WRc Clarity: Rethinking the CSO for the 21st Century

WRc Clarity design principles

The design of the traditional combined sewer overflow (CSO) has remained the same for years, though additional screening has been retrofitted at existing CSOs or included at new CSO designs to achieve tighter aesthetic requirements. However, these screens require cleaning either mechanically or by operational staff and can entail high OPEX costs and residual H&S risks.

WRc has developed and patented a new CSO design that minimises environmental pollution, requires no power to be operational and can be manufactured as a modular unit offsite from partially recycled materials. Floating solids presented to the screen are reduced by over 90%. This means that WRc Clarity actively reduces environmental pollution being discharged from CSO spills.

Benefits

• Reduces debris presented to the screen by up to 90%.
• Reduces pollution of watercourses and beaches.
• Significant carbon savings in manufacture and operation.
• Quicker fabrication and installation.
• Improves reliability in network operations.
• Modular concept increases flexibility.
• Reduced OPEX costs over traditional powered solutions.

WRc Clarity is trademarked and improves the environmental impact of CSO spills whilst the water industry - WRc included - search for further solutions to address environmental pollution in the long term. Its game-changing design was shortlisted at both the Institute of Water SWA Innovation Awards 2021 and the Water Industry Awards, for which it was named a 2021 finalist in the category 'Wastewater Innovation Project of the Year' and for a second time in 2022. WRc Clarity (known as WRcCSO at the time) won the 2022 RSK Innovation Awards.