Environmental Science & Engineering Magazine (ESEMAG) October 1988 by Environmental Science and Engineering Magazine

ENVIRONMENTAL o

(DU(BUQ(D(B A Davcom Business Publication

Environmental auditing - the exciting tool of the '80s CWWA on water metering & drinking water guidelines Gas detector sensor technology for confined spaces Red ink may be toxic to suppliers - comment N.S. Landfill leachate facility - a first Biological phosphorous removal

October 1988

MUELLER CANADA COAST TO COAST

Canada's largest manufacturer ofquality water and gas distribution products.

[Mueller Canada IncH MUELLER CANADA INC.

P.O. Box 1001,180 Market Drive Milton, Ontario Canada LOT 486 (416)878-0541 Telex 06-97844

For further information please contact:

John McHenry

Eastern Regional Sales Manager (416)878-0541

Circle reply card No. 115

Don Webb

Western Regional Sales Manager (204)947-2222

ISSN-0835-605X Editor and Publisher TOM DAVEY

ENVIRONMENTAL

Sales Director STEVE DAVEY

Editorial Assistant VIRGINIA MEYER

Contributing Editor JOHN M. MACGREGOR Production Manager SAM ISGRO B.C. Sales Representative RON GANTON Sales Representative PENNY OAVEY

Editorial Advisory Board George B. Crawford, P.Eng. Rod Holme, P.Eng. Peter Laughton, M.Eng., P.Eng. J.V. Morris, M.Sc., P.Eng. Mike Provart, M.Sc., P.Eng.

^(DUCBUlKDCB (k October 1988, Vol 1 No. 5

CONTENTS

Issued October 1988

Why red ink can be toxic to environmentai suppiiers Editorial comment by Tom Davey

Industry Update

Dr. Howard Goodfellow

Environmentai auditing - the key to practicai Environmental Science & Engineering is a bi-monthly business publication published by Davcom Communications Inc. An all Canadian publication, ES&E provides authoritative editorial coverage of Canada's municipal and industrial

environmental

control

systems, energy management, drinking water treatment and distribu tion, air pollution monitoring and control, solid and hazardous waste

management strategies

Article by Alex Keen

Nova Scotia iandfiii ieachate treatment faciiity is first of its kind in Canada

An article by Patrick Wright and Thomas Austin

Oii from siudge project launched in N.S.

treatment and disposal and occupa tional health and safety. ES&E's readers include consulting engineers, industrial plant managers and engineers, municipal engineers and officials, key provincial and federal environmental officials, water and wastewater treatment plant operators, contractors, equipment manufacturers, representatives and distributors and

10 12 15

Gas detector sensor technoiogy for combined space entry instruments

An article by Ross Humphrey

Bioiogicai phosphorus removai can be effective and economicai

An article by Michael Yue and Vijay Thadani

academics.

ES&E welcomes editorial contributions

from consulting engineers, research institutions,

environmental

associa

tions, equipment suppliers and government agencies. ES&E does not accept any responsibility whatsoever for the safekeeping of contributed material. Please send photocopies, prints (not negatives), orotherfacsimiiies of the written or graphic material for consideration.

What's New? A range of products for the convenience of specifiers

Preserving and renewing our vitai infrastructure assets An article by D.P. Sexsmith

Consuitants' Directory

Head Office - 10 Retch Cr., Aurora,

Ontario, Canada, L4G 5N7, Tel: (416) 773-4376, 727-4666. All advertising space orders, copy, artwork, film, proofs, etc. should be sent to Environ mental Science & Engineering c/o Prestige Printing, 30 Industriai Pkwy. S., Aurora, Ontario, L4G 3W1.

subscription

28 29

CWWA focusses on water metering, drinking water guidelines and operator certification

An article by Robert Ferguson

Printed in Canada, by Prestige Printing Ltd. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without written permission of the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in reviews. Yearly

rates: Canada

$25.00 for one year, $35.00 for two years, $5.00 per single issue; U.S.A. $32.00, $47.00 for two years; other foreign $53.00. Directory & Buyers' Guide $15.00 single issue.

Our cover photo artistically depicts the drawings which are so vital to all environmental treatment pro

Second Class Mail

jects - courtesy. Gore & Storrie Limited.

Registration No. 7750 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Editorial comment by Tom Davey â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Why red ink can be toxic to environmentai suppiiers

When it comes to col ect

simply to advertise for a $60,000 civil service position. For thirty grand they might have reincarnat

ing revenues, govern ments

strike

swifter

than speeding bullets. Politicians, of course, ooze compas sion as they dispense their political largesse with our quite involuntary generosity. Quite often, government initiatives are draped with a nauseating air of philanthropy - like spices on poor meat - to mask the fact that some projects are actually electoral devices to maintain party

ed Albert Schweitzer.

momentum between elections.

While we desperately need environmental remediation equip ment, the Federal Government has been known to spend a million dollars on show biz extravaganzas including musical compositions, concerts

and

hot air balloons -

simply to make people aware of the environment. As opinion polls repeatedly confirm that Cana dians are already gravely concerned with the environmental deteriora

tion, a show biz approach would

Somewhere

deep in the bowels of Queen's Park, there must be a training camp where "swivel serpents" refine their skills in the art of wasting public funds.

seem, to put it kindly, superfluous. We need aeration devices to reduce

biochemical oxygen demand Environment Canada gives us hot air balloons.

Incidently, the fiscal madness stretches beyond the Federal juris diction. The Ontario government recently spent an astounding $30,000 in Toronto newspapers

But while political compassion drips monotonously from parlia mentary debates, the government bagmen operate ruthlessly when they collect monies from us. To hapless businessmen, trying to beat deadlines, government inflexibility must seem as inexorable as huge steel doors closing on bank vaults. For

not even the

most ruthless

capitalist enjoys a situation where the game is so blatantly rigged in favour of the House.

The problems are endemic at all levels of government. While you can buy virtually anything by credit card from symphony concerts to holidays in Spain, you need cash or

ECODYNE LAMELLA SETTLERS You can't settle for less You can save space and instal lation time when you specify Ecodyne Lamella Settlers.

Ecodyne's 10 years experience in Lamella Settlers includes

single installations up to 90 MGD, treating a variety of raw waters including Great Lakes water. Graver V\^ter Division

Custom designs are available with plastic or stainless steel plates, galvanized or SS selfsupporting troughs. No field assembly, no maintenance required. You can't settle for less.

2201 Speers Road Oakvllle, Ontario L6L 2X9 We make water work

Telephone (416)827-9821 Fax(416)827-8428

Other Ecodyne Divisions specialize in coding towers, evaporators and other process equipment for municipalities, industry, and utilities across North America.

