Haags Bosch leachate ponds construction moving apace

Nov 03, 2016 News

From left: Environmental Engineer Satrohan Nauth, Suresh Jagmohan and an employee of Jagmohan Construction

With the bid protest over the contract for the operations of the Haags Bosch Landfill, at Eccles, East Bank Demerara, now resolved, works are moving apace to bring the facility to best practice standards.

Satrahan Nauth, Environmental Engineer at the Sanitation Management Unit of the Ministry of Communities, with oversight over the Landfill Projects, said that with the two new contractors (Puran Brothers Incorporated & Jagmohan Construction) the aim is to show the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) the progress made with government funding.

Nauth said that Jagmohan Construction has taken over the construction of the leachate ponds which were to be constructed in the initial stages of the landfill’s construction.

The official noted that the ponds were dug, however no other works were done to the leachate ponds by the previous contractor. Nauth noted that because of the soil strength at the location, the walls of the ponds experienced structural failure.

Because of this, he explained, the design will be slightly changed to suit the soil content of the area.

“This isn’t anybody’s fault, it’s just that the soil condition is poor, poorer than anticipated when the design was carried out. So we are trying to do some slight modification to the ponds sorted,” Nauth explained.

The Engineer said that the construction of the ponds is estimated to take six months to complete. He added, however, that this is also dependent on good weather conditions.

It was also divulged by a representative of Jagmohan Construction that the company will be bringing international experts to do the welding required for the ponds. Further, these experts will be training employees of the Jagmohan Construction, so that the high skill level required for this sort of work can be available locally.

Nauth said that Jagmohan Construction mobilized on October 17 and has been working around the clock. It was added that the construction company had a huge task in preparing the area for recommencement of work on the ponds.

The official said he was very pleased with what has been done so far.

The previous contractor, BK International had dug the ponds, however construction was never completed. This was raised several times by the funding agency, IDB, as the leachate ponds are a critical part of any landfill operation.

Leachate generation is a major problem for solid waste landfill and can cause a significant threat to surface and groundwater.

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