16 minute read
Drainage
The drainage industry and the environment
The drainage industry is key to long term environmental sustainability in a multitude of ways, many of which would not be immediately apparent. This article by the National Association of Drainage Contractors aims to identify these, as well as set out how the industry is addressing them
This paper does not comment on the welldocumented issues that surround the water companies’ discharge of waste into rivers and the sea and the damage that is being done to our environment due to underinvestment in sewage infrastructure. Rather, it focuses on everyday drainage issues that do not form part of the water company sewer estate.
The most obvious impact that drainage can have on the environment is in respect to pollution. Illegal dumping of waste has been a problem for many years with irresponsible contractors avoiding the cost and inconvenience of using designated waste sites. This can take a number of forms, from simply lifting up manholes and discharging waste illegally into public sewers to emptying tankers into farmers’ fields. Such behaviour damages the environment with human waste entering water courses. It also damages the industry, both by disadvantaging responsible contractors who take the time and trouble (not to mention cost) of discharging waste legally, and by bringing the drainage contractor industry into disrepute.
Then there is the issue of mixed and cross connections whereby clean and foul water waste are either combined or directed to the wrong drainage system. Simply this may result in foul waste entering clean water run off systems, and vice versa, or the systems simply
being combined for the sake of expediency. Of course, it is not the drainage contractor industry that causes The most obvious impact that drainage can have on the environment is in respect to pollution these problems; generally it is developers and the construction industry. However, the drainage industry does have the opportunity to identify such problems and either correct them, or report them to their customers for them to address. Indeed in some cases, contractors may report such issues to relevant authorities for action such as on large scale residential or industrial developments.
Off grid drainage systems are also an issue with either inappropriate sewage management system installations and poor (sometimes completely absent) maintenance. There are of course legal provisions in play here (which differ in England and Wales), but there are few outside of the drainage industry who can identify these issues, and know how to correct them.
Of course, there is the more visible impact of backed up drains through blockages in homes, public buildings and commercial premises which can cause their own environmental damage, not to mention health issues. The drainage industry routinely deals with such challenges using ever more sophisticated equipment and technology, such as CCTV, high pressure water jetting, electromechanical repair and patching and lining. In such circumstances there are some that refer to it as the fourth emergency service, and there is no doubting the industry’s position as the fourth vital utility alongside water, gas and electricity.
But it doesn’t end there. The drainage contractor industry also covers such disciplines as highway and gully maintenance, oil separator and interceptor maintenance, road sweeping and large site (such as airport) sweeping and cleaning. Many of these activities require the extraction of water from water hydrants, and this is an environmental issue in its own right.
Highway and gully maintenance is very topical at this time. It has become customary, using advanced tanker vehicles, to clear gullies on highways and separate solid and polluting substances from ‘grey’ water, and then to use that water to flush down the gullies after clearing them - this is known as decanting. The solid and polluting waste is then disposed of at an approved waste centre. As the nearest approved centre can be many miles away, this technique saves many long and unnecessary tanker journeys reducing cost, but more importantly, carbon emissions. The reason that the subject is topical is that current Environment Agency rules do not permit grey water decanting, probably because the rules were put in place before vehicle technology enabled grey water separation from solid and polluting waste. More about this later!
Oil and interceptor waste management is something that the average person would know nothing about! Petrol stations and restaurants are required to have separators/ interceptors to separate water from oil to limit pollution from waste from these sources. In effect, the devices trap the oil and store it to be removed through regular maintenance. Unfortunately, whilst there are some responsible petrol station operators and restauranteurs who are E
conscientious about maintenance, the vast majority are not. This results in unnecessary pollution, and can be attributed to a total lack of enforcement of what is a legal requirement. The UK can learn from countries like Ireland that are very proactive in ensuring compliance with maintenance regulations.
Sweeping activities are more straightforward, but to avoid environmental damage, operators must dispose of waste in a responsible manner.
And so on to the issue of hydrant use. Water accessed from hydrants does of course belong to the water companies, and they generally prescribe the standpipes that contractors must use to extract water, which should take place with the appropriate license. Unfortunately, there is substantial water theft that takes place with irresponsible contractors using unauthorised standpipes to take water illegally without a license. Whilst this in and of itself is not damaging to the environment, it is the case that improper standpipe use can result in foul water contamination of clean water supplies, which is a real problem for the water companies.
The other environmental impact from the drainage industry is from vehicle carbon emissions. The industry employs thousands of vehicles varying from small vans to very substantial tankers which are on the road all the time. There is limited use of electric vehicles now emerging, but the reality is for
large tankers, the battery power required to propel them make them impractical. The industry believes that hydrogen power will provide much greater opportunities to move away from fossil fuel powered vehicles, as has been demonstrated by JCB.
