Kailua: City blocks odor, eliminates ‘the hauna smell’

HONOLULU—The City and County of Honolulu announced that work is beginning on $11 million worth of odor control improvements at the Kailua Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant.

“This important project is part of our continuing effort to upgrade our island’s wastewater infrastructure,” acting Mayor Kirk Caldwell said. “It will help eliminate the hauna smell that changing wind conditions sometimes blow toward nearby homes.”

The project will include the installation of larger fans and ductwork to minimize odors from the plant’s treatment process, along with sound enclosures and duct silencers to minimize noise.

The work will also include:

·    Replacement of existing chemical scrubbers with biotrickling filters to reduce operation and maintenance costs;
·    Installation of a new odor reduction unit for the biotower pump station wetwell;
·    Modification of the existing trickling filters to be used for odor treatment;
·    Extending the odor exhaust stacks throughout the plant to increase air dispersion to meet state Department of Health air permit requirements;
·    Enclosing the centrifuge floor of the existing dewatering building and providing a new ventilation and odor control system to prevent fugitive odors;
·    Constructing a new enclosed digester gas flare to minimize fugitive emissions and improve reliability (existing flare will be kept as an emergency backup).

The project’s total cost is $11,789,642, and the contract allows 450 days for completion.