Town of Sundre

CAO Verbal Report to June 28, 2021 Council Meeting

Lagoon Funding Announcement

 

The Town has been working on alternate solutions to the high capital cost of upgrading our wastewater treatment system for a number of years, which was initially projected to come in at about 13 million in capital costs, plus anticipated higher operating costs, and would treat a population of just over 3000.  At the end of 2017, Council requested the CAO to research the actual situation with the existing system.  In 2018, the Town commissioned our consulting engineers to conduct a study of our infrastructure, including existing conditions and restraints, as well as future growth projections for the commercial, industrial and residential areas, which is now complete. The Utility Master Plan studied the Town’s existing wastewater system, which services to a population of 2729. With the upgrades required by 2025, which will service the Town to a population of 3975, the estimated cost within the study is $14,950,000.00.  The trigger for the next required upgrade is a population of 4,720, with additional estimated costs of $29,900,000.00, for a total cost of $44,850,000.00 for full build, if we were to use traditional treatment methods.  

 

Since that time, we have had a letter of authorization regarding our quality-based effluent limits assessment from Alberta Environment and Parks.  Upon renewal of Sundre’s wastewater approval in 2025, new Provincial effluent limits will be imposed on the treated wastewater discharged to Red Deer River.  Consequently, Sundre has embarked upon an aggressive program of identifying and testing a cost effective, innovative wastewater treatment option for commercial implementation well in advance of 2025.

 

In early 2019, the Town began exploring a new technology for treating wastewater with Tecvalco, and since that time, our discussions have expanded to include Current Water Solutions Inc, and Soneera Water Canada, (Tecvalco’s licensor and technology owner).  Shortly after the initial introductions, the Town of Sundre (TOS) CAO, key staff members and members of Council, representatives from other municipalities, and the President of AUMA toured a Waste Water Treatment Plant in Saskatchewan.  

Many communities in Alberta currently utilize a traditional lagoon to treat their wastewater, and while they are reasonably inexpensive to operate, they take up a significant amount of land, and take up to 200 days to treat the wastewater.   The advanced technology Sundre is proposing is efficient and designed specifically to outlast the lifespan of a lagoon.  In comparison to a traditional lagoon, this technology has a significantly smaller footprint, but what is really interesting is that the system treats raw sewage in less than 60 minutes!  The system is scalable, and can be designed to meet the needs of small villages of less than 1,000 people, and can be designed to meet the needs of a much larger urban centre.  The building can also be designed for expansion, based on the growth of a community. The system can be seamlessly integrated into existing infrastructure, such as a traditional lagoon, which in turn utilizes the lagoons as storage and further settling.  The system does not require chemicals or membranes, and as a result, it is less costly to operate over time when compared to other mechanical systems.

Even more significant to Alberta Parks and Environment is theenvironmentally responsible path that pays homage to the Guiding Principle, "Red Deer River pristine waters are extracted by the community/pristine wastewaters are returned to the Red Deer River” that Sundre has embarked on.   The community’s commitment to this Guiding Principle fuels the desire to reach beyond conventional biological water treatment approaches that have resulted in the long-term systemic degradation of water systems throughout Canada, and to adopt appropriate innovative solutions for the management of ammonia, phosphorus, TSS, BOD, E. coliand other parameters. This innovative electrochemical solution is designed to provide effective year-round treatment and enable Sundre to preserve the pristine quality of the Red Deer River for our neighbours downstream.  

Unique to this electrochemical wastewater treatment system, governments will be empowered with the knowledge that municipalities located in the northern regions of Canada and globally, will be capable of cost effective treatment of municipal wastewater 12 months of the year without investing heavily in the expensive practice of heating the water prior to treatment or alternatively increasing the discharge guidelines due to the inability of most biological treatment processes to effectively treat wastewater during the colder months. With the later approach, nutrients and minerals often accumulate in receiving water bodies during the cold months and result in eutrophication and algal blooms in the spring, which prevent light and oxygen from entering the water, thereby affecting water quality and plant/animal survival. 

Removal of nutrients to a level exceeding current guidelines demonstrates Sundre’s forward looking wastewater management strategy. The practice of effective treatment will preclude the excessive loading of nutrients during the colder months and subsequent eutrophication and reduction in water quality of waters downstream during the spring and summer months.

Sundre’s selection of the electrochemical treatment of ammonia will eliminate the production of the Greenhouse Gas nitrous oxide which is associated with all biological treatment approaches for the treatment of ammonia and other nitrogen compounds.  Nitrous oxide is approximately 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide as an agent of global warming and its chemical interactions in the atmosphere depletes the ozone layer. 

The general adoption of the AmmEl approach for the treatment of ammonia will result in improved water quality and reduced impact on global warming and ozone depletion. Each community that embraces this approach should qualify for Carbon Credits, which could offset operational costs.

This unique electrochemical solution will be designed to both meet 2025 effluent limits and future limits which will greatly assist Sundre and other small communities to reduce their environmental impact and maintain the pristine nature of local and regional water sources. 

The support and commitment that Sundre has received from Alberta Environment and Parks, and Alberta Transportation has been nothing less that outstanding!  The Sundre Mayor and the CAO met with the Honorable Jason Nixon, Minister of Environment, Alberta to discuss and describe the proposed project and the benefits of this project Province wide.  The Town of Sundre CAO and key staff began communicating with Alberta Environment staff regarding the process for introducing new technology, with the blessing of Town Council.   After many meetings and discussions with Alberta Environment and Parks, the Town applied to for Short Term Testing of an Advanced Wastewater Treatment Pilot Project. We received approval for a two-year testing permit of the technology on June 23, 2020.

Since that time, we have had additional meetings with the Honorable Jason Nixon, Minister of Environment and Parks, and the Honorable Ric McIver, Minister of Transportation, to discuss how to move forward under tight timelines.  Tecvalco’s licensor and technology owner, Soneera Water Canada Ltd., is proposing to fund and construct a full scale Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) for the Town of Sundre.  The WWTP will have a dual purpose;

 

1)   it will prove the technologies capabilities within the Province of Alberta, and

2)   it will allow the Town to proceed with the requirement of upgrading and increasing their daily flow rate so that the Town can take excess wastewater from surrounding areas. 

 

This proposal will include the total construction of the WWTP including infrastructure (building) and all required equipment to achieve the required standards set by Alberta Environment.  The WWTP will be a closed loop system where only treated water is discharged and the waste sludge will be turned into treated pellets that meet Fertilizer Standards which could then be sold as fertilizer or used as land fill. 

 

Following the construction of the WWTP, starting in 2021 and finishing in early 2022, an agreed upon testing period to provide the necessary cold weather data that is required by Alberta Environment will commence.  Upon successfully completing the testing period and meeting the discharge criteria set forth by Alberta Environment, Soneera would be paid in full by the Town within an agreed timeframe.  

 

This proposal removes all financial risk for the Town of Sundre and the Province of Alberta. The new WWTP will be built on time and as per an agreed contract with all, if any cost overruns to be covered by Soneera.  This alleviates any risk that the Town or Alberta Environment have that the WWTP will not perform as expected and agreed upon.  

 

This is a good news story that will benefit many Municipalities in the Province of Alberta.  With the support of the Province of Alberta, the cost effective treatment, scalability and preservation of the pristine quality of the water will pavean environmentally responsible path for other small communities to reduce their environmental impact and to maintain the pristine nature of local and regional water sources.

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