The long-awaited demolition of Christchurch’s fire-damaged trickling filters at the city’s wastewater treatment plant is set to begin.

Christchurch City Council has appointed Southern Demolition to carry out the work, which expected to take four to five months to complete.

This marks the first stage of a project aimed at permanently resolving odour issues that have affected the surrounding community.

The damaged filters will be replaced with an activated sludge reactor, a more advanced system designed to address the plant’s long-standing odour problems.

Christchurch City Council Head of Three Waters Gavin Hutchison said the start of demolition is an “exciting new phase” for the project.

“Since settling with our insurers we’ve been focused on getting demolition started. We know how important a permanent fix is to the local community, and we’ve been working hard to get boots on the ground as soon as possible,” Hutchison said.

“Residents will be able to see changes at the site happening very quickly. We’re aiming to have the walls of the trickling filters down by Christmas, and in the new year we’ll shift our focus to removing the foundations.”

Following demolition, construction will begin on the activated sludge reactor. “The next stage of work will be construction of the activated sludge reactor. Design work is currently underway, and it’s expected to take up to three years to get the new solution up and running,” Hutchison said.

Demolition work will take place during regular working hours, and contractors will work to reduce noise, dust, and traffic disruption as much as possible. Site vehicles will access the area via Cuthberts Road.

The Council has also planned to distribute more information to neighbouring residents in the coming days.