WCW26

A railyard and logistics centre Staged Master Drainage Plan (SMDP) outlines the stormwater management strategy for a 536‑hectare industrial development in southern Alberta. Prepared to meet strict local authority guidelines in a closed basin, the plan aims to manage post‑development runoff, protect retained Crown‑claimed wetlands, and integrate local and regional drainage infrastructure. The SMDP emphasizes adaptive management and long‑term monitoring to address uncertainties in groundwater–wetland interactions and ensure ongoing regulatory and environmental compliance.
The site consists primarily of cultivated land with flat topography and numerous wetlands. Geotechnical and groundwater investigations identified variable till layers and shallow bedrock, with groundwater generally flowing toward wetlands and exhibiting seasonal fluctuations. These conditions informed the drainage design and wetland protection approach.
Stormwater management is centered on nine wet stormwater management facilities (SWMFs) designed to provide sediment control and water quality treatment, exceeding the local authority requirement for 85% total suspended solids removal. Several facilities are positioned to support wetland hydrology and include provisions for direct pumping where required. A regional stormwater trunk system conveys controlled outflows to an open channel and is sized to accommodate both onsite and upstream catchments.
Development is planned in six phases, with each phase extending the trunk system and constructing associated infrastructure. Due to the absence of feasible overland emergency spill routes, the trunk system is designed with increased capacity to manage extreme storm events.
Hydrologic modeling using PCSWMM shows reduced infiltration and groundwater recharge and increased surface runoff following development. To mitigate impacts on wetland hydroperiods, adaptive management measures are recommended, including seasonal or year‑round pumping and potential supplemental groundwater baseflow.

Wastewater siphons represent some of the most difficult municipal assets to assess due to complex hydraulics, limited access, and operational constraints that restrict traditional inspection methods. This presentation examines the application of free-swimming multi-sensor inspection technology (INGU Pipers®) as a rapid screening tool for evaluating the condition and performance of large, multi-barrel wastewater siphons, using the City of Lethbridge triple barrel siphon as a detailed case study.
The Lethbridge system consists of multiple asbestos cement barrels operating under gravity-driven and pressurized conditions. Screening was conducted to establish a baseline understanding of system integrity, identify hydraulic inefficiencies, and inform future maintenance and high-resolution condition assessment planning. The inspection collected hydraulic grade line data, acoustic leak detection, air pocket identification, and indicators of internal restrictions while the system remained fully operational.
Results confirmed no active leaks within tool sensitivity, while identifying localized air accumulation and segments exhibiting elevated hydraulic losses consistent with internal deposition and reduced conveyance efficiency. Screening data supported targeted recommendations including progressive pigging to restore hydraulic performance and follow-up structural assessment to better understand long-term asset integrity.
This case study demonstrates how minimally invasive screening enables utilities to evaluate complex siphon infrastructure quickly, reduce uncertainty, and make defensible decisions regarding maintenance and capital planning. Attendees will gain practical insight into deployment strategies, data interpretation, and how screening technologies can support phased, risk-based condition assessment programs for critical wastewater siphons.

Granular media filters are at the heart of many water treatment plants and often the final barrier for particle removal. Although water treatment plants may vary in size and complexity, all granular media filters require backwash to recover the filter media after producing a batch of water. Filter Operators typically monitor and trend filter effluent quality and filter capacity. These two items are used by the Operator to determine if a filter is working well or not. To ensure efficient, sustained filter performance a third item should be added. The third item is monitoring and trending the backwash pressure. Unchecked, the backwash pressure across the filter can increase until the filter underdrain system becomes over-pressured and eventually fails. Even with a substantially plugged filter underdrain, the filter effluent quality and filter capacity may remain acceptable. Acceptable, until the filter underdrain fails! While a UFRV decrease or a filter effluent turbidity spike are readily noticeable, gradually increasing backwash pressure is silent.

