Keys for Wastewater Treatment Plant Handed to City

Article by Lori Larsen, Camrose Booster

On December 21, 2023, the Waste Water Treatment Plant Project was officially given the green light on substantial completion for the main treatment upgrades to the aerated lagoons, Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) tanks and process building.

As of that day the City took over full responsibility for the day-to-day operations and maintenance of these facilities which also started the two year warranty period for those major facilities and processes.

“Maple Reinders Constructors (MRCL) is still on site, and will continue working on various upgrades within the South Lift Station and in the old blower building, which is being converted to a storage/workshop facility for staff,” explained City of Camrose Engineering Services manager Jeremy Enarson. “MRCL will also continue to be working in the Process Building on clean-up of various deficiencies. But the keys have effectively been handed over to the City for the main treatment and storage facilities.”

In a report to City council on January 22, Enarson presented a complete update of the Wastewater Treatment Plant Construction and Landfill Clay Purchase projects.

“As part of the ongoing operations, Administration continues to test the wastewater on a regular basis to confirm if the WWTP is meeting the treatment requirements, as required by the provincial and federal regulators,” noted Enarson.

“These test results are being shared with MRCL, as they have an ongoing requirement within the contract to assist the City with optimizing the treatment process until the project is fully complete in the spring of 2024.”

Enarson reported that, based on the test results, Administration and AE note that most of the required treatment parameters are meeting the new limits outlined by the regulators, although there are still a few parameters which are not consistently meeting the new limits.

“Under the new provincial approval, the City has until the end of June 2024 to ensure that all parameters are within the new limits without being in contravention.”

Enarson explained that due to the extreme cold temperatures in mid-January, the WWTP experienced a number of operational issues in particular related to the MBBR tanks.

“The treatment processes appears to have functioned relatively well during the cold temperatures. However, the extreme cold resulted in ice buildup within the MBBR structure.

“Administration worked with AE and with MRCL to identify some short term options for keeping water flowing through the MBBR tanks, as well as some longer-term options to ensure that the MBBR process functions during future cold weather events.”

Enarson gave kudos to the operational and maintenance staff during this bout of cold weather for putting in extra time and effort to keep things operating.

Financial Status

According to Enarson’s report, the City has spent over $47,254,000 to date on the WWTP project. At this time, the City is expecting the final cost for the WWTP project to be around $49,396,000, which is below the approved budget of $51,170,000.

“The City has already spent over $300,000 on costs that are outside of MRCL or AE’s scope, and will spend approximately another $150,000 on additional out-of-scope costs before the project is complete.”

He explained that these costs include the purchase of items for the WWTP, such as, computer hardware and software for monitoring the various wastewater treatment processes and equipment, the initial purchase of chemicals for the operations of the WWTP, a forklift for moving around equipment and chemicals within the Process Building, as well as tools and other equipment that City staff will need in the operation of the new facilities, including in the new laboratory.

“In addition, the City has charged over $200,000 to date for City staff and equipment costs for work directly related to the WWTP project. This amount is expected to be around $270,000 once all City costs are allocated to the project for 2023 and 2024. All remaining expenses will be charged to the WWTP project by the end of 2024.”

As noted in the report and earlier reports to council, all of the work on the Landfill Clay Purchase Project is complete.

Council Inquiries

Councillor Joy-Anne Murphy asked for more information about planning for any future weather anomalies and whether there was any damage to the WWTP as a result of the recent cold weather.

Enarson replied, “The MMBR process is designed to function in an open air environment in cold temperatures. It should continue to function from a treatment perspective in those cold temperatures.

“The issue we received on site was that in those cold temperatures we were getting a lot of icing,” explained Enarson adding that Administration was advised by the contractor on what can be done in the event of future extreme cold temperatures.

“One of the deliverables we need from the consultants is input on our standard operating standards–giving advice on how we should run this, making sure operators not only understand the theory behind the technology but also advice on how to run the facility as we get into winter months. What they suggest on making changes in terms of how to flow liquid through the processes so it gives us greater success when we do get into the cold events in the future.”

City of Camrose manager Malcolm Boyd added that because this is a brand new process for the City, with no winter experience yet, it is more about optimizing the processes not insulating or putting a roof on the MMBR tanks.

In conclusion, Enarson indicated that Administration is exploring the idea of hosting open houses and tours for public, including schools and other organizations interested in how the system operates, and what can be done at the facility to add to that experience.

Find out more about the Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrade Project here.

(Pictured above: City of Camrose Utilities Manager Kelly Bunclark, left, shakes the hand of Maple Reinders Constructors Project Manager Justin Schenk signifying the official handing over of keys from Maple Reinders to the City for substantial day-to-day operations of the new Waste Water Treatment Plant.)