Circle reply card No. 101 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

a cheque up front to renew your driver's licence or auto licence plate. With the same credit card, you can of course, order the most expensive meal,complete with wine - in a town you have never visited before from a Maitre'D whose name you cannot pronounce. Credit cards enable you to buy Alka Selzer in Alberta, quiche in Quebec, suits in Saskatchewan and tires in Toronto - but you abso lutely must pay cash to buy a five dollar bottle of plonk at a liquor store three blocks from your home in any province in Canada. In the publishing business printers will often extend 30 or even 60 days credit after they have prin ed and delivered published material costing tens of thousands. But Canada Post requires payment in full, by cash or certified cheque, before it will fill your postage machines to enable you to deliver the very material the printer has extended credit upon. All this in spite of governments' monopoly position, which precludes any chance that you might seek alterna tives to the government service. The Yellow Pages are filled with printers - but there is only one agency per government service, so we cannot vote with our feet and shop else

glaciers is a hobby for the very patient and bankers are seldom included in this demographic group. Consider a typical payment schedule in the private sector for pollution control equipment. Ten pen nt is paid with the order, fol low i by substantial progress paymei s, the remainder being payable 30 I ays following delivery to the sit<> But with many government ore rs there are no progress payme ts - even though some jobs take

money to borrow money, so any un necessary delays in payments are, in fact, a tremendous burden on the

very people who are creating jobs, protecting the environment and generating economic growth - the very essence of the UN-sponsored Brundtland Report which Canada has viewed with favour.

While borrowing money is expen sive, it costs nothing at all to pay debts on goods and services as expeditiously as possible. Govern

moi, hs to manufacture and deliver.

ments at all levels could further the

Not iinly are the terms 30 days after delivery to the site, but the govern ment's payment is often made via contractors; the result being that the suppliers' payments might stretch to 60 days. Many capital items cost

protection of our environment by

hundreds of thousands of dollars -

sometimes millions - so any delay in payments represents significant capital sums. If justice delayed is justice denied, then it is equally true to say that payment delayed is money devalued.

Even

multi-nationals

require credit to finance their opera tions, so small firms - the very back bone of the nation's economy - are much

more vulnerable.

It costs

speeding up payment to suppliers. The situation is critical.

Epilog Mea culpa. We know, better than most, that there are many dedicated environmental professionals in the civil service. For years we have watched them-likespawningsalmon - swim against the bureaucratic cur rents of ineptitude. Like Chaucer's Pardoner, we seek indulgences, not only for any present offence, but also for those we intend to commit in the future.

where.

Fairness demands the observa tion that Revenue Canada has been

scrupulously fair in its interpreta tion of tax regulations for several publications that we know of; and Canada Post too has adjudicated complex postal situations with promptness and fairness with an alacrity which might surprise the general public. But the fact remains, that in the

pursuit of tax revenues, govern ments swoop with the winged feet of Mercury - yet in thepay ment for the goods and services which various governments purchase, well that is quite another story. By some strange alchemy, when monies are supposed to flow from the govern ment, Mercury becomes leaden in its movement.

Mercury, incidently,

was the Roman God of merchants

and trading - a cruel irony in this case.

This is a story which lacks a happy ending for many equipment manufacturers and suppliers. Repeatedly we hear of suppliers desperately seeking payment months after their equipment has

Monenco Engineering a whole new world. The key to Monenco's growth and success has always been teamwork. Whatever the size and complexity of a project,

Monenco has its own expert staff of environmentai scientists and engineers, hydrogeologists, atmospheric scientists, occupational health and hygiene specialists, and analytical chemists to fill the need.

Our interdisciplinary approach to projects has been acquired through 80 years of service to clients worldwide and is based on teaming our best available professionals with state-of-the-art technology. TEAM MONENCO - working together to provide innovative environmental solutions.

• Environmental Auditing • Contaminant Hydrogeology •Occupational Health & Safety • Hazardous Waste Management •Air Quality • Leaking IJnderground Tank Remediation • Industrial Site Decommissioning and Cleanup • Laboratory Services

been delivered and installed, or services were rendered. Payments trickle down to firms so slowly, they

can sometimes only be measured by glacial chronology. Watching Environmental Science & Engineering. October 1988

Some

worthy firms could be taken off the endangered species list simply by processing invoices more promptly.

Monenco Consultants Limited Toronto, Ontario (416) 743-3456 Calgary, Alberta (403) 298-4170 Circle reply card No. 102

Industry Update â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Alberta disposal site inventory well underway

human health or the environment.

This assessment process allowed Department officials to ascertain

Alberta Environment Minister, Ken Kowalski recently announced that Phase II of the three-phase Help End Landfill Pollution (H.E.L.P.) program is now complete

the status of each landfill. Where

and that 680 sites have been identi fied.

resulted in the identification ofsome

The program, which was announced in September 1986, was initiated in response to concerns about the past and present waste disposal practices of Alberta indus tries for active, closed and abandon ed landfill sites, and is part of an overall waste management strategy for Alberta Environment.

The inventory of sites has in creased due to additional responses received from industry and the dis covery of archival sites through research completed by Environment officials.

All industrial landfills

identified in the inventory have been assessed based on the waste

type and its potential for hazard to

necessary, an appropriate action

plan has been implemented. A number of the industrial sites

were investigated further and

sites that required upgrading. Most of the companies have already com pleted or begun the appropriate site

manufactured goods and bottled or packaged water, for example) are excluded. The Canada Water Preservation

Act is binding not only on the pri vate sector but on government at all levels. Violators will be subject to maximum $l-million-a-day fines and three-year jail terms. The bill provides for the creation of federal-provincial agreements for licencing small-scale exports.

improvement action, and it is antici

pated that all upgrading will be completed by the end ofthe program this fall.

Bill tabled to ban large -scale water exports

Twinned pipeline will double Regina's water supply

McMillan has tabled legislation to ban large-scale Canadian water

Associated Engineering has been retained by the City of Regina to provide design and construction engineering services for the expan sion of the water transmission sys

exports.

tem from the Buffalo Pound Water

Federal Environment Minister Tom

The bill will prohibit outright large-scale freshwater exports and strictly regulate small-scale water sales such as those by tanker. Very small-scale exports (water used in

Price: $350.00

Plan now to attend

($400.00 after Nov. 31)

Environmental Audit Seminar How to avoid environmental iiabiiities December 6, 1988, Constellation Hotel, Toronto, Ontario The Environmental Audit is the most exciting and significant tooi of the decade for environmentai professionais. This seminar - the first in a series- wiii expiore and interpret various probiems and opportunities in the new fieid of Environmentai Auditing. Experts wiii show how to identify and manage risks in vitai areas such as regulatory compliance and contaminant liability while using environmentally sound management practices. The

seminar wiii provide an in-depth focus on the How To'factors of conducting an Audit.

Treatment Plant to the city. Associated is also providing design and construction manage ment services for the expansion of the Buffalo Water Treatment Plant

which supplies water to both Regina and the City of Moose Jaw. Water for Regina is currently pumped through 56 km of 900 mm diameter steel pipe. The capacity of the water transmission system must be increased in order to deliver the extra water that will be available

following the completion of the plant expansion in July, 1989. The project to expand the trans mission system will be carried out in

phases. Phase 1 of the expansion will involve the construction of

approximately 10 km of 1050 mm diameter parallel pipeline, the installation of a new high lift pump at Buffalo Pound and modification

to an existing booster station. Phase 1 is scheduled to be constructed be

Who should attend?

The Question of Privilege - legal pro

Corporate executives, legal counsel, environmental professionals In Industry and government, Investors and merger and aqulsltlons professionals.

tection and the Audit

Presentations will include:

Include.

What Is Environmental Auditing? What are the Issues? - How do you respond to them?

How to conduct an Audit:

tween March and July, 1989. Subsequent phases will involve the installation of an additional

The 'How To' Session How to set up an Auditing program within your company. Audit protocols - what they should

parallel pipeline with the object of complete twinning by 1995/97.

