.
2.1.1 On-site Security Solutions for Remote STW, Reservoirs & Pumping Stations. Self powered auto reporting the RDNET100 Security Transmitters featuring vibration, tilt and/or tamper activation/detection for the protection of access hatches, manhole cover, doors, valves and other distributed assets in and around works. These units are able to give an early warning of intrusion and can be used to verify or dismiss blackmail threats.
To Remote Monitoring Station Or Alertcomms Messaging Service Security RTU Alarm RTU Gateway Security RTU Security RTU
Typical RDNET 1000 Site Security Configuration Almost unlimited numbers of Security Transmitters can be installed at any works. Each security transmitter transmits a regular but unique health message which includes an activation counter and additional security features as rolling codes and error check sums. We believe the activation counter is the key to making this system almost infallible as even in the unlikely event of the transmissions being jammed the units provide a record of the fact that an activation took place once the jamming signal has been removed. The units are totally maintenance free and have a battery life exceeding 10-years, are fully encapsulated to > IP68 standard and are available with ATEX certification to Zone 2 as standard and optionally Zone1.
In summary our solution offers:
Reliable reporting and/or confirmation of intrusion / tampering
Non-evasive upgrade to site security
Option of totally covert or designs with visual deterrent
Reporting via existing telemetry infrastructure and/or cellular network
Jam detection and jam proof with integrated incident counter
Long maintenance free battery life of > 10-years
100% sealed construction to > IP68.
Tamper proof health message reporting
2.2.2 Friend or Foe Vehicle Identification. How do you know that a tanker arriving at a remote site is legitimate when number plates can easily be copied? The answer is to use the RDNET 1000 Active RFID Tag. Unlike standard FRID tags which require close proximity for operation the RDN100 can be covertly fitted to almost any part of the vehicle as it actively broadcasts its unique ID over a radius of up to 100m. Irrespective of the weather conditions users can now easily identify single or multiple vehicles entering a site, even if they are visually obscured. In addition to knowing who is on site the system lets you monitor duration and when combined with the RDNET 1000 Beacon Security system lets you know what they actually did whilst on site i.e. opened a door or operated a valve etc.
RDNET 1000 RFID TAG Because of the relatively wide broadcast area of the tags it is possible to hide the reader out of sight even within a building making the system truly covert. The output from the reader can be in the form of a serial data string for direct interface to a telemetry outstation or alternatively delivered via the GPRS network to a remote data server for processing.
SMS Warning
Vehicle Tag
e-mail warning
Receiver/Gateway
Other applications of the tags include vehicle fleet optimisation where departure to arrival times are monitored and the automatic activation of pollution control valves and traffic lights during fuel or chemical deliveries/transfers.
In summary our solution offers:
Reliable and positive identification of friendly and unfriendly vehicles. Friend or foe.
Tags are self powered and hence may be fitted to fitted to any type of vehicle including trailers.
Tags can be covertly installed or installed as a visual deterrent.
Dummy tags available.
Reporting can be achieved via existing telemetry infrastructure and/or the cellular network.
Jam detection at receiver
Long maintenance free battery life of > 10-years
100% sealed construction to > IP68.
Tamper proof health message reporting
2.2.3 Fuel & Chemical Transfer Point Automatic Pollution Guards The delivery/collection and transfer of fuel/or chemicals to and from a site is recognised as on of the most hazardous operations and the most likely to lead to a pollution incident. Mistakenly many believe that because the storage tanks are bunded, that an accident could not happen. However, what needs to be remembered is the tanker stands in the non-bunded areas, the majority of the delivery hoses length also lies outside the bunded area, and the drains in the non-bunded area will either lead to the sewer or the local river or stream. An accident waiting to happen!
Trailer Tag Tractor Tag
RDNET 1000 Friend of Foe Tag Locations With a RDNET 1000 tag fitted to fuel/chemical delivery tanker and a pollution containment valve such as the Environmental Innovations FlapstopperTM or DrainstopperTM fitted within the drainage system under the control of a receiver, the valve can be automatically closed as the delivery vehicle enters the vicinity of the transfer point, thus protecting the drains and converting them into a containment vessel.
Control Panel Tag
Valve
The status of the valve can optionally be linked into a traffic light which can be used to inform the driver when it is safe to start the transfer. Once the transfer is complete the driver has to physically acknowledge that he did not spill anything using a key switch or punch key. He then leaves the site and once the vehicle is out of range the valve re-opens and the traffic light returns to red.
Key System Benefits:
The creation of an automatic pollution containment system to protect the un-bunded areas on sites during the transfer of fuel or chemicals.
Eliminates the need for expensive whole site bunding.
