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The Regional District of Kootenay Boundary (RDKB) owns the Columbia Pollution Control Center (CPCC), which is located in Trail. The CPCC is a primary level sewage treatment facility that provides regional wastewater treatment and disposal for approximately 14,000 people residing in the municipalities of Trail, Rossland and Warfield, as well as the two smaller adjacent communities of Oasis and Rivervale. Each of these areas retains the responsibility for wastewater collection at the local level.
The treatment plant consists of screening of the influent wastewater to remove trash and coarse solids, followed by gravity settling to remove grit, and primary sedimentation to separate crude solids from the raw wastewater. The treated water is then disinfected by using chlorine gas, and de-chlorinated prior to its discharge to the Columbia River via an outfall. Waste solids from the primary clarifiers are stabilized in two anaerobic digesters and then dewatered using a belt filter press, with disposal of the dewatered biosolids to landfill (for inclusion into current composting activities).
Future improvements to upgrade the existing plant to secondary treatment or to construct new facilities in an alternate location are currently being considered in the RDKB Liquid Waste Management Plan (LWMP). Stage 1 of the LWMP was completed in 2008 and Stage 2 has been budgeted for in 2011.
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The system, which was built in 2010, includes a process design with full quality assurance and quality control components and operational strategies. Residuals in the form of sludge and plant biomass are processed at the treatment facility, using worm (vermiculture) composting to produce a safe, usable soil amendment. The CLAC SAS is capable of treating 22.5 m3/day but is expandable as other developments occur (such as a connection to RV dump station, future local residential/commercial developments, etc.). At the present time, the wastewater effluent quality meets or surpasses all standards established by BC Ministry of Environment and the Interior Health Authority.
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The Solar Aquatics technology duplicates, under controlled conditions, the natural water purification processes of streams and wetlands. Housed within a greenhouse to optimize conditions for biological activity, wastewater is circulated through ecologically engineered aquatic environments where the contaminants and nutrients are metabolized or incorporated into living plant tissue. The process combines ecological engineering principles with standard wastewater treatment concepts. By combining the biological components that work in natural water purification processes with proven wastewater treatment components, the Solar Aquatics process provides an enhancement on natural and conventional treatment processes.
The Solar Aquatics process uses fixed film substrate in the forms of plant roots and Aerobic Tank surfaces to provide habitat for microbes. The process also uses suspended growth biomass within the wastewater moving through the system. Activated sludge (hungry microbes from the end of the aerobic portion of the process) is recycled to the blending tank for reseeding high levels of these beneficial bacteria into the raw wastewater entering the system. By optimizing the conditions in the greenhouse, ecosystems that develop provide a higher degree of biodiversity (i.e. a wide range of plants and animal species) than other biological treatment technologies, thereby treating a wider range of contaminants and making this system more stable and resilient to shock loadings of contaminants.
The Regional District of Kootenay Boundary completed Stage 1 of a Liquid Waste Management Plan in 2008. In keeping with provincial guidelines, the Regional District is re-convening the Advisory Committees to guide development of Stage 2 of the Plan. The Steering Committee includes members of the Regional District Sewer Board, as well as a representative of the B.C. Ministry of Environment. The Technical Advisory Committee includes Regional District technical staff and representatives of various government agencies. The Local Advisory Committee includes representation of local private and public interests, including participating municipalities and interested private citizens. The Regional District has engaged Opus DaytonKnight Consultants Ltd. of North Vancouver, to act as technical consultant to the committees for Stage 2.
The liquid waste management planning process is designed to allow B.C. communities to develop their own solutions for managing liquid wastes, while meeting regulatory requirements and objectives for protecting public health and the environment. The objective of the Stage 1 Plan was to develop options and associated costs for wastewater collection, treatment, and disposal or reuse, and to identify the options to be advanced to Stage 2 for more detailed study. Other components of the Stage 1 Plan included stormwater management, reduction of wastewater volumes, source control of contaminants, and management of solid residuals produced by wastewater treatment.
The Cities of Trail and Rossland, the Village of Warfield, and the communities of Rivervale and Oasis are currently serviced by centralized collection and treatment of domestic wastewater at the Columbia Pollution Control Centre (CPCC), which discharges primary-treated effluent to the Columbia River. The study area for the Plan also includes the communities of Montrose, Fruitvale and their adjacent areas. An important aspect of the Plan is upgrading or replacing the central treatment facilities to meet regulatory requirements, which currently require a minimum of secondary treatment. The Plan will include an evaluation of connecting the independent community systems at Montrose and Fruitvale to the main central system.
Ultimately the Liquid Waste Management Plan will be designed to provide the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary with a sustainable, cost effective and environmentally friendly strategy for managing liquid wastes. Support and participation from the community is important in developing a successful Plan. Public open houses and other media including the Regional District website will be used to update progress, to keep the community informed, and to invite public comments, suggestions, and discussion.
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