Edmonton recycling project receives grant

Civil

- On-slte procedures - On-slte skills required Audit outputs - the environment as a good business strategy.

a $45,000 grant to Paper Chase, an Edmonton-based paper recycling

Criminal

- Case studies of the Audit

project.

Commercial

Attendance is limited to 200. Don't be

Under this project,jointly funded by Alberta Environment and the

Liabilities

Various Environmental Auditing tools. When to use them. How to use them.

Corporate Audits Prepurchase Audits Forensic Audits

disappointed. Cail Environmental Science & Engineering right away at (416) 727-4666 for a registration form, or circle No. 260 on the self-addressed Reader Service Card and mall it.

The seminar is sponsored by Aitech Environmentai Consulting Ltd., Environ mental Science & Engineering and Price Waterhouse Management Consult ants.

Alberta Environment has awarded

City of Edmonton, unemployed youth with little or no job training are bired to collect waste paper from Edmonton office buildings. The paper is then transported to the Paper Chase plant where it is pro cessed and then sold to paper manu facturers.

Circle reply card No. 260 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

MISA discussion paper released by MOE A massive regulatory program to reduce discharges of industrial toxic contaminants to municipal sewer sys tems is called for in a discussion paper released by Ontario Environment Minister Jim Bradley. "The proposal calls for thousands of industrial users ofsew ers to eliminate toxic contaminants from their liquid waste before it is dumped into the community's sewer system," he said. It is part of the ministry's MISA (Municipal/Industrial Strategy for Abatement), which aims to eliminate virtually all persistent toxic discharges to waterways. Under the program, the MOE will place regulatory discharge limits on 22 industrial sectors that dis charge to sewers. These limits will require reductions in toxic discharge equal to that which can be gained with the best available pollution control technology which is economically achievable. It allows industries to choose how they will comply:

by pre-treating or recycling their toxic waste, by changing production processes, or by substituting raw materials to avoid or reduce the generation of toxic waste. Industries would be required to monitor dis

charge streams, report on the presence and quantities of toxics in their wastewater, and carry out abatement action to meet discharge limits. The proposal would also require municipali ties to act as the first line of enforcement of the

control program. Under the program, munici palities must develop an enforcement plan, incorporating provincial requirements, and submit to the ministry for approval. Approved plans will require municipalities to monitor industrial discharges and prosecute offenders. The ministry plans regular random audits on indus tries' compliance with discharge limits and on munici palities' enforcement of the program. This informa tion will be made available to the public. Names of industrial violators, and the status of actions to bring them into compliance, will be published annually in local newspapers. Municipalities which fail to enforce the program may find toxic pollutants flowing through their sewage treatment plant, making them vulnerable to prosecution by the ministry for not complying with their MISA direct discharge limits. Costs of developing municipal enforcement pro

grams are expected to range from $50,000 to $200,000 each,for an estimated province-wide cost of $13.5 mil lion. The Ministry of the Environment will pay 50 per cent of those costs. Costs to municipalities of pur chasing sampling and laboratory equipment are expected to total $15 million province-wide, with the Ministry providing 33 per cent. Annual municipal operating costs of these programs are esti mated at $20.6 million (or $2.73 per person), to be paid by sewer users. Comments should be submitted to MOE during

90-day period which began mid-September. Copies of the discussion paper, "Controlling Industrial Dis charges to Sewers", may be obtained by calling (416) 323-4321.

Sample Sigma... Canada Liquid Samplers & Flowmeters Samplers and flowmeters get rough use and do hard time in corrosive en

vironments. Now there's Streamline,

designed to perform, built to survive. Tough impact resistant polyethylene construction.

Sealed keypad & watertight NEMA 4X,6 control housing. Easy to use self prompting 16 character display.

Streamline gets the job done, the first time, every time, year after year. • Portable Samplers • Refrigerated Samplers • Ground Water Samplers • Open Channel Flowmeters 2495 HainesRoad

Mississauga, Ontario Canada L4Y1Y7

^ INSTRUMEN IN8TRUMEI TS LTD. Ph. (416)277-0331 Fax (416)277-2588 Telex

06-961-368

While substantial efforts are made to verify data, ES&E cannot be responsible for any action relating to articles which are

provided as an information service only. Readers are invited to check with authors directly.

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Circle reply card No. 103

Hull to host 1989

AQTE conference AQTE's 1989 annual conference will be held March 8-10 in Hull, Quebec. "Quality water, available to you" is the conference theme and sessions

will focus on treatment, quality con trol, costs of drinking water and sludge disposal. The program will also include a session on inter

national projects. For further information contact

the Association Quehecoise des

Techniques de I'eau, Tel; (514) 337-4666.

of Price Waterhouse. Developing state-of-the-art auditing methodolo gies and protocols for government agencies and private corporations is the main objective of the venture. Environmental auditing is an investigative procedure used to gen erate a report card on a company's environmental and occupational health and safety record. Regulatory compliance, the legal risks of noncompliance and other potential

soon be mandatory under the MOE's MISA (Municipal-Industrial Strategy for Abatement) program. The model hylaw released sets more stringent discharge limits on toxic metals such as copper, cad mium, nickel and zinc. It also does

environmental

control sewer use.

liabilities

are

all

documented during the audit. By developing state-of-the-art methodologies and protocols Price Waterhouse and Altech hope to

bility of environmental auditing.

taminate the environment.

Keen,(416) 226-0148.

Under the model sewer bylaw, municipalities will collect informa

auditing venture

Consultants and Altech Environ

mental Consulting Ltd. to embark on a joint business venture. Altech's environmental auditing and technical expertise will he com bined with the management strengths

and pesticides, and provides im proved administrative procedures to

For further details contact Alex

new environmental

The rapidly growing field of environ mental auditing has prompted Price Waterhouse Management

of hazardous wastes such as PCBs

Most municipalities currently have sewer use control bylaws based on a 1975 model bylaw which is inadequate to control toxic sub stances, many of which pass through the sewage treatment system to con

increase the effectiveness and credi

Price Waterhouse forms

not allow use of dilution to meet dis

charge limits, forbids the discharge

tion on the number of industries dis

MISA spawns model sewer use bylaw Environment Minister Jim Bradley has released a model sewer use by law which allows municipalities to require local industries to reduce harmful discharges to municipal sewer systems.

Stringent sewer use controls will

charging to their sewer system, and the type and volume of their waste. The ministry is currently working with Metropolitan Toronto to devel op a computer system to handle data from these industrial surveys, and sampling and enforcement data. This system will be made available to all municipalites when completed next spring.

OXYGUN"Aeration Systems

/Ms NEIGHBORHOOD /Ms

® ODOR W COMPLAINTS ONI^ SURCO GUARANTEES: ■ Most Effective Results!

■ Easiest to Apply

■ LOWEST "USE" COST

Features

> Ideal for retrofit aeration sys

•Ail aerator parts constructed

> Horizontally-directed flow increases oxygen contact.

tems and new construction. of 316 stainless steel.

•Slow speed (1750 RPM) operation assures low main tenance.

ODOMASTER"

•No bearings exposed to abra

WORLD RENOWNED SINCE 1946

•Simple, low-cost stationary or floating installations.

sive or corrosive wastewater.

"More efficient ttian surface

and diffuser type aerators. « Underwater air injection re duces odors and clogging. > Wide selection of capacities to fit every application. "Available to 75 HP.