Can be used to close off the outlet from oil interceptors to convert them into containment vessels.
Compatible with the RDNET security Friend or Foe and Audit System.
Tags battery life up to 10-years matching the vehicle life.
Reduces driver fraud and human error.
Can be used to automatically log the arrival and departure times of vehicles.
Reporting via existing telemetry infrastructure and/or cellular network
Jam detection and jam proof incident counter included
Long maintenance free battery life of > 10-years
100% sealed construction to > IP68.
3.0 The Sewerage Industry 3.1 The Evolution of the Combined Sewer The vast majority of the UK’s sewerage network was built and/or planned in Victorian times. In the absence of electrical pumps, gravity was the only means to transport the sewerage, hence a degree of additional water was required to assist the flow plus to dilute the outflow which usually went untreated into rivers and the sea. For this reason plus the fact that in urban areas surface permeability was poor, the majority of the sewers constructed in Victorian and Edwardian times became “combined” carrying a mixture sewerage and surface water. The construction of the network also coincided with the peak of the Industrial Revolution adding further connections rich in pollutants and bi-products from processes and contaminated rainwater from their vast catchment areas. 3.2 Storm Bypasses at Sewage Treatment Works As we now know, mixing sewage with surface water is not such a good idea. Not only are you dramatically increasing the volume of the flow that the STW has to process which wastes energy, but you also have to build a STW to cope with massive extremes in variation between peak and normal flow. Simplistically a STW is a series connected network of tanks and filters with a finite maximum throughput. At many works any excess flow had to go somewhere – the storm bypass – which as its name implies lets the sewerage/storm water cocktail pass straight to the output. 3.3 Coping with the Victorian Legacy Aside from some lagoons built to hold back the sewerage along the cost for tide synchronisation, there was little in the Victorian networks to impede the flow or cope with the peaks introduced by the combined sewer, other than to let it spill/discharge un-treated into the environment via the CSOs or storm bypasses. What is often forgotten is that capacity was originally scaled match the estimated peak demand of the day, based upon an initial population in 1851 of 16.8 million which rose to 30.5 million by 1901, the end of the Victorian era. However, the UK population now stands at 61 million and is still growing. Technology has moved on and so has personal hygiene. In Victorian times – few were fortunate to have a access to a bath and showers were extremely rare. A daily bowel of water or a shared tin bath once a fortnight was the average consumption per capita. Nowadays, we have washing machines, flushing toilets, dish washers and we on average shower of bath daily. Further, industry consumes millions of litres of water daily for processing, cooling, cleaning and washing, the vast majority of which ends up back round the loop into the sewerage network simply because nobody has taken the initiative to do anything else with it. No wonder the networks struggle to cope!
3.4 Wet Spills / CSO Discharge Mitigation To cope with excess demand / peak flows that occur during storms the sewerage networks CSOs (Combined Sewer Overflows) were introduced. These overflows are designed such that under excessive flow conditions the hopefully “diluted” raw sewage is allowed to spill out of the sewer in an controlled fashion into rivers, streams and the sea. These discharges are often referred to as a Wet Spill or a Consented Discharge, however it still is pollution! No wonder why many beaches and rivers around the World carry warning signs stating that bathing should be avoided after heavy rainfall or storms. Not a good advertisement for the local tourist industry and similarly not a for the water companies public relations when bathers go home with memories of tummy upsets and much worse when little Johnny asks his mother what is this I have caught in my fishing net – holding a condom!
With hindsight the design of the sewerage networks could have been better in particular with respect to the amount of rainwater allowed to enter during storms. By having the ability to regulate this level in theory wet CSO spills could be totally eliminated and as a consequence river flooding could have been reduced. Wet CSO spills generally have a tendency to occur and then re-occur in certain locations. Although some locations are random due to localised exceptional rainfall, many can characterised by a wide variety of mechanical, construction (bends, low spots, intercepts), state of repair (partial collapse) and hydraulic flow patterns. In addition the vicinity of FOG (fat, oil and grease) producing businesses such as restaurants and food producing plant have a major impact as the build-up of fat and infiltration of tree roots also restricts peak flow capacity leading to spills and discharges. At Environmental Innovations we would argue that a good proportion of the thousands of the CSO spills that occur each year could be mitigated by using modern technology such as wireless blocked drain detectors, CSO spill alarms, network attenuators, CSO discharge containment valves, controlled industrial “ponding” and the removal of industrial surface water from the network. To this end we have developed, and continue to develop and adapt our technology to offer water utilities cost effective a practical array of tools to make an impact on the problem. Our offers include:
Network Control and Dynamic Catchment Area Reduction for Wet CSO Discharge Reduction.
