Wastewater drainage from Kyiv’s residential buildings will continue to operate regardless of whether there is electricity. This was stated in an interview with Ekonomichna Pravda by Kyivvodokanal Deputy Chief Executive Serhiy Horkutsenko.
He explained that the Bortnychi Aeration Station is a large facility whose main collectors run beneath the metro. Problems are possible after targeted strikes, but the water utility has taken measures.
Strikes could disrupt the treatment system, but 25 years ago the capital already experienced an environmental disaster when one of the sewage stations was flooded and wastewater poured into the Dnipro.
“Three kilometres outside Kyiv the water met all standards. Anything can happen. You have to understand: if the accumulated wastewater does not leak out where there is residential development, that is one thing, but if this wastewater starts leaking near homes and flooding basements, that will be quite another,” the official said.
He assured that the sewerage system in buildings will keep working, and there will be no cesspits in the Desnyanskyy district.
Kyiv currently generates 680,000–700,000 cubic metres of sewage per day. If there is a power outage, then “Kyiv will not take more than 200,000 [cubic metres of water] in consumption”.
The official added that if there are power cuts lasting 20 hours a day and there is frost, water supply will be available during the four hours when there is no outage.
“Technically it will look like this: the power goes out, the water utility stops supplying water but keeps water in the networks. The power comes back, we start the pumps, the water is already standing under the building, we push the water through, and water appears in the building,” he said, stressing that the sewerage system will work the whole time, including when there is no power.
During prolonged outages in freezing weather, pipes outside the building will not freeze, but there is a risk of freezing for the building’s internal networks. This is the responsibility of homeowners’ associations and property owners, the deputy CEO of Kyivvodokanal explained.
“If there is no electricity for 20 hours, at minus ten there is a very high risk of the system freezing inside the building itself,” he said.