Work starts today on removing about 10 Olympic-sized swimming pools of rotting material from the fire-damaged trickling filters at the Christchurch Wastewater Treatment Plant

Christchurch City Council says it's skipped the tender process for the job, because of the impact the smell is having on residents in the Eastern suburbs.

From today, contractor Southern Demolition and Salvage Ltd will work six days a week, 12 hours per day to remove the material -- with work expected to take four months.

Material removed from the filters will be loaded into sealed bins and treated as hazardous waste.

Residents are still pushing ahead with a public meeting planned for tomorrow night at Bromley Community Centre.