The OXYGUN provides an efficient method of aerating tanks, SURCO PRODUCTS, IIMC.

ODOMASTER CAIMADA 5892 Shawson Drive

8th & Pine Aves . P 0 Box 77?

Mississauga. Ontario L4W 3W5

Braddock (Pittsburgh), PA 15104

416/671-1010

800/247-0770

— TRUE ODOR COUNTERACTION SYSTEMS

basins, and lagoons tor municipal and industrial wastewater

treatment. The iow cost, easy-to-install aerators disperse atmospheric air below the water surface using a unique impeller and dittuser system. An electric motor drives the sett-

cleaning maxi flow impeller forcing liquid at high speed past three air ports, and into the wastewater. The resultant wide diffusion of air and intense mixing action provides a continuous and efficient transfer of oxygen.

IF IT DOESN'T WORK, YOU DON'T PAY!!!* '(When used according to Surco s recommendations) ' 1988 S.P.I.

JOHN VISSERS SALES CORP. 220 Industrial Parkway S., Unit 19 Aurora, Ontario L4G 3V6

Telephone: (416) 773-1555, (416) 841-4073 Fax:(416) 841-4018

Circle reply card No. 104

Circle reply card No. 105 EnuironmenlaL Science & Engineering, October 1988

Reader Feedback Dear Mr. Davey: We endorse heartily your editorial comment Why low bid systems are bad for Canada's environment. However, while you have (quite rightly) targeted government departments as culprits in the low bid problem, our experience unfor tunately has been that governments are not alone in this practice. While it is true that this is a prob lem with government departments, many private corporations are guilty of similar practices. Many corporations do tend to stick with suppliers and service companies which have given them good service. Nevertheless, we have seen a regrettable number of "requests for quotation" which state "this work will be awarded on the basis of lowest cost". Even when this statement does

not appear, you may feel sure that it is implied. In fact, a friend recently reported a conversation with the environmental manager of a company in which he enquired;"If you always give out this work to the lowest bidder, how do you know you are getting correct results?" To which the manager replied:"Correct results? I don't give a damn whether the results are correct. All I

want is a report signed by someone, which is going to keep me out of trouble

with

the

environmental

department." This sort of philosophy has led to som.e deplorable results in the com mercial laboratory business in this area. Even living in Ontario, you have probably heard that business

many government and private organizations are taking full advantage. It could well be said of the commercial laboratory business in this area "no one bids on a

contract to make any money. Ifthey do, they don't get the contract. They bid on a contract merely to keep up their cash flow and stay in business."

This does not make for a good professional atmosphere. It is impossible to undertake any longrange planning when you realize that the job you are doing this year may be gone next year to someone who has bid it in at a lower price. Nor is it possible under these circumstances to build in any allow ance in your price to undertake any R and D or even to exercise any really meaningful quality control. laboratory technicians in the private sector existing on a scale of pay which would not be considered appropriate for an unskilled con struction worker. It has also led to a

good deal of temporary and parttime employment. Few private laboratories can afford to build up a permanent staff of highly-trained professional technicians. Rather the tendency is to take on technic ians on a temporary basis when some job is started up and to let them go as soon as the contract is finished.

o â&#x2013;

Your Answer is

ARB! The foundation for Neptune's electronic data capture, ARB utilizes advanced electronic

tories for the amount of work avail able.

This has given rise to a good deal of cut-throat competition of which

Limited, Edmonton.

conditions in Alberta are not entire

Metering

The situation has also led to

I am not going to accuse anyone in particular of shoddy work, but I am going to suggest that if anyone in government or private industry feel they are receiving results which suggest shoddy work, they have only to blame themselves and the "low hid" system they have created. L.L. Alexander, MCIC,Manager

ly the best. As a result of this there are probably twice too many labora

Reliable Remote Water

technology to provide you with the most reliable remote water meter available.

Western Industrial Laboratories

Union Carbide Canada appointment

Ousanka Filipovich. P.Eng. has been appointed Manager. New Business Deveiopmentforthe Catalysts, Adsorbents and Process Systems Group of Union Carbide Canada Limited. A graduate of the University of Belgrade's Faculty of Chemical Engineering, she will be responsible for ail aspects of the develop

water, municipal and industrial effluents in addition to aquifer remediation and hazard ous waste reduction. This system can be designed to be highly selective in the remov al of a wide range of specific contaminants, which are subsequently converted into harmless compounds by a simple in-situ catalytic regeneration process. Apart from PeroxsiV". there is a broad range of potential applications for Union Carbide Silicalite involving environmental organic contaminant control, various hydro carbon separations and adsorbate recovery processes of interest to the oil and gas, chemical, petrochemical and nuclear fields. Mrs. Fiiipovich's design, marketing and engineering expertise Include extensive experience in Molecular Sieve adsorption separation processes and custom formulat

ed catalysts since 1974. She is a member of the APEO, CSPE and

Carbide's PeroxsiV" business in Canada.

other major professional associations such as AWWA, PCAO, WPCF and is currently serving on the Publications Committee of the

Applications include treatment of drinking

Ontario Sectioh, AWWA.

ment

and

commercialization

Union

Circle reply card No. 106 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Environmental auditing - the key to practical management strategies

Many corporations have

established programs

By Alex Keen*

to monitor and "audit"

the performance of environmental activities. Industry has

come to see environmental

auditing as a powerful management tool to help determine their compli ance status and environmental per formance. Perhaps the mostimport ant function the corporate environ mental audit serves is that it pro vides a systematic procedure with which to identify the risks of current environmental practices and noncompliance with environmental regulations. In identifying these risks, the corporate manager now has the tools to develop or fine tune the management system to mitigate and minimize these risks.

What is environmental auditing? The discipline of auditing has long since diversified from the gen eral perception of strictly financial accounting. The term "audit" is increasingly associated with a wide variety of efforts, activities, and pro grams intended to examine the per formance of an operation and deter mine or verify its accuracy and appropriateness. Auditing, in its most common

sense, is a methodical examination, involving analyses, tests, and con firmations of local procedures and practices leading to a verification of compliance with legal requirements, internal policies and/or accepted practices. The key to a successful audit is a carefully developed methodology and protocol. These tools set the standard for the area to be audited.

Why Audit? The corporate environmental audit is designed to give top corpor ate managers and executives confi dence in their company's environ mental performance. The reasons for developing an environmental auditing program range from the desire to measure compliance with specific regulations, standards or

policies, to the goal of identifying potentially hazardous conditions

ing on management philosophy and company size. It is important to understand that the compliance assessment of the audit is relatively short and straightforward. However, as environmental com pliance is generally event oriented (ie: a spill event,or the discharge ofa contamination above standards, etc.), it is really therisk of this event occurring and causing a non-com pliance situation that must be pro tected against. Since all plant personnel have some control over the compliance and environmental performance, management must he assured that these employees will react properly when an event occurs that could

cause non-compliance. For example; if a forklift driver notices a contaminant spill outside during his rounds, his actions can determine whether the company remains in compliance with spill legislation.

for which standards may not exist. While auditing may appear to

Management Systems

serve the universal need of evaluat

ing and verifying environmental compliance, in practice auditing programs are designed to meet a broad range of objectives, depend-

Because so many people in an industrial facility can have an impact on compliance, the key to good corporate environmental per formance is well developed and effective management systems. A management system is the combination of policies, directives and operational guidelines or proce dures that make up an environmental program. It ensures that everyone's roles and responsibilities are clearly defined, understanding that most have only a small role to play. More importantly, it ensures that key action items required for compliance do not fall between the cracks.

