Waterton Lakes National Park Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade
eliminates discharge of effluent to Waterton River
Nestled in the southwest corner of Alberta, on the edge of the
Rocky Mountains, Waterton Lakes National Park is a picturesque
tourist destination and a
designated world heritage
site. The town site
lays on the edge of
Waterton Lake, which
forms the headwater for
Waterton River.
The existing wastewater
treatment plant was
designed to meet the
1976 Environment
Canada Effluent
Treatment Standards.
Parks Canada and
Environment Canada
have since increased
these treatment standards.
The original
wastewater treatment
plant discharged effluent
to the Waterton River,
which is a pristine
environment.
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Wastewater treatment lagoons, headworks, and blower building
|
Public Works and Government Services Canada investigated
alternative options for effluent disposal. The Waterton Golf
Course and Parks Canada expressed interest in using the treated
wastewater effluent for golf course irrigation. Waterton Golf
Course was using irrigation water from the nearby Blakiston
Creek, a bull trout spawning site.
The project team concluded that using suitably treated wastewater
effluent from the upgraded Waterton Lakes wastewater
treatment plant to irrigate the Waterton Lakes
Golf Course would:
- Eliminate or reduce the load of nutrients
from treated wastewater effluent into
Waterton River, the current receiving
water body of the effluent, and
- Eliminate water withdrawal from Blakiston Creek, which will
improve fish habitat, particularly during low flow periods in
the creek.
Associated Engineering provided conceptual, pre-design, and
detailed design, tendering, and construction services to upgrade
the existing wastewater
treatment plant. The
process upgrades
include a new headworks
facility, upgraded
lagoons and blower
building, filtration, and
ultraviolet disinfection.
The project required
Associated Engineering
to work with multiple
stakeholders including
Parks Canada, Public
Works and Government
Services Canada,
Waterton Lake Golf
Course Management,
Waterton Lakes Community
Association, and the
Canadian Environment
Assessment Agency.
The upgrade is an economic solution that allowed the Park to
cease discharge into Waterton River and irrigate the Golf Course
without water withdrawal from Blakiston Creek.
The new treatment plant provides for large yearly fluctuations in
Waterton National park population, which ranges from 100 in the
winter to 5000 in the summer. The upgrade contributes to the
quality of visitor experiences in Waterton Lakes
National Park while mitigating environmental
impacts from wastewater production and treatment, and contributes to achieving Parks
Canada’s Environmental Management
System National Framework objective for
impacts on the ecology of national parks.
Key personnel involved on the project
include Andy Barr, Anita Selinger,
Mike Whalley, Louis deLange,
Mila Paramonov, Owen Gray, Joe Fetters,
and Nizar Dhanani.
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New grinder and auger |
Ultraviolet light
disinfection system |
Waterton Lakes golf course irrigation pond |
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