The Lauderdale neighbourhood in Edmonton ranked as one of the higher priority flood risk neighbourhoods in EPCOR’s SIRP basin ranking system. The neighbourhood is partially separated with some dedicated storm sewers, but also portions of combined sewers with lower level of service that tend to exhibit drainage issues during intense rainfall. Stantec Consulting was retained by EPCOR to implement a flood mitigation dry pond and storm sewer upgrades in the neighbourhood to reduce the flood risk and improve the level of service for the drainage system. Starting as a concept design evaluation, the project continued through to a design phase and now implementation with construction starting in late 2025. Some unique challenges arose during the project including the assessment of a complex drainage network using a 2D hydraulic model, special design considerations for implementing a stormwater management facility in Edmonton’s largest fully fenced off-leash dog park, and a portion of dual-micro tunneling for deep sanitary and storm sewer installation. This presentation will showcase the unique challenges, creative solutions and lessons learned of this complex drainage upgrade in a sensitive area.

In Winnipeg, Manitoba, industries discharging industrial wastewater to the municipal collection system are required to meet wastewater quality limits set forth by the City’s Sewer By-law No. 106/2018. Given the strict discharge limits for biological oxygen demand (BOD), total suspended solids (TSS), pH, and fats, oils and grease (FOGs), many industries utilize onsite wastewater treatment systems to reduce these parameters prior to discharging their wastewater to avoid costly surcharges. However, for industries that produce a variety of different products, such as large-scale food processing facilities, the resulting wastewater quality can be highly variable making it difficult for onsite wastewater treatment systems to maintain optimal treatment conditions, such as coagulant dose. Therefore, industries are burdened with needing to continually monitor and manually adjust their onsite wastewater treatment system in order to minimize the discharge of overstrength wastewater and avoid surcharges. Given that most industries do not have dedicated wastewater treatment system operators, the onsite wastewater system often goes unattended and operates outside of the optimal treatment conditions, particularly when the industry produces highly variable wastewater quality.
To better control their onsite wastewater treatment system, a large-scale food processing facility installed a real-time monitoring system (i.e., an S::CAN Monitoring Station) to continually measure water quality prior to and following the onsite dissolved air flotation (DAF) system and automatically adjust coagulant and polymer dosing to meet treated water targets. The S::CAN system consisted of two (2) online UV-Vis spectrophotometers that would measure BOD, TSS, and FOGs as well as ORP and pH meters to monitor pre and post-treated water quality. Initially, the pre and post-treated water quality was monitored for approximately 3 months to evaluate the variability in the incoming wastewater quality and to identify periods where the production of a particular food product resulted in wastewater that was difficult to treat using DAF at the set coagulant and polymer dose. For production periods identified as producing wastewater that was particularly challenging for the DAF to treat, jar-testing was used to determine the optimal coagulant and polymer dose. Following the initial evaluation and optimization period, the wastewater quality data and optimal chemical dose ranges were used to develop and refine feedback logic used to control the chemical delivery system.
Overall, the implementation of the real-time S::CAN monitoring and automated dosing control system enabled the facility to transition from reactive, manual process adjustments to a proactive, data-driven treatment approach. By continuously characterizing influent variability and linking water quality measurements to optimized coagulant and polymer dosing strategies, the facility improved the stability and performance of its DAF system despite highly variable production schedules. The project demonstrates that integrating real-time monitoring with adaptive control logic can significantly enhance onsite industrial wastewater treatment reliability, particularly for food processing facilities with fluctuating wastewater characteristics.

Membrane failures in water and wastewater treatment systems often appear sudden, yet they typically result from progressive and detectable mechanisms. This presentation shares practical insights from conducting comprehensive membrane autopsies designed to uncover the root causes of performance decline. Using standardized procedures and analytical protocols, the work evaluates fouling layers, chemical deposits, structural damage, and operational histories to build a clear diagnostic profile for each membrane element. The results consistently reveal multi‑factor interactions—such as feedwater variability, pretreatment gaps, cleaning inefficiencies, and operational stress—that drive premature failure. By translating autopsy findings into actionable recommendations, utilities have achieved measurable improvements in flux recovery, cleaning effectiveness, and membrane lifespan. Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of how autopsy‑driven decision‑making strengthens asset management, reduces unplanned downtime, and supports more resilient treatment operations.