CSO Spill Reduction by Reducing Consented Surface Water Intake Volumes from Industrial Sites.
Dry Spill Proactive Containment.
Blocked Drain / Sewer Detection
3.4.1 Network Control and Dynamic Catchment Area Reduction Ultra low power and lightweight the FlapstopperTM automated flap valves, can be used to dynamically alter flow into or through the network/catchment area. Without the need for mains power, their easy retro-fit design and optional local control using rain gauges (distrometers) or remote control from the network using radio telemetry make them easy to install with substantial savings over the traditional sluice gate and penstock valves.
450mm FlapstopperTM
The FlapstoppersTM can be supplied to fit a variety of sizes and profiles of sewers. They can be engineered to either totally close off a channel or to offer fixed or programmable attenuation of the flow. Unlike manual penstocks – the valves can self test and also be configured to auto report in the unlikely event of failure.
3.4.2 CSO Spill Reduction by Reducing Consented Surface Water Volumes The FlapstopperTM Pollution Control valve is already in use on a number of commercial and industrial sites to pro-actively divert surface water run-off away from the sewers into surface water drains or SUDS chambers. From the perspective of the Industrial/Commercial site operator, the fast response of the FlapstopperTM, which is typically under 10-seconds, plus its fully automated operation, permits the valve to satisfy their obligations under ISO14001 with respect to environmental protection. As a bonus many who previously paid for a consent licence have been able to make substantial savings by reducing the volume associated with their licence. Only in the event of an emergency such as a spill or fire is the valve called into action to divert the flow to holding ponds, lagoons or simply contain the incident within the drains enabling the spilt item to be safely tankered away. We believe that in urban areas, the active mandating or financial encouragement by water companies of their industrial/commercial customers into the fitting of pollution containment valves like the FlapstopperTM could go a long way to reducing the amount of surface water that actually enters the sewerage network at source. Estimates are that by reducing peak flow in some parts of the network by as little of 20% they could actually reduce the number of CSO discharges by up to 40% and in other areas totally eliminate them altogether. Consequential savings for the water company with regards to fines and bad publicity could be significant, and if approached correctly the cost of implementation could even be either in part of full funded by the industrial customer who could publicise the use of the system as part of their green credential and integrate within their EMS helping to satisfy the pollution and firewater control part of ISO14001 Finally, there is an additional benefit to water companies through the mandating of the fitting of pollution control valves to industrial and commercial customers sites. Last year's incident involving the cyanide spill on the River Trent, which exposed Severn Trent Water millions of damages and caused bad publicity could have been totally averted if there customer had such a valve fitted to prevent the spill from entering the sewer.
Summary of Action:
Actively encourage industrial / commercial customers to segregation of surface and foul drains and sewers by fitting FlapstopperTM type valves.
Threaten to withdraw customer consent licences if they do not introduce and maintain proactive measures/procedures/tools such as the FlapstopperTM to ensure that spills and firewater are contained on site and cannot enter and damage the infrastructure. This requirement is already stated in the Environment Agency PPG28
Mandate the automation of existing penstock valves or there replacement with automated valves such as the FlapstopperTM to ensure out of hours 24/7 protection for spills and firewater. Again this is a requirement under the Environment Agency PPG28.
Install blocked drain/sewer detectors to deliver live reports of problems before they become incidents.
Fit dynamic containment / attenuation valves up stream within the network to modulate the flow and thus reduce the peak flow that enters the CSO. Ideally this should be able to control the level that there is a significant reduction in spill/discharge incidents.
3.5 CSO Dry Spill Mitigation Aside from CSO spills occurring as a result of storms – many discharges occur as a consequence of sewer blockages and/or equipment failure – these are often referred to as “dry spills”. These spills/discharges are actually far more polluting that those that occur during storms as there is little or no dilution of the sewage. Hence, the occurrence of this type of spill is treated as a “reportable pollution incident” by the Environment Agency and are called “out of consent”. As a consequence they can result in fines and will always lead to remediation costs associated with de-contamination and restoration of environment. Although some CSO discharge locations are random, many can characterised by a wide variety of mechanical, construction (bends, low spots, intercepts), state of repair (partial collapse) and hydraulic flow parameters. In addition the vicinity of FOG (fat, oil and grease) producing businesses such as restaurants and food producing plant have a major impact as these can leave deposits in the network that eventually create restrictions or blockages. Similarly trees are another issue, where tree root infiltration can encourage blockages.
Maps of blockage and CSO spill hotspots are maintained by all Water Utilities. These maps can be used to formulate traditional mitigation programmes which will often include:
Regular inspection and the early removal of root and fat deposits
Re-lining of damaged sewers to smooth the path of flow and to prevent collapse.
