IMPROVEMENTS FOR CREMATORIUM

New, more energy efficient furnaces are set to be installed at the crematorium, along with improvements to the building.

The scheme was agreed last night (Thursday 11 November) at a meeting of the council’s Cabinet. The crematorium currently has cremators dating back to the early 1990s, which are coming to the end of their useful lives. They will be replaced by new, larger cremators, which will have more than enough capacity to deal with the 1,600 cremations that take place in Thanet, on average, every year.

The new cremators will remove 100% of a range of identified toxic elements, such as mercury, hydrogen chloride and various dioxins. At present, government regulations state that at least half of these emissions need to be removed by the end of 2012, but it is expected that this target will increase to 100% in the future.

The work will cost just over £1.5 million, of which around £620,000 has come from the current cremator replacement fund. This was an additional environmental charge on every cremation carried out, which was put in place in 2005 to help pay for the new equipment.

Other work set to be carried out at the crematorium, as part of this scheme, includes:
· Upgrading the heating and ventilation system.
· Upgrading the gas and electricity supplies.
· New fire alarm system and emergency lighting.
· New access road and hard standing for deliveries and staff parking, away from public visitor areas.

Cllr. Martin Wise, Cabinet Member for Environmental Services, said: “When you think of the council and the services it provides, I doubt many people realise that we are responsible for the crematorium. Yet it’s probably one of the more vital areas we operate and certainly one that we have to ensure works perfectly at all times. With the equipment starting to come to the end of its natural life, we need to take action. The scheme we’ve agreed will see new, more efficient cremators installed and a range of other improvements at the crematorium.”