It is the comprehensiveness and effectiveness of these systems that

give top management confidence in their environmental performance. Management systems are a major focus of the corporate environmental audit.

Compliance with environmental regulations is a dynamic and on going process. An audit has tremen dous value as a tool to confirm that

mass production. Today environmental audits can be extremely useful to prospective owners when older industrial buildings are being sold or for

appropriate systems are in place and functioning to manage compli ance, rather than merely determin ing the compliance status at the

assessing environmental compliance.

time of the audit.

The Industrial Revolution in England catapulted the world into a new era of

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Audit Outputs

• changes in practices

The environmental audit is one of

• process efficiencies (ie: identifying

the most exciting and important

process bottlenecks, unnecessary

tools emerging for the 1980's and

wastage)

• equipment performance optimiza generated, both directly and indi tion (especially pollution control rectly, have a far reaching effect. and materials handling and trans 1990's because the range of outputs

Audit results are communicated to

fer equipment)

Data

The Environmental Audit Is the most exciting tool to

Capture

emerge In the 1980's.... top management,giving them,often

• reduction of future liabilities and

for the first time, a comprehensive assessment or report card of envi ronmental performance. The

expensive remediation From a management point of view, the skills of organizational development, assessment of role and determining effective communi cation are very important if it is agreed that everyone in the plant has some part of the responsibility for environmental performance. Because the audit very thoroughly

impact this has on the sensitization of upper management to environ mental issues is irreversible and cannot be overstated.

As well,in the process of auditing, there is a tremendous environmental awareness created among plant

and operations staff, which is of significant educational value. Furthermore, the results of the environmental audit can act as a

blueprint to develop a framework for an environmental management pro

gram tailored specifically to the plant. The main objective of the corpor ate environmental audit is to give

checks communication channels

and directives, it can verify the understanding of these communica tions both horizontally and vertical ly in the organizational structure to ensure that all departments know how to carry out their roles. An important benefit of conducting an audit is better communication and

9 Your Answer is

ARB and

Unigun!

senior management and corporate

enhanced general understanding of management needs among all plant

Increase your meter reading and billing efficiency with ARB and

executives the confidence that:

staff.

Unigun.The easy-to-use

• facility operations are consistent with good practice; • control systems, both equipment and management are in place and operating; • legal and ethical responsibilities are being satisfied; and, •environmental risks and liabilities are identified and managed. It can also deliver much more. A

good audit is a unique blend of tech nical, scientific and engineering methodologies, as well as manage ment consulting principles. For example, a thorough and compre hensive evaluation of process opera tions is a prerequisite to fully under standing the environmental dis charge or impact. Significantly, an environmental discharge, for example a waste pro duct, is often the result of a process problem, upset or, inappropriate procedures. By remediating process oriented problems,environmental contamin ants are eliminated and the plant

Unigun replaces conventional route books,and eliminates

The Bottom Line

hand-posting and transposition

The corporate environmental audit is a very important tool for

progressive environmental perform ance in industry. It is one of the few vehicles that recognizes that there is a technical and human interaction in environmental control, and it assesses both.

By conducting an audit, a plant can achieve a number of direct and indirect benefits over and above

compliance, especially in the areas of plant and manpower efficiencies. As the corporate environmental audit gains more acceptance and understanding, it will do more than any other single tool in improving the environmental performance of industry through the 1990's.

*Alex Keen is president of Altech Environmental Consult

ing Ltd. Altech and Environ

becomes much more efficient at the same time. The audit,then,can pro

mental Science & Engineering are sponsoring a seminar on

vide significant cost savings infor

environmental

mation with respect to: • resource recovery and more effici ent use of raw materials

errors.

auditing

December 6th in Toronto. For further details contact ES&E at

(416) 727-4666.

Circle reply card No. 107 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Nova Scotia landfill leachate

treatment facility is first of its kind in Canada By Patrick J. Wright and Thomas P. Austin

systems to handle the increasing leachate strength and quantities, and concerns of impact on the Sackville River, led to a program to upgrade treatment capability.

HICKENER

Leachate from this landfill is char CCNTftOU

acterized by high strengths and low flows(COD of 20,000 to 30,000 mg/L and average flows of 1.5 L/s). The leachate investigations extended over a three year period and culminated with pilot scale test ing of its treatability utilizing inno

TANK truck

SUPERNATANT RETUBN

Ipretreatment bypass RJW lEACKATE S' RAW LEACHATE

vative anaerobic treatment tech

niques. Based on these tests, the full-scale facility was expected to

• VALVE • FLOW CONTROL VALVE • FLOW METER • PRIMARY Flow path ALTERNATE FLOW PATH —

achieve

PROJECT No.

PORTCn DlLLOn

GAS FLOW PATH

TheHighway 101 Leachate Treatment Facility in Halifax County, Nova

2073

PROCESS SCHEMATIC ROJECT highway 101 LEACHATE TREATMENT FACLITIES

of leachate strength and quantities. The characteristics of leachate are

90-95'Ki

reduction

strength of the raw leachate. The treatment system consists of: • pre-treatment to adjust pH and remove inhibitory metals •anaerobic reactors for reduction

Scotia underwent start-up in the Spring of 1987 and was offici ally opened in June 1987. It was designed by Porter Dillon

known to vary from site to site and within different geographical loca tions. Accordingly, these costs will need to be adjusted to reflect the con ditions at a particular landfill opera

of organic strength • sludge handling facilities • polishing lagoons The facilities are predominantly enclosed in a serviced building

Limited of Halifax, Nova Scotia,

tion.

located at the base of the landfill

and is the first ofits kind in Canada.

The Halifax Regional Landfill was developed in 1976 and currently receives 1100 tonnes of wastes per day from Halifax, Dartmouth, Bedford and Halifax County. The site, which is 33 kilometers from Halifax, is 140 hectares, of which

and adjacent to the existing lagoons. Leachate flows and quality were determined by Porter Dillon

The anaerobic reactor portion of the plant was designed to remove 90% of the COD of the incoming leachate. Once the units reached an

equilibrium condition, consistent removals in excess of 95% at design loadings have been achieved. The start-up procedure for development

some 40 hectares are cleared. Waste

received is primarily municipal and

of the biomass utilized conventional

commercial. No hazardous or toxic

municipal anaerobic digester sludge as a "seed" for the high rate anaero

wastes are permitted. The Metropolitan Authority of Halifax, Dartmouth, the County of Halifax and Bedford (Metro Author ity) are responsible for solid waste disposal in the Halifax Metropolitan and surrounding areas. The Metro Authority initiated environmental and treatability studies, funded the lion's share of the costs for design

bic biomass.

The capital cost, including engineering, amounted to $3.5 million. Operating costs have been estimated at $180,000 per year with the largest amount of this cost attri buted to labour. Amortizing the capital cost over a 20 year period and adding the annual operating cost results in a cost per tonne of solid waste disposed of $2.20 in year 1. The long-term (20 year)operating and capital debt retirement cost is projected to be $1.55/tonne, assum ing an average inflation rate of 4% per year. It is important to recognize that costs are very much a function 12

Limited.