Enforcing the fitting of FOG traps on industrial / commercial businesses.
However, we believe that this doesn’t go far enough and in a number of locations a lot more can be done to either prevent dry CSO discharges /sewer spills altogether and/or to at least give early warning of their pending occurrence enabling mitigation action to be taken:
3.5.1 Pump Remote Condition Monitoring for CSO Discharge Reduction. The RDNET 1000 condition monitoring system measures the vibration signature of pumps, fans, etc. generating a “level” and/or “spread” figure that can be compared with time against a norm and examined for both gradual and sudden changes. The system can be configured to deliver alarm messages in the event of major failures and warnings when degradation exceeds certain limits. In its simplistic form the output can be simply a digital on / off relay reflecting the state of operation which can be relayed as a digital signal into the sites SCADA/ Telemetry system. To Remote Data Server or Alertcomms
Vibration Analysis RDNET 1000 Transmitter
RDNET 1000 Pump Condition Monitoring In its more complex form both the amplitude of the vibration and its spectral signature are recorded and delivered as two 8 bit values which are logged remotely and compared with time.
3.5.2 CSO Level and Blocked Sewer Alarm The RDNET 1000 CSO monitoring system has been designed to deliver advanced warning of rising levels at CSOs or sewers that could lead to spills. Operating using a combination of low power radio and smart antenna technology the system has a number of advantages over comparable GSM/GPRS based systems and overcomes one of their biggest issues that of unpredictable battery life. Operating similar to a warning beacon, the RDNET has a battery life of typically 10-years. Transmission reliability is very predictable and there are no running costs or SIM cards to forget to renew/top up.
CSO Level Monitoring Wireless Transmitter
In locations near to existing infrastructure such as SWT and pumping stations it is possible to create a direct link between the CSO and the infrastructures existing telemetry outstation. In locations where the distance is greater we have a range of compact pole mounted remote telemetry units (RTU) that can be configured to act as Repeaters.
Remote Solar Powered Repeater (RTU)
In isolated locations the direct link or repeater can be replaced with a cellular or satellite gateway. From our experience dealing with the rail industry we can testify that locating the cellular device at the top of a pole increases the signal by some million fold, making it far more likely for a reliable connection to the network established.
We offer a wide choice of transducers to monitor the level within the CSO. These can include float switches, conductivity probes or pendulum flow sticks. Aside from just raising an alarm - the messages generated by the RDNET CSO monitoring system can be used to close a FlapstopperTM pollution containment valve fitted to CSO outlet. The decision for closure could be qualified locally by taking a feed from a local rain gauge (distrometer) to determine if the excessive level is attributable to rainfall or a blockage etc. Hence, the valve could be closed whenever a non-consented discharge is likely to occur and a simultaneous message sent to summon emergency sewer unblocking teams.
Long Range Link Up to 25Km LOS
0-200m Link
CSO/Blocked Drain System With Long Range Radio Telemetry Link
4.0 Lone Worker Systems for the Water Industry A standalone or fully integrated loan worker system can be created using the RDNET 1000 Wireless Call Point. These units can be placed at strategic points around a site and used to summon assistance in the event of an incident.
Beacon LED
Call Button
Clear Button
The advantage of the RDNET 1000 Call Point is that its operation is not dependant upon the mobile telephone network and call points are available for placement in Zone 2 hazardous areas. Further, at night there is a homing LED beacon within the call point to guide users to its activation button.
4.1 Emergency Spill/Pollution Call Points for the Water Industry A standalone or fully integrated Spill Alert System can be created using the RDNET 1000 Wireless Call Points. These units can be placed at strategic locations where spills are most likely to occur such as refuelling stages or dosing plants. Unlike a burglar alarm panic buttons or fire alarm brake glass unit – the RDNT is fully weatherproof and includes twin location LEDs that permits it to be found easily in poor visibility. The activation button is covered by a waterproof Call Point membrane which is further protected by a lift up hinged flap to prevent accidental operation. The two status LEDs also show the status of the call point – green for standby and red for in alarm.
To Alertcomms Call Point
Call Point
Pollution Valve Controller
Flapstopper TM Valve
Typical Emergency Pollution Containment System The message broadcast by the Call Point can be used to illuminate a flashing beacon, sound a klaxon, trigger our Alertcomms messaging system and most importantly close the sites Pollution Containment Valve/s such the FlapstopperTM or DrainstopperTM. Being both wireless and battery powered installation of the call points could not be simpler and where hazardous areas are involved the Call Points can be supplied with ATEX Zone 2 certification. There is no practical limit to the number of call points that can be installed. Plus with planning sites can be zoned so that either a particular Pollution Containment valve is closed or multiple ones.