Plan submitted for waste treatment plant near Andover
the new facility would be sited at Cowdown off the A303
Plans to build a new liquid waste treatment in Test Valley to relieve the pressure on local sewage works has been submitted.
Applicant Draintech Tankers.com ltd has submitted the proposal for the facility off the A303 which, if approved, will be able to store the daily waste sludge from the tanker fleet temporarily.
If planned permission is granted, land at Cowdown Lane in Andover, would see a new sludge storage facility and its associated buildings and infrastructure built.
The offices and staff rest areas will be simple porta cabins in design. The main building will be a steel barn-style structure. The application also includes hardstanding areas for lorry turning, manoeuvring and parking.
The waste sludge is separated on-site into settled waste sludge and “liquid supernatant”. After that, the “liquid supernatant” and the settled waste sludge will be transported to Fullerton Southern Water, which is 3 kilometres southwest of the proposed site, for further treatment as before,
Photovoltaic panels are proposed to be located on the southern roof of the building to allow the site to operate more sustainably.
Construction activities will be limited to between 08:00 to 18:00, Mondays to Fridays and 07:30 to 13:00 on Saturdays.
The planning statement reads, “In the last 12-18 months, there has been increasing pressure on the local sewage treatment works. A number of these are reported in the local and national press.
“At the local level, few sewage treatment works can accept waste from tanker businesses, and the few sewage treatment works that do accept tankers are often closed due to reaching their capacity.
“These tanker businesses play an important role in the rural sewage disposal for the community by cleaning and maintaining septic tanks and small private package treatment plants to ensure that they are working efficiently.
“However, with increasing pressure on the sewage treatment works, it is often the case that local tanker businesses are turned away and have to source other sewage treatment works at considerable driving distances, creating huge inefficiencies and, in turn, contributing to the climate emergency.
“This sludge storage facility will act as a holding tank that will put less pressure on the local sewage treatment works at peak times and increase efficiencies for the tanker businesses
in the area. ”
The application was previously submitted but rejected due to unclarities.
Public consultation will close on September 15. For more information, visit Hampshire County Council with the HCC/2023/0457 reference number.