INNOVATION July-August 2016

Process Water Recycler Eliminates Need for Wet Sedimentation Ponds Fines Recovery Solutions Inc. has developed an automated process to remove and handle the mud from dirty process water created by aggregate washing or construction operations. This system provides immediate recycling of 90 to 95 percent of the input water. The extracted mud is stabilised with a patented food-grade chemical to make it both easier to handle and resistant to reabsorption of water from rain or snow melt. The mud can be pumped or, after a brief consolidation period, trucked as a solid to a disposal site. The controller provides for local or remote control, alarming, and data tracking. This process eliminates the need for wet sedimentation ponds, thus improving employee safety, reducing environmental risk from containment breaches, and freeing space for more profitable uses. APEGBC member: Brian Weeks, P. Eng. Small Space Retrofit of a Wastewater Treatment System Creekside Custom Foods hired Keystone Environmental Ltd. to provide solutions to address fluctuating acidity, total oil and grease, and total suspended solids beyond Metro Vancouver permit limits. Keystone Environmental Ltd. provided options to improve plant performance, identified short- and long-term system upgrades and modifications, and completed a design–build treatment system. Key design factors included handling high acidity from lactate in the sourdough baking process (pH = 3), spiking high alkalinity from wash chemicals, and high solids content, as well as limited space and a requirement to use existing infrastructure without demolition or sub-grade work. The resulting three-dimensional layout showed horizontal and vertical extents where the proposed treatment equipment could be situated. The build occurred in the commercial bakery during 24/7 operations without affecting bakery operations. Safeguard Mechanical Ltd successfully installed and commissioned the system. APEGBC members, Keystone Environmental Ltd. (primary consultant): Christina Chan, P.Eng., Alice Kruchten, EIT, Sarah Sanche, EIT; Primary Contractors: Greenline Management Ltd., Safeguard Mechanical Ltd.

Capilano Break Head Tank and Energy Recovery Facility The Capilano Break Head Tank and Energy Recovery Facility, located at the terminus of a seven-kilometre-long, gravity-driven tunnel from the Seymour– Capilano Filtration Plant, is a vital link in Metro Vancouver’s Seymour–Capilano Water Filtration System that supplies treated potable water to the cities of Vancouver, North Vancouver, and Burnaby. Knight Piésold designed and commissioned the tank and facility to provide reliable water-supply continuity and dissipate excess pressure in clean drinking water from the filtration plant before it is delivered to residents and businesses. The facility includes one of North America’s largest energy-recovery turbines in a municipal treated-potable water system. The turbine is expected to generate power to help offset consumption by the Capilano Pump Station, thereby reducing Metro Vancouver’s total energy consumption by about 9,600 megaWatt hours each year.

Owner: Metro Vancouver; Design Engineer: Knight Piésold Ltd.; Subconsultants: CP Automation and Gygax Engineering Associates

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