Insights from a quarter of century of gasification projects experience. This will be primarily focussed on biosolids and other sludges but will refer to other waste types.
 
Biosolids challenges will be reviewed briefly and then a step by step look at the critical stages of process and building a project including:

• Feedstock characteristics, project planning and plant integration.
• Importance of dewatering, drying and achieving thermal balance.
• Gasification and pyrolysis design types.
• Addressing emissions and contaminants, e.g. PFAS.
• Understanding project financial feasibility: Products, markets and revenue.
• A brief look at IQ Energy Technology Development and an update on our 12 dry tonnes per day gasification plant that is operational in Canada.

 
The object of the session is to look broadly at possible projects and what to be looking for and questions to ask, where the pitfalls and opportunities are from our developers 25+ years of project experience.
 

Time to hydrate and meet someone new!

Reverse osmosis and nanofiltration (RO/NF) is widely recognized as one of the most effective processes for removing problematic water constituents from drinking water. However, the non-selective nature of RO/NF membranes also strips beneficial ions and CO₂ buffering capacity, resulting in permeate with low pH, and indices inferring relatively unstable water in the distribution system.
To produce stable finished water, RO/NF post-treatment stabilization/remineralization is beneficial. Common industry approaches include bypass streams, chemical dosing, and calcite/limestone contactors, each presenting distinct trade-offs in capital investment, operational complexity, maintenance requirements, and long-term consumable costs.
This presentation compares these stabilization strategies using real-world performance data from multiple full-scale RO/NF facilities. Key metrics evaluated include achievable index and pH targets, alkalinity and hardness remineralization, chemical and consumable costs, and operator involvement over years of operation.
Findings highlight which approaches deliver the best balance of water quality, reliability, and cost for different plant sizes and source-water conditions, providing actionable guidance for designers and operators seeking to optimize RO/NF post-treatment systems.

Urban stormwater management is increasingly required to balance flood mitigation, water quality improvement, and sustainable water use. The Cornerstone Phase 1 Storm Pond P project in northeast Calgary demonstrates how stormwater reuse can be integrated into conventional wet pond design to support both landscape irrigation and wetland replenishment while meeting stringent regulatory discharge and water quality objectives.
Storm Pond P services a 153.9 ha mixed residential and commercial catchment and was designed as a permanent wet pond with offline sediment chambers to achieve sediment removal targets exceeding 85% for particles ≥50 µm prior to discharge to Nose Creek. In addition to quantity and quality control, the system incorporates active reuse of stored stormwater to offset potable water demand and support downstream aquatic features. 
Stormwater reuse for irrigation is achieved through controlled pumping from the pond’s permanent storage zone between defined lower and upper normal water levels. Reclaimed water is used to irrigate approximately 15.3 ha of parks, sports fields, school sites, and landscaped open spaces, with irrigation demand and withdrawal rates governed by evapotranspiration, soil infiltration capacity, and seasonal operating rules. The reuse system is explicitly modeled within a continuous PCSWMM framework to evaluate long-term water balance performance and ensure compliance with watershed runoff volume targets.
In parallel, stormwater is reused to replenish an adjacent constructed wetland (Wetland Q), providing ecological support and additional volume management benefits. Automated control rules regulate pumping based on pond water levels and seasonal conditions, ensuring wetland replenishment without compromising flood storage capacity.
This case study illustrates how storm ponds can function as multi-purpose water infrastructure, integrating stormwater reuse, irrigation efficiency, and wetland sustainability into urban drainage systems. The approach offers a transferable framework for municipalities seeking resilient, climate-adaptive stormwater solutions that extend beyond traditional conveyance and detention objectives.

