Emergency repair work needed at Waste Water Treatment Plant

District Public Works senior staff met with Council today to discuss the need for emergency repairs required at the Waste Water Treatment Plant. The rotating steel structure in the circular clarifier tank has suffered a serious mechanical failure, rendering the tank out of commission. The plant has continued seamless operations by switching over to its backup system, which utilizes the “old” clarifier tank to process the waste water. The plant is continuing to operate as normal and is meeting all provincial standards.

The repairs are expected to cost a minimum of $110,500, though a worst-case scenario could put the costs at three-to-four times that amount. The Sewer Reserve Fund, kept for such unplanned maintenance like this, is the recommended source for funding. The full extent of the damage will not be known until the steel structure is taken apart and repair crews can fully investigate. The cause of the failure is also being thoroughly examined and investigated.

As is required in the event of any changes in procedures or complications at the Waste Water Treatment Plant, the District informed the BC Ministry of Environment to ensure the treated waste water that flows into the Squamish River is closely monitored and remains within acceptable levels of bacteria. The backup holding tank is working well, however it has a lower capacity than the primary tank, and the heavy rains are concerning as they are adding to the volume of water in the tank. If the backup system were to be overwhelmed it could mean that the volume of waste water through the system is too great and the normal bacteriological process might not fully occur.

“District crews are doing everything in their power to prevent or minimize any environmental impacts while this repair work is undertaken,” says Gary Buxton, General Manger of Community Planning and Infrastructure. “A number of safeguards have been implemented to ensure that the backup tank’s capacity is not exceeded and overwhelmed.”

These safeguards include:

• The now-empty holding tank that is out of commission is available to help reduce the flow to the backup tank, in order to avoid exceeding capacity;
• The Ultra Violet disinfection system that was added in 2017 has been increased in level in order to further disinfect the treated waste water prior to it entering the river.
• Constant monitoring of the treated waste water is underway, and the Ministry of Environment is also engaged and monitoring.

“This situation is concerning and I would like to commend Public Works staff for their dedication, hard work and level heads in a stressful and challenging situation,” says District of Squamish Mayor Patricia Heintzman. “We appreciate the work they do every day to ensure our community services remain uninterrupted for citizens, and that the environmental impact of these services is utmost in their minds.”

A full cost and timeline for the repairs will be finalized once the extent of the damage is understood.

January 23, 2018