Future

characteristics

were predicted based on the expected increase in landfill area utilization.

Increases in leachate

flow relate linearly to the increase in landfill area coverage as leachate collection pipes will continue to be laid below developing portions of the site. Future leachate quality was predicted using a model which assumed that 10 years after place ment, waste ceases to contribute organic constituents to the leachate. Basic design criteria are: • present design flow = 1 L/s • future design flow = 1.75 L/s

• present COD load = 1815 kg/d

and construction of the leachate

• future COD load = 2400 kg/d

treatment plant, and now own and operate the facilities.

to make best use of existing leachate

Leachate is collected in an under-

collection and treatment facilities.

drain system arranged in herring bone fashion below the fill. Initially treatment was achieved by two aerated lagoons in series. The inability of the lagoon treatment

For example, the existing road was upgraded to accommodate the

Treatment facilities were located

increased traffic resulting from

chemical supplies, sludge disposal and operator requirements.

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Treatment Facilities

The four stages of treatment, along with associated works, are illustrated in the process schematic of Figure No. 1. Primary and by product flow streams, along with the options for process variation, are depicted. It was essential that as much operational flexibility as pos sible he incorporated in the facilities due to the limited experience with the high rate anaerobic treatment

The rapid mix tank has a 1/4 HP continuous duty mixer for full mix ing of caustic and leachate. The flocculation tank has a variable

speed 1/2 HP mixer providing gentle agitation to enable contact of chemical and metals in leachate, as well as efficient adjustment of pH.

Settling The settling tank is designed to handle both initial and ultimate

process. The components of each stage of treatment are described separately in the following sections.

flows. It is covered, constructed of

Raw Leachate Pumping Station Flow is diverted from the existing leachate collection system to a

system. Sludge accumulation is automatically removed on a time basis and conveyed to the sludge thickener by progressive cavity

mild steel materials with suitable

pumping station

consisting

conditions. Pre-Treatment Facilities

The pre-treatment system com prises an equalization tank, a caus tic feed system and rapid mix, flocculation and settling units. Each is designed to accommodate initial and ultimate flow.

reinforced

weir

and

scum

baffle

pumps.

concrete

equalization tank equalizes the influent flow and plant recycle streams for a constant discharge through the succeeding units.

Anaerobic Reactor System The anaerobic reactor system constitutes the primary facility pro cess. The system includes the feed station, reactor vessels with their various components, and recirculation system including heat exchan gers and gas handling scheme. Reactor Feed Station Reactors are fed on a semi-contin

uous basis allowing for flexibility of operation over the life ofthe facility. A 1.5 m diameter closed vessel serves as the wetwell for the feed

pumps. Duplex centrifugal pumps (one as stand-by)convey pre-treated

Equalization A

Reading

protective coatings and contains an effluent

submersible pumps and a pre-cast concrete wetwell of 3.6 m''operating volume. Two pumps,one as a stand by, are sized at a pumping rate of 10 m^/hr. The pumps are sufficient to handle the present and ultimate flow expected. An overflow/by-pass is provided from the pumping station to the lagoons for emergency

Central Meter

leachate to the reactors. The feed wetwell is covered and vented

through scrubbers to the atmosphere.

With OMR there is no need to

visit the customers' premises. Meters can be read as required over telephone or cable TV lines, completely automating your meter reading and billing process.

Anaerobic Reactors

Two upflow anaerobic reactors Caustic Addition Caustic stored in a 14 m^ hulk

storage tank is fed to the leachate flow following equalization to adjust pH and control heavy metals' concentration. The high calcium concentration in the raw leachate

discouraged the use of lime due to expected scaling problems. The actual caustic feed rate will be

adjusted by means of pH control to maintain a neutral pH in the flocculation tank.

are used to reduce the COD of the leachate. The two reactors are iden

tical and are designed to pass flow upwards through a sludge blanket and media layer before overflowing to effluent (and recirculation). The reactors are circular in shape and each with a 5 m diameter and a 7 m

sidewall depth.

The effective

volume of each reactor is 135 m l resulting in loading rates under init ial conditions of 7 kg COD/m'Vd

and increasing to 9 kg COD/m'Vd under ultimate conditions. Should it

Rapid Mix and Flocculation The rapid mix and flocculation tanks are sized for a detention time of 1.5 minutes and 15 minutes res

pectively. This results in a volume of 0.26 m-'for the rapid mix tank and 2.6 m'' for the flocculation tank. Both tanks are fabricated of mild steel and coated inside and outside

to prevent corrosion. The tanks are covered and vented for control of odours.

be necessary to remove one reactor from operation for maintenance, cleaning or similar reason, all influ ent will he directed to a single reactor which will adequately handle the additional temporary load.

In the anaerobic reactor, influent flow mixes with recirculated reactor

contents and proceeds through a heat exchanger into the distribution Continued overleaf

Circle reply card No. 108 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

SSfcM 'â&#x2013; '^c i^i^ootfrnj

piping at the bottom of the reactor. Flow moves upwards through 2 m of an anaerobic sludge blanket and then through aim transition area before entering the media. The

5.5 m diameter and 3 m sidewall

media consists of a cross-flow block

type media installed in a 3 m layer.

teristics prior to dewatering. Super natant overflows a perimeter V-

Above the media is an overflow area

notch weir in the thickener to a

ment facilities. Thickened sludge is transferred to the dewatering equip ment automatically in response to a level signal in the sludge vat of the

wash drain line to drain contents

vacuum filter.

forced concrete construction was

selected for the reactors. They are covered with proprietary fixed steel covers. The tanks are fitted with access bulkheads below the media

level. The covers contain gas tight manholes and sampling ports as well as gas safety equipment.

You see, tfiis Wolf and the rest of the Eurodrive Application Engineering Pack are available to put not only their exten sive drive knowledge to work for you . . . but also a world of in-depth industry knowledge. Chances are, the drive prob

lem you're facing now. . . is one that this Wolf or another member of the Pack has

already solved. Ask For More Information To find out more about how Wolf and the rest of the Pack

can add value to your company, contact us today for this informative brochure.

SEW-EURODRIVE SEW-EURODRIVE COMPANY OF CANADA, LTD. SOCIETE SEW-EURODRIVE DU CANADA, LTEE 210 Walker Drive

Bramalea, ON L6T 3W1 (416) 791-1553

Recirculation System Reactor contents are recirculated

through a drawoff piping network to provide mixing and to maintain the temperature of the reactors at 35Â° C. The recirculation ratio of the reactors' contents to influent is 10:1. The recirculated contents are

directed with the influent through spiral type heat exchangers. Dupli cate heat exchangers have been pro vided so that each reactor system may he operated independently (and at different rates) and one system serve as back-up to the other. Heat exchangers are sized at capac ities of 580,000 Kjoules/hr each, whereas recirculation pumps have a rated capacity of 26.1 m '/hr. Gas Flow Stream

Gas production will occur at a rate of 0.50 L/g of COD removed. During the pilot testing, the methane component of this gas was consistently 72% by volume. At the initial and ultimate COD loads of

1815 kg/d and 2400 kg/d respective ly, and projected COD removal effic iencies of 95%, methane generation is estimated at 620 m'Vd under ini tial conditions and 820 m-'/d under

future conditions. This gas quantity converts to heating values of 938,000 Kjoules/hr under present conditions and 1.27 million Kjoules /hr under ultimate conditions. The

energy derived from the gas will be

Canada'S/tDrive Leader

utilized to maintain the reactor con

tents at 3.5' C with excess gas direct ed to space heating requirements or flaring.