Leduc County completed a comprehensive condition assessment of the New Sarepta Forcemain and the LS‑1 Forcemain to support proactive asset management and risk‑based decision‑making for critical wastewater infrastructure. The New Sarepta Forcemain is a 200‑millimetre PVC pipeline owned and operated by Leduc County and serves as a vital component of the regional wastewater system. The LS‑1 Forcemain is a 300‑millimetre PVC pipeline owned by Edmonton International Airport and operated by Leduc County, where reliable wastewater conveyance and early leak detection are critical to airport operations and environmental protection.
The assessment incorporated acoustic leak and gas pocket detection, transient pressure monitoring, hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) monitoring, and fatigue analysis of the PVC pipelines. This integrated methodology enabled a robust evaluation of key operational risks, including leakage, entrapped air, pressure surges, corrosive environments, and long‑term material fatigue.
The findings demonstrated that comprehensive condition assessments significantly enhance confidence in pipeline condition, support lifecycle planning, and inform risk‑based maintenance and capital investment strategies. This case study underscores the value of integrated assessment approaches in improving system resilience and reliability, capturing lessons learned, identifying opportunities for future enhancement, and supporting the long‑term management of critical wastewater assets.
 

Many small and remote communities across Canada, including numerous First Nations, rely on legacy slow sand filtration systems that are structurally sound but strained by changing source water conditions, maintenance needs, and community growth. This presentation examines practical upgrade strategies that support the continued use of these facilities while improving system capacity, resilience, and operational efficiency.


Focusing on the intersection of established natural treatment processes and adaptable modern technologies, this session will highlight how enhancements such as pre-ozonation, roughing filtration, and surface-wash retrofits can improve biological performance, stabilize operations, and eliminate the need for sand replacement.


Case studies from MS Filter projects across Canada will feature observed performance outcomes, implications for long-term maintenance, and benefits for communities seeking to optimize existing infrastructure without the expense of full system replacement. Slow sand systems are sound, robust and sustainable. With customized upgrades, these systems will stand the test of time.

EPCOR Water Services owns and operates over 240 stormwater management facilities in the City of Edmonton and has been undertaking various initiatives to improve the safety of these facilities - in particular wet ponds. In 2017, EPCOR completed an initial safety review which included a jurisdictional review of existing SWMF safety practices, an assessment of gaps between EPCOR's SWMF safety standards and those of other jurisdictions, and identification of improvements to EPCOR SWMF standards. In 2019, Stantec conducted field inspections of all of EPCOR's wet ponds and completed risk assessments and identification of safety deficiencies to prioritize which sites required immediate attention. Since this field program, EPCOR has continued to refine their risk assessments of these facilities and has commenced design and construction efforts with Stantec on 10 wet ponds throughout Edmonton.  
A challenging aspect of wet pond safety is balancing the need for access to the pond for maintenance/inspections, visibility around the shoreline, and barriers for public access (which often inhibit maintenance access & visibility). EPCOR and Stantec have been developing a vegetative barrier approach using plant species that complement the existing vegetation, provide deterrents to for public access, and include view-corridors for maintenance and operations purposes. Surveys were used to collect resident feedback on a variety of topics including existing use of the space around the wet ponds, proposed plant species, and reiterating the importance of safety around these stormwater facilities. 
This presentation will share the story of assessment, risk identification, public consultation, and design & construction efforts which were undertaken (and continue to be pursued) to improve safety at EPCOR's wet ponds. 

To address persistent odour concerns at the discharge of the City of Saskatoon Jasper Avenue Lift Station, an Oxygen Injection System was installed to proactively reduce hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) formation within the force main. The system uses pressure swing absorption to concentrates oxygen on site from atmospheric air and injects the oxygen into the wastewater stream, maintaining aerobic conditions and preventing the biological generation of H₂S as the wastewater is pumped through the discharge forcemain.
Since commissioning, the system has achieved over a 90% reduction in H₂S concentrations at the downstream manhole. This significant decrease has improved odour control, reduced corrosion potential within the collection system, and enhanced overall system performance without the need for chemical addition.
The installation demonstrates an effective, sustainable approach to odour management through in-line oxygenation and proactive sulfide prevention.

This event is designed to connect, empower, and support women working in our water industry, providing a platform for sharing experiences, building professional relationships, and promoting gender diversity within the field.