PLANS for a project to improve the treatment of waste flowing into a beck have been unveiled.

Yorkshire Water is about to begin work on a £390,000 scheme to improve the treatment of sewage in the village of Oldstead, near Thirsk.

The project, which gets under way in April, will see a "package" treatment works built near the end of the existing sewerage system.

It has been designed to ensure that waste water and sewage is treated to a much higher level than at present.

At present, waste from homes goes into septic tanks and, after only basic treatment, is discharged into Wakendale Beck.

Once the new project is completed, the waste, after passing through the septic tanks, will be treated to a much higher level by the new plant.

The plant, measuring 20 metres square, is being built half-way up the village hill.

Yorkshire Water said all that will be visible above ground will be an electrical control kiosk, which will be about two metres high.

Project manager Gerry Smith said: "This scheme is all about benefiting the environment.

"At the moment, we cannot always guarantee the quality of treated waste entering Wakendale Beck, as some of the septic tanks might not be working to their full potential.

"Once the package plant is built, we can guarantee the final effluent discharged into the beck is of a much higher quality than ever before."

The work is expected to take three months to complete, and Mr Smith said that while the engineers were working on the package plant, it would be highly unlikely that they would need access to homes.

He said: "I would like to remind residents that all our staff and contractors carry identification.

"If anyone claims to be from Yorkshire Water needing entry into houses, please do not let them in until you have checked with us by calling our contact centre on (0845) 124 2424.

"If in doubt, the message is simple - don't let them in."