the alberta capital region wastewater commission - Agenda

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6 WASTEWATER The Alberta Capital Region Wastewater CommissionMike Darbyshire, general manager, describesit in the simplest terms: “The ACRWC deals withtransmission and treatment of wastewater, that’swhat we do. Each community connected to thesystem collects its own wastewater and dischargesit into the system. Then we take it andbring the water to the plant and treat it, beforedischarging it to the North Saskatchewan River.”How it all worksThe transmission system consists of 120 km ofgravity sewers, 51 km of pressure pipelines andfive pump stations. This system conveys wastewaterto the ACRW Treatment Plant from membermunicipalities in the west, north and east sectionsof the region. It also conveys wastewaterfrom the south members (City and County ofLeduc, and the Town of Beaumont) into the Cityof Edmonton system for treatment.In exchange, the ACRW Treatment Planttakes wastewater from Clareview in northeast Edmontonand from the Clover Bar Industrial Area.This exchange is regulated by the SWAP Agreementbetween Edmonton and the Commission(which expires in 2015).As for the treatment, the provincial govern-GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE.LOCAL FOCUS.
MAY 2010 The Canadian Business Journal7ment requires the plant treatment processes toachieve ammonia-nitrogen concentration to lessthan 10 mg/L during winter months and lessthan 5 mg/L during summer months, and totalphosphorus less than 1.0 mg/L.Darbyshire says this mandate is relativelynew. “We get an operating approval that setsthe parameters for how well we have to treatthe wastewater,” he explains. “In 1996, thegovernment changed it so that, by June 2005,we had to go from conventional treatment toan advanced treatment processes of biologicalnutrient removal (BNR) and ultraviolet (UV) disinfection.We had to start treating for nitrogen andphosphorous before the wastewater gets dischargedto the rivers.”Why it’s importantBecause wastewater management doesn’t affecthousehold drinking water, there is room for confusionas to why it’s important. What the publicshould understand is that treatment removes orreduces contaminants in the water, so that thetreated effluent from will not create pollution towater body after it is discharged.If wastewater goes untreated, the organicmatter it contains will decompose and leadto nuisance conditions, such as production ofmalodorous gases. It also contains nutrients thatYOU CAN HELP ▼You can help• Conserve water in your home by usinglow-flow fixtures and fix any leaks. Thisreduces the amount of water that needsto be treated.• Don’t pour fats, oils and grease downthe drain–dispose in the garbage. Thesesubstances clog pipes leading to costlyrepairs.• Take unused medications to thepharmacy for disposal rather thanflushing them down the toilet.Pharmaceuticals are not treated and endup in the environment.• Use phosphate-free cleaning materialsto reduce phosphorous levels in theriver. Phosphorous is a nutrient thatpromotes algae growth negativelyaffecting the aquatic environment.• Take household hazardous waste –motoroil, pesticides, herbicides, solvents,paint and chemicals –to a recycle facilityor community round-up event insteadof pouring it down the drain. Toxicsubstances are not treated and end up inthe environment.• Compost organic materials likevegetable peelings instead of using agarburator. Ground up organic materialcosts more to treat and must be disposedof at the wastewater treatment plant.
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