Sludge Handling

EURODRIVE Circle reply card No. 109

sump from which it is conveyed by

for further clarification and degasification of the liquid before it dis charges. Gas is removed from the top of the reactor and conveyed to the boiler system. Each reactor contains sample ports, temperature sensors, a back from the media layer to remove any excess solids, a recirculation system and a sludge drawoff system. Rein

If your company uses drives, and you'd like to lower product costs, improve pro ductivity, or minimize downtime . . . Eurodrive Application Engineers like Wolfgang Doebel are available to fielp.

depth. The thickener is equipped with a rotating scraper type mech anism, complete with vertical pick ets, to improve thickening charac

The combined sludge will be transferred to a covered thickener of

submersible pumps to the equaliza tion tank at the head of the treat

A skid mounted fully automated

pre-coat vacuum filter system pro vides sludge dewatering. The system consists of a pre-coat tank and pump, vacuum pump, filtrate pump and 6.5 m- vacuum filter. Sludge is dewatered at a rate of 2 m'Vhr. The open tankage forming part of the vacuum filter is covered and vented through scrubbers to the atmosphere. A sludge cake of minimum 20% solids is produced and dropped directly into a dumpster located in the sludge dewatering room. This dumpster empties in the landfill. Filtrate from the operation is directed to the reactor effluent

system and the aerated lagoons.

Lagoon Modifications The aerated lagoons are used to polish the effluent from the anaero bic reactors. It was demonstrated in

the laboratory studies that aerated lagoon treatment decreased residual COD, BOD and ammonia, while precipitating dissolved and suspended solids. To restore the existing lagoons to full service, the following modifications were under taken:

1. A new underdrain system was installed below lagoon #1 to relieve hydrostatic pressure. 2. A new liner consisting of glacial till (site soil) was placed over the new underdrain system of lagoon #1.

3. The aeration system was com pletely replaced using new coarse bubble air diffusers and associated

piping with air supplied by the exist ing 40 HP blowers. 4. New and similar aeration equip ment (to lagoon #1) was installed in lagoon #2 following minor repairs to the existing liner. The lagoons receive effluent from the

anaerobic

reactors

and

the

dewatering process. As well, the building underdrain system and the domestic and utility waste waters are directed to the lagoons for treat ment and discharge.

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Oil from sludge project launched In N.S. Some five years ago Steve Davey

erate. So, operating costs are a frac

interviewed federal scientists at the

tion of those associated with alter

Wastewater Technoiogy Centre and

native systems. The new system mitigates the need for capital-inten sive waste disposal incinerators, and does not require extensive land

wrote a detaiied articie on the oil from

sludge experiments being carried out there. Now this technoiogy is poised for implementation in Halifax, NS. ES&E intends to follow this developing story with great interest. Environment Canada and

Nova

Scotia have launched a $195.7million project to construct a treat

ment system that will demonstrate Canada's pioneering oil-fromsludge technology. A major objec tive will be to cleanse the Halifax

Harbour, one of the most severely polluted waterways in eastern Can ada, ending over 240 years of uncon trolled raw sewage discharge into the Harbour. Environment

Minister

Tom

fill sites - a real boom to cities where

land is at a premium. The oil-from-sludge demonstra tion project has the potential to revo lutionize the way municipalities around the world cope with their burgeoning waste. In one fell swoop, the technology advances pollution control, energy conservation, better land management and economic goals. In Canada, half a million tonnes of sewage sludge are produced across the country each year. Some 70 per cent could be converted to about 700,000 barrels of oil, worth roughly $20 million annually. Such

McMillan says the project will dra matically strengthen Canada's capacity in the increasingly lucra

ficult task of disposing 350,000

tive field of environmental technol

tonnes of sludge in an environment

conversion would eliminate the dif

ogy. Potential sales are estimated to

ally

be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

cities hundreds of millions of dollars.

Environment

Canada's

Wastewater Technology Centre in Burlington, Ontario, engine ers and scientists have been

developing technology to con vert municipal sewage sludge into a synthetic fuel. Environ ment Canada now holds valu

able

patent rights on

the

process.

Because the technology works best when supplied with primary sludge, Halifax was thought to be an ideal site to demonstrate it com

mercially. Mr. McMillan noted that Canada, U.S. and Europe spend billions of dollars a year on sludge disposal, and those expenditures are expected to double in the next 10 years. More over, sludge disposal accounts for as much as 50 per cent of a municipal ity's cost of operating wastewater treatment plants. New York, New Jersey and Boston have pledged to stop dump ing untreated sludge into the Atlan tic by the early 1990s. They are look ing for this type of technology. Japanese cities are also searching for better ways to handle their sewage.

Oil-from-sludge plants are them selves powered by the fuel they gen

acceptable

manner, saving

"The number of other community priorities that could be funded with the savings - day care, welfare pro grams, community centres, public housing - is staggering," Mr. McMillan said.

"Canada's environmental

industry sector, though not yet large, is establishing strong roots in the economy of the country. That sector now employs more than 100,000 people directly and an addition al 50,000 indirectly. The poten tial for further growth is re stricted only by our ambition, our ingenuity and our commit ment â&#x20AC;&#x201D; certainly not by the marketplace."

Today, Neptune ARB Meters are the fundamental component for accurate, reliable and cost efficient water measurement

and electronic data capture. ARB meters provide the vital link to both hand held data capture... Unigun,and Central Meter Reading...OMR. Neptune expertise and technoiogy...best for today, even better for tomorrow.

For more information

piease caii:

1-800-263-0669

"In no other policy area will laws become tougher than in the environ mental field.

At a time when the

trend is towards deregulation almost everywhere else, govern ments are moving in the opposite

Neptune Meters Canada Division of Schiumberger Canada Ltd.

direction in the environmental field.

Industry will sorely need the tech nology to meet steadily stiffer con trol measures. Such measures will

be at once a burden and an oppor tunity for the private sector - a burden because it will be an inescap able cost of doing business; an op portunity because it will open up tre mendous avenues for domestic and

foreign sales alike."

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Circle reply card No. 110 15

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY

Gas detector sensor technology for combined space entry Instruments

There are many portable gas detectors used for con fined space entry but one of the most important con

siderations should be sensor tech

nology. Most manufacturers provide good and reliable electronics with audio and visual alarms and a wide

and varied array of features; some useful - some not so useful.

But the most important factor to any specifier should be the types of sensors

used

the

ground sumps and basements may By Ross Humphry* range of combustible gases and vapours may be present. Home owners frequently throw waste paint thinners and solvents down the drain and gasoline spills are typically washed into storm sewers. Where there are industrial areas,the potential for combustible gases and vapours is greatly increased.

instrument

under consideration; will they pro vide the safety factor your workers require? For example, instruments that may ignore a major toxic gas commonly found in your plant or

Industrial

Workers in the industrial sector

will be primarily concerned with the specific combustible gas found in the tanks and vessels of their work

place, although other combustible gases may be present. CATALYTIC COMBUBTICN GAB SENBGR

TOXIC GASES

Municipal As with

.FLAME ARFEETOR

.HOUSING

BENBINQ _

.TEKPERATUnE COHPENSATINQ BEAD

BEAD

workplace can leave employees just as unprotected as if in a workplace without a gas detector. Before committing your staff to a specific instrument, you should evaluate the types of hazards you can expect and the types of sensors which will provide the required pro tection. This is probably the most difficult part of the purchasing deci sion as each municipality or indus try may encounter entirely different hazards in their respective work places. Some background data may enable specifiers to make an inform ed decision.

