The odour issue in Kohtla-Järve is decreasing

Four companies operating in Kohtla-Järve are successfully implementing odour control plans approved by the Environmental Board to reduce odours that disturb locals.Last year, the Environmental Board approved action plans to reduce odorous chemical compounds in Novotrade Invest, Järve Biopuhastus, Eastman Specialties and VKG Oil to control the odour problems of residents of Kohtla-Järve. By now, the companies have started to operate and the first results show a reduction in the odour. “Resolving the odour problem in the Kohtla-Järve area is a very difficult task, for the odour is created by the combined effect of the operation of several companies facing the same problem, who would have to reduce the odour that their operation causes. Therefore, all parties must jointly invest in their production technology or in the application of innovative techniques. We acknowledge the local businesses for executing the activities agreed with us and thereby contributing to the reduction of the odour. Measurements already show that the first changes made are beneficial and the odour has been diminished. By the summer of 2022, however, all of the activities in the control plans must be implemented and the odour significantly reduced,” explained Dagmar Undrits, Chief Environmental Officer of the Ambient Air Quality at the Environmental Board.According to the words of Undrits, it is particularly reassuring that some innovative odour control plan measures may also be suitable for other companies facing problems that need to reduce the odour brought along with their activities. For example, Järve Biopuhastus will use digested sewage sludge drying as a novel sludge treatment technology, which will help significantly reduce the odour arising from sludge.VKG Oil removes two primary sources of unpleasant odours, by directing the resulting emissions to the postcombustion. By doing this, it significantly reduces the odour associated with air emission.Eastman Specialties installed additional heat exchangers and more leak-proof pumps that stop releasing so much smelling chemical compounds. Measurements performed by the Estonian Environmental Research Center in March 2019 showed that thanks to these activities, the odour emissions by the company is reduced by as much as 80-98%.Novotrade Invest also has made efforts to reduce odour by installing an innovative exhaust capture and recovery system called PLAZKAT on its liquid container fleet. The odorous exhaust gases are collected via a special pipeline and directed to destruction to reduce odour. Thanks to the use of the new system, the odour reduction of the company is estimated to be 77% lower than before.All the activities within the activity plans prepared in the cooperation of the the Environmental Agency and the respective companies, will be implemented by the summer of 2022 at the latest. New evaluations will then be performed, to find out how the implementation of these plans has reduced the odour in Kohtla-Järve. Compliance with the plans is controlled by the Environmental Board and the Environmental Inspectorate.The action plans for reducing the odorous chemical compounds for companies can be found on the website of the Environmental Board. More information:Dagmar UndritsKeskkonnaameti välisõhu peaspetsialiste-mail: dagmar.undrits@keskkonnaamet.ee telephone: 680 7423Sille AderSpokesperson for the Environmental Boarde-mail: sille.ader@keskkonnaamet.ee telephone: 5745 0332