Kaikohe Wastewater Treatment Plant
The Kaikohe wastewater treatment plant is located adjacent to Wairoro Stream, near Cumber Road. This plant treats waste generated from Kaikohe and Ngawha including the Northland Regional Corrections Facility. The treatment plant also receives septage from across the district and sludge from the Russell wastewater treatment plant. The plant serves about 1600 properties and processes approximately 1500 cubic metres of wastewater each day.
Treating the wastewater
Treatment currently consists of an inlet screen, an anaerobic pond, an oxidation pond and a series of constructed wetlands. The plant also has a sludge lagoon and a sludge storage area. The treatment process takes about 30 days. The treated wastewater is discharged to the Wairoro stream.
Treatment process at the Kaikohe treatment plant
Monitoring
Discharges from the wastewater treatment plant are authorised by a resource consent. The resource consent sets out certain conditions, such as the requirement to regularly monitor the treated wastewater. There are three sampling points: at the outlet of the constructed wetlands, upstream of the discharge to Wairoro stream, and downstream of the discharge to the Wairoro stream.