COMBUSTIBLE GAS

Municipal For municipal staff working in

storm drains, sanitary sewers, lift stations, or wetwells, there can be any one of a number of combustible gases found in the workplace. Methane is the most common,

while gasoline, solvents, and a wide 16

combustibles, any number or mixture of toxic gases may be present, hut the two main toxic gases typically tested for are hydrogen sulphide and carbon monoxide. Both of these toxic gases may be present; hydrogen sulphide due to the decomposition of biode gradable material and carbon mon oxide due to incomplete combustion from motor vehicles, portable gas powered pumps or other sources. However there is a vast array of man-made toxics that may be found in municipal sewers, storm drains

have toxic gases invade from the surrounding soil (ie: hydrogen sul phide) and if motor vehicles are pre sent, carbon monoxide is always a serious potential hazard. Oxygen Deficiency All workers, whether municipal or industrial should always be on the look-out for oxygen deficiencies. Oxygen may he displaced by a heavier than air inert gas; such as carbon dioxide or nitrogen or it can be used up by oxidization; the pro cess whereby rust is created. INSTRUMENTS

Once re-acquainted with some of the hazards identified with confined

space entry in your workplace, you now have to choose the instrument

best suited for your application from the wide variety of portable gas detectors on the market. There are

single, dual and triple function instruments as well as instruments

that contain four sensors (combus tible, oxygen deficiency and two chemically specific toxic sensors). SENSORS

But the critical factor in purchas ing decisions should be the sensor technology used in the portable instrument under evaluation. COMBUSTIBLE GAS

Catalytic Combustion Gas Sensor This sensor detects combustible

and wetwells. These include indus trial solvents and chemicals such as

METALLIC OXIDE SEMICONDUCTOR (HOB)

methyl chloride, perchloroethylene and toluene. These toxics have Threshold Limit Values as low as

100 ppm.

Gasoline, commonly looked upon as a combustible gas, has a toxic TLV of 500 ppm, well below the 12,000 ppm at which gasoline will ignite or the 2,400 ppm (20% Lower Explosive Limit) alarm point. A worker can be rendered unconscious

BTAINLEBBSTEEL SCINTERED

.HEATER COIL

CUP

.NOBLE METAL HIRE

SENSOR I . NICKEL PINS

long before the combustible alarm point (20% LEL)is reached. Industrial

Workers in industrial facilities

may encounter a wide range of toxic gases, hut again generally only those that are man-made or are a by product of the process. Most tanks, vessels, etc., will only have the toxic gases that are related to the products contained in them. However, under

gases by a mini-combustion of gases within the sensor chamber.

Gas

samples diffuse through the flame arrestor into the chamber containing the sensor or reference bead.

hydrocarbons oxidize on the catalyst (platinum/palladium) coated oxide bead (500 - 600 degrees G)the plati-

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

hexane and ELECTROCHEMICAL TOXIC SENSOR

_FRONT END PLATE

MEMBRANE ,

_ANODE -SUPPORT QRID

CATHODE

_ELECTRQLYTE

"qr COUNTER ELECTRODE

REFERENCE ELECTRODE

.SENSING ELECTRODE

num heater resistance change is monitored. Figure 1. The flame arrestor prevents com bustion of most flammable gases that occur on the reference bead

from propagating outside the instru ment and into the atmosphere. Care must be taken not to expose these sensors to acetylene as the flame arrestor

Their dis

Metallic Oxide Semiconductor(MOB) The MOS sensors are uniquely

BACK END PLATE

butane.

advantages are, they must have suf ficient oxygen (min. 16%) for their combustion process to work and the bead may be coated and destroyed by the presence of lead, silicone and hydraulic fluid vapours. They also have a poor response to low energy hydrocarbons such as fuel oils, kero sene and jet fuel.

cannot contain

different from the catalytic type. The sensor surface is made up of a proprietary recipe of mixed metal oxides of iron, zinc and tin and oper ates at significantly lower tempera tures than catalytic combustion sen sors for hydrocarbons. In air, absorbed oxygen establishes an equilibrium reaction with conduc tion layers of the metallic oxide giving a base level of electron con duction through the sensor (ie: a "clean air" resistance level). When a combustible gas adsorbs on the sen sor surface, it reacts with the adsorbed oxygen layer resulting in a

these

sizable decrease in sensor resistance

These sensors offer good linear ity, low temperature operation and can react to most high energy hydro carbon vapours such as methane,

for the presence of only a few hund red parts per million of the gas species. Figure 2. These sensors are rugged, inexpensive and have a 3 - 5 year

vapours.

sensor life. Their disadvantage is that they are non-linear in response and are non-specific and as such will respond to a broad range of toxic gases. This is a plus when the toxics are unknown or multiple toxics are present, but can be a nuisance if looking for a specific toxic. TOXIC GAS Electrochemical Toxic Sensor

This sensor consists of a sensing electrode, a counter electrode, a housing containing an acid electro lyte and a teflon membrane which is porous to gas but non-porous to Continued overleaf

THIN FILM ELECTROCHEMICAL CHEM-FET

.SEMICONDUCTOR PILH

CONTACT PADS

SUBSTRATE

THE TROJAN SYSTEM UV 2000 -A proven alternative to tiozordous ctiemicals -Eliminates ttie need for dectiiorination

-A weottierproof, completeiy moduior, gravity flow system

-Simple retrofit into existing ctilorine contact chambers

-Ease of maintenance, continuous

monitoring -Proven performance with over 150 systems in operation

TEGHNOLOGIES INC.

845 Consortium Court, London, Ontario, Canada N6E 2S8

Tel: (519) 685-6660, Telex: 064-7219 Fax: (519) 681-8355 Circle reply card No. 114 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

liquid. The membrane allows gas to

Thin Film Electrochemical - CHEM-FET

The latest in solid state technol

diffuse into the sensor while con

taining the acid. Figure 3. A voltage bias is applied across the two electrodes and the toxic gas is oxidized on the sensing electrode. The advantages are a linear signal and virtually no %RH effect. These sensors are available for

hydrogen sulphide and carbon mon oxide; however there is some cross sensitivity to other gases negating their use in analyzers or in instru ments featuring peak holding, TWA or STEL alarms. Chemically specif ic sensors 10 to 100 times more

specific than the above are needed for analytical quality instruments.

ogy, the Thin Film Electrochemical Sensor is a silicon chip 1 to 2 mm square. Vacuum deposited thin film heater, thermistor, contact pads, and N-type semiconductor are posi create the CHEMFET -(Chemically Sensitive Field Effect Transmitter^ Figure 4.

BASIC ELECTROUrtE

COUNTER ELECTRODE

CONTACT PINS

The CHEM-FET sensor is a de

vice open to the atmosphere so that the gate has absorbed oxygen for equilibrium. Operating tempera tures are approximately 275