Recent Projects
High Volume Low Square Footage Sewage Treatment Plant arrives for Northern community
BC, January 2020
Above: Custom steel frame buildings with wastewater treatment setups inside are separated and preparing for shippingA package sewage treatment plant for a community of 7500 was built in our factory to meet the new Canadian standards for discharge release to river, ocean or land. Four treatment methods, including dual treatment trains, are squeezed into six custom fabricated steel frame buildings, which were delivered to site complete by semi-truck in a snowstorm.
For treating the community’s sewage, a system was designed that included an automated screenings separator on top of an outside equalization tank, two stages and two parallel streams of Suspended Air Floatation (SAF), two Moving Bed Biofilm reactors, a settling tank, UV for sterilization of effluent, and a Trident dewatering/potential recycling unit for solids. The package plant is unique by fitting so many treatment systems and such high volume into a small area surrounded by steep mountains. Once the biology is functioning, maintenance of the plant is expected to be minimal.
Spin filters and ion exchange vessels are managed by touch-screen control software and panel
Ion Exchange for remote island resolves organic carbons and disinfection byproducts
Texada Island, BC, Nov, 2019
Dissolved organic carbons creating disinfection byproducts are an issue for many BC community water supplies. This one on Texada Island took several seasons of pilot testing, various party’s involvement, and time to solve. RES’EAU WaterNET’s pilot van visited Texada Island in 2016, and tried carbon filters, which quickly became saturated.
Ion exchange was found to significantly reduce THM formation. A system with spin filters, ion exchange (which also softens the water), and UV treatment in a container was designed by BI Pure Water and skidded to place in late November. The design is able to use the existing chlorine injection for final residual disinfection.
Organic carbons are reduced by the filtration and ion exchange to below 2 parts per million. The operators were involved throughout the design-build process for their input and to learn the system. The community was able to pay for the upgraded water system with 80 per cent infrastructure grants.
An ultrafiltration unit supplies increased potable water volume year round
Northwest Territories community by the river receives new ultrafiltration plant
Tulita, NWT, October 2019
A community “where the rivers meet” in the Dene language — called Tulita — received a package water treatment upgrade to address a shortage of treated water and turbidity.
The community started as a Hudson’s Bay Company trading post known as Fort Norman in 1869. It’s on the Mackenzie River canoe route to Norman Wells and the Inside Passage. The area has long been occupied by three First Nations who also share management of the hamlet’s lands and resources: Sahtu Dene, Metis and Slavey First Nations.
The new package plant shares a habitat with a large northern grizzly population. The Bear and Mackenzie rivers jump with Arctic Char. While the community has been lobbying for a year round highway, access in winter is by ice road. Tulita is only accessible in summer by river barge, other than flying in supplies. This creates a challenge to deliver the water treatment equipment needed by the community.
As community members prepared the site and electrical supply, a complete 55,000lb plant was on its way down the highway on a multi-axel trailer, just meeting 55,000 pound limit from Vancouver to Fort Simpson. On the edge of the Mackenzie River it was lifted off onto another trailer in time for July’s community deliveries. The barge also visits Fort Simpson, Dellor, and Norman Wells to the north.
Once it arrived in Tulita, the new plant was pushed off the barge with a front end loader on a jeep, and dragged into place on the shore of the Great Bear River. The plant has a new robust diesel tank system and generator, and expanded ultrafiltration.