This Valentine’s Day, owners and operators of reed beds should commit to showing them some love for commercial, environmental, and reputational reasons.
Tag: reed beds
Severn questions with Billy Hurst from Oren Environmental
Billy Hurst is a construction supervisor for Oren Environmental. He began working for the company over five years ago and has worked on over 80 reed beds.
He describes his role, how he came to work for Oren Environmental, and why reed bed maintenance is essential.
Why are reed beds often built and forgotten?
A reed bed is a nature-based solution for treating water. It can be used in the final stage of the wastewater treatment process, ensuring water is ‘polished’ before being discharged into watercourses and the wider environment.
However, a reed bed system can often be neglected despite its essential role, leading to suboptimal performance and potentially harmful environmental consequences. But why does this happen?
We spoke to Ross Brown, Sales Manager at Oren Environmental, who explained why reed beds are often built and forgotten.
7 reasons why reed bed maintenance is essential
Reed beds are natural filtration systems crucial for conserving water quality. However, like any other wastewater asset, they must be regularly looked after to do their job correctly.
Unfortunately, reed beds are often neglected until a problem occurs, such as a pollution incident.
Alastair Pentland, Environmental Operations Manager at Oren Environmental, has outlined the seven reasons why routine reed bed maintenance is essential.
The common challenges that arise from refurbishing reed beds
Despite playing a vital role in water treatment, reed beds are often built and forgotten assets. Consequently, if any issue arises because a reed bed has been neglected – such as discharge consent failures or watercourse pollution incidents – proactive maintenance may not be possible, resulting in a complete refurbishment.
The reed bed refurbishment process can be expensive and lengthy, requiring several months of preparation beforehand and time to commission it afterwards once the work’s done.
To avoid refurbishment, reed beds should be routinely maintained over their lifespan – like any other water or wastewater asset. Otherwise, reed bed owners or managers face several unwieldy challenges that go hand in hand with a reed bed refurbishment.
Continue reading “The common challenges that arise from refurbishing reed beds”
Potential fines for polluters who’ve neglected their reed beds
In December 2023, the government announced it was lifting the cap on the £250,000 fine limit for environmental polluters and expanding the list of offences businesses can be fined for. This applies to any organisation that holds an environmental permit.
Continue reading “Potential fines for polluters who’ve neglected their reed beds”The multifaceted role of a reed bed and why maintenance is key
It’s important to remember that regular maintenance is crucial for any reed bed to work – whether it’s a natural or engineered reed bed. This is because reed beds play a critical role in the water treatment process.
The Oren Environmental team is on a mission to help educate the industry about the importance of taking care of reed beds and the benefits that come from looking after them.
Alastair Pentland, Environmental Operations Manager at Oren Environmental, said:
“I think that because reed beds are situated in the natural environment, they can often be overlooked and their role underestimated. Not only do they prevent water courses from pollution, but they also provide a home to countless plants and species.”
Oren Case Study – May 2023
Refurbishing reed beds while maintaining compliance
Our client
Our client is a utility company.
The location is a rural village in England.
The reed bed – both measure 9m x 29m – and form part of a sewage treatment works.
Oren Environmental and the Big Garden Birdwatch
Between 27-29 January 2023, twitchers everywhere will participate in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch campaign.
The initiative encourages people to spend one hour of their weekend logging the birds they see. This helps the RSPB to monitor the volume and profile of birds across the UK.
Continue reading “Oren Environmental and the Big Garden Birdwatch”
Protecting a beauty spot from polluted mine water
Protecting a beauty spot from polluted mine water
Our client
Our client is a county council in the UK.
The location is a woodland park with a canal. An area of natural beauty, the site was once home to a colliery that opened in the mid-nineteenth century. Today it’s a popular spot for hikers, dog walkers, joggers, cyclists, and picnickers.
The reed bed is part of an unmaintained treatment scheme built in the nineties. Once cleaned, the abandoned mine water from the former colliery is used to fill the canal to maintain its level.
