Upgrades to the Cochrane water/wastewater transfer station are near completion.
Budgeted at just under $2.9M, town water/wastewater manager Troy Sylvestre explained the upgrades that have been done to the station to accommodate Cochrane’s growing population.
The upgrades included the installation of four variable speed 600 horsepower pumps with a capacity of 230 liters/second (built to service a population of 30,000); adding four mixers to keep the materials within the wet well in suspension (which replaced two high-maintenance jet aerator pumps that were prone to getting plugged); the addition of two knife gates and two check valves and rupture disk piping (for increased pumping capacity).
“Previous to the generator being installed whenever there was a power outage the station would shut down and overflow into the emergency storage cell located beside the station until the power was restored,” explained Sylvestre.
He added that this installation addresses the capacity concern within the station wet well and emergency cell, as well as the odour resulting from this that affected nearby residential and recreational areas.
An odour control using a carbon filter and a generator were also added to the station; minor additional sealing work is scheduled and the project is slated for completion by the end of October.
The transfer station is located between the Spray Lake Sawmills Centre and the off-leash dog park along the Bow River, near the community of Riverview.
Sylvestre wished to remind Cochranites to watch for articles advertised as ‘flushable’.
“(These so-called flushables) do not break down, so they can build up in the system, clump together and cause clogs.”
On the list of not-so-flushables are flushable wipes, paper towel, food, kitty litter, feminine hygiene products, hair, cotton balls, Q-tips, dental floss, Band-Aids and condoms.
He also advised people avoid flushing contaminate that could poison aquatic environments, including pharmaceuticals, cigarettes and cleaning supplies.
On Oct. 15, damage was caused to the internal electrical components of the transfer station.
A magpie tripped two fuses on the power line, causing a localized power outage and the generator did not start due to being turned off for maintenance.
It took between one-1.5 hours for the power to return and the station was down for another four hours while electrical components were being replaced.
