BC Capital Regional District develops a $1.2 billion strategy for wastewater treatment

The BC Capital Regional District has retained Associated Engineering with CH2M Hill and Kerr Wood Leidal to develop a plan
for improved wastewater treatment for the District’s Core Area. The Associated Engineering team will prepare a “Decision Information Report”, which will provide recommendations for cost effective, innovative, and environmentally responsible wastewater treatment for residents in the Capital Regional District.

The Capital Regional District currently provides preliminary wastewater treatment for about 300,000 residents in its Core Area and West Shore Area, which includes Victoria, Saanich, Esquimalt, Langford, Sooke, Oak Bay, View Royal, and Colwood. Treatment comprises fine screening at two treatment plants at Clover Point in Victoria and Macaulay Point in Esquimalt.

The consultant team will investigate wastewater treatment options including enhanced primary treatment and secondary treatment, as well as siting options for treatment plants. The Decision Information Report will provide recommendations for the number and siting of treatment plants as well as treatment technologies. Major issues include siting and large flows due to inflow and infiltration into the wastewater collection system. “We have proposed a collaborative process with the District to develop the Decision Information Report,” reports Project Manager, Rick Corbett, M.A.Sc., P.Eng. “Our team will prepare a series of discussion papers and then conduct workshops with the District’s Steering Committee and Advisory Committee to assist with decision making.”

Topics for the discussion papers include wastewater treatment design criteria, triple bottom line criteria, wastewater treatment technology options, resource recovery, odour control, biosolids management, cost estimates, and implementation schedule. The Steering Committee has agreed with the proposed Triple Bottom Line approach, which considers social, economic, and environmental criteria. Using this approach, the lowest-cost alternative may not necessarily be the selected solution.

Key members of the Associated Engineering team include wastewater process specialists, Pat Coleman, Ph.D., P.Eng., Dave Forgie, Ph.D., P.Eng., Dean Shiskowski, Ph.D., P.Eng., and Michelle Maynard, M.Sc., C.Eng., MICE.

Congratulations to Associated Engineering’s 2006 Service Award recipients!