So how has the industry been addressing all these issues? Well, a little over ten years ago two small contractors in London formed a body called the National Association of Drainage Contractors (NADC). With encouragement from Defra, NADC set about establishing a training and certification regime primarily to ensure that all contractors and their engineers and operatives became aware of health and safety issues which can impact on them and the general public. The regime also set about certification in the use of all the services that contractors provide and the equipment and vehicles that they use.
As the Association grew, some four years ago, it established an Environment and Waste (E & W) Committee to focus on the issues that have been highlighted above. In addition, a new approved contractor scheme called DrainSafe was launched in 2021 which was unashamedly modelled on the existing Gas Safe and Water Safe schemes. The E & W Committee engages with Government and other appropriate stakeholders to address issues such as gully maintenance and hydrant use. It also issues guidance to contractors on issues such as oil separator/interceptor maintenance, off-grid sewage management systems and mixed/cross connections.
DrainSafe will also enable customers to identify those contractors who act responsibly towards the environment
DrainSafe, as the approved contractor quality mark, exists to uphold the highest standards in the drainage industry with the intention of stamping out illegal activities and poor quality service. It is there to support responsible contractors to operate on a level playing field and to eliminate ‘cowboy’ operators from the industry. As a by-product of this, there will be substantial benefits to the environment by policing of the issues for which the E & W Committee is responsible. DrainSafe will also enable customers (residential, commercial and private sector) to identify those contractors who act responsibly towards the environment.
There is a long way to go in ensuring that all avoidable environmentally damaging activity caused by drainage issues is addressed, but the drainage industry is determined to play its part. L
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https://nadc.org.uk/
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Transforming the public estate for a greener and smarter future
With the ever-changing landscape of the workplace, now is the time to look at how to adapt and transform the public estate. For the past 14 years, GovNet Events has been providing a forum for the asset, estates, and facilities sector. The industry is at a turning point with shifting workplaces, looming net-zero goals, and an ageing estate
The recently published Government Property Strategy sets out how the government will transform the public estate over the next eight years. This year’s Smart Asset and Estate Management Conference explores how government departments are tackling the challenges that a postCovid workplace brings, implementing the levelling up agenda while ensuring that buildings are sustainable and energy efficient to hit net-zero targets.
Redefining the public estate The 2050 carbon net-zero goal is a mammoth task for departments across government, one that will not be achieved without cross-cutting action on decarbonisation within our estates. The public estate is a huge contributor, with 156.8 million m2 of floor area in 136,844 built assets across the country. The newly released Government Property Strategy outlines three missions: transform places & services; a smaller, better & green public estate; and improve professional excellence and insight.
Mark Chivers, government chief property officer at the Office for Government Property will be presenting the keynote address at Smart 2022 and will be discussing the government’s 8-year plan. Part of the plan will be to look at how to consolidate the public estate and continue to level up across the UK. One of the initiatives, launched to help redefine the public estate, is the Government Hubs Programme. Mark Duddy, deputy director at the Government Property Agency will be discussing the national strategy on Government Hubs and how the programme is helping with regeneration, levelling up and sustainability.
Creating a smaller estate can aid in reaching carbon net-zero targets but it is only a start. Our morning panel at Smart 2022 will look at how the sector can understand the tools that are available and help manage expectations. This expert panel features Simon McWhirter, director of communications, policy & places at the UK Green Building Council; Louisa LeRoux, net zero programme manager at the Government Property Agency, Michael O’Doherty, project
director at Local Partnerships and Joe Tilley, sustainability and strategic portfolio director at the Crown Commercial Service.
Improving energy efficiency through the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme Another strategy implemented by the government to hit net-zero targets is the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme. It supports the aim of reducing emissions from public sector buildings by 75 per cent by 2037, compared to a 2017 baseline, as set out in the 2021 Net Zero and Heating and Buildings strategies. We will hear from the scheme’s delivery body Salix Finance about the progress being made towards equipping public estates across the country with the funding to access clean, renewable energy to heat buildings and optimise their performance. The latest example of the scheme’s success is the £7.45 million improvement of energy efficiency in Salford’s public buildings, seeing 30 public buildings across the city save 2,498,663 kWh of energy and 584 tonnes of carbon. This discussion will map the path towards reducing fossil fuels as well as making public buildings more comfortable and cheaper to warm.
Technology and data in the sector Reaching net-zero targets and improving sustainability can be aided by advances in technology. CAD/CAM (Computer Aided Design and Computer Aided Manufacturing) are not new to the sector, but their full potential is now only being realised. CAD/ CAM allows engineers to design buildings in a virtual environment allowing them to identify and address any issues with the building before construction. However, it is not just new buildings that need to be sustainable and fit for purpose, retrofitting and upgrading the current public estate is a massive undertaking. BIM (Building Information Management) is used to manage all aspects of design, supply chain, construction, and lifecycle of the building.
Since the use of PropTech and data are vital for the development of the industry, we have created a dedicated afternoon stream at this year’s Smart Conference. The stream kicks off with a presentation from Bridget Wilkins, head of digital citizen engagement at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. Bridget will look at the current PropTech Engagement Fund that aims to connect and level up local councils. The fund, in excess of £3.25 million, will be spent on 28 projects across England, trialling cutting-edge digital tools to make the planning system more open, engaging and accessible. Plymouth, South Hams, and West Devon have been awarded £285,000 under the PropTech Engagement Fund; the funding will be used to produce a set of interactive maps for residents to identify what future infrastructure is needed in their local area, to ensure communities have a greater influence
on planning policies and delivery plans. Bridget will discuss the fund, and the current projects in the works and will explore how the use of digital solutions can enable wider public participation in designing local communities.
The stream also features a crossgovernmental panel discussing how to maximise efficiency in the public estate using data-driven PropTech. Panellists include Christopher King, NHS Open Space lead and principal strategic asset manager at NHS Property Services and Ralph James, FM & technical services manager at the Met Office. They will explain how to best utilise and analyse data using flexible reporting systems, increase your property’s performance while decreasing cost and can shed a light on how different departments are using PropTech at present.
Levelling up skills With the rapid onset of digital transformation in government, it is vital to have a workforce ready to tackle the new challenges that might arise. Last year, the Cabinet Office announced their Government School of Property, to boost public sector expertise within property management. This programme aims at giving training, and access to industry-recognised accreditation from organisations such as the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and the Institute for Workplace and Facilities Management. This programme can cultivate an environment for professional and personal development and fosters relationships between new peers which can have lasting effects. Dr Janet Young, Government Head of Property at the Office of Government Property joins us at Smart 2022 to discuss the progress of the project and how upskilled property professionals can help deliver the 8-year Government Property Strategy.
Tackling the backlog The Government School of Property is a great programme that not only provides professional and personal development for the current workforce but can be a draw for new professionals. The industry needs new faces as there is currently a massive maintenance backlog. The whole public estate has a £21.7 billion annual running cost. In the NHS alone, it is estimated that there is a £5 billion shortfall in maintenance spending across trusts and primary care sites. The NHS is not alone in the facilities struggle, buildings across the public estate are ageing and need repair. Not only is the estate massive, it is also spread across departments thus each having its own buildings and particular set of issues. From schools to office buildings, each department is struggling with dilapidated buildings and post covid occupancy and can learn from each other.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about an increased focus on health and safety within public estates, such as ensuring buildings are adequately ventilated and air filtration systems are sufficiently monitored. Making use of artificial intelligence software throughout a building or estate has shown to be an effective method of optimizing building performance for occupants. It leads to reduced costs, identifies energy wastage, reduces the carbon footprint and removes chances of human error, among other benefits. As the government estate strives for a greener, more sustainable future in line with net-zero commitments by 2050, these systems are essential. We will look at the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on facilities management in public sector estates with an array of renowned panellists, including Craig Varian from the Department of Work and Pensions; Tim Warneford from Warneford Consulting; and Angela Harrowing from the Cabinet Office. They will address methods of improving energy efficiency and what still needs to be done to ‘build back better’ within the workplace.
Join us on 8th December at the prestigious QEII Centre, London for the Smart Asset & Estate Management conference as we bring together commercial leaders, decision-makers and innovators from across the public sector. Last year’s Smart Asset & Estate Management conference was attended by over 300 delegates, with 49 per cent of them in senior roles such as directors and heads of departments. After a virtual event in 2020, our 2021 live event was a roaring success. Delegates enjoyed the opportunity to be back together and share lessons learned throughout the pandemic. The asset strategy lead at St Andrew’s Healthcare said: “This was the first conference that I had attended since the pandemic began. I had a great day catching up with some old faces and meeting new ones. The talks were informative and thought-provoking. Great to see the Estates/FM world coming together to share best practices.”
This year’s conference will continue to look at how to create a sustainable and efficient public estate. The agenda this year is jampacked with keynote sessions, interactive panels, thought-leadership seminars, and practical case studies. Our interactive session formats enable you to network with like-minded peers, share resources and rethink estates & property management in the digital age. Tickets are available now, public sector members get an exclusive 30 per cent discount, using code: SMARTPSI30 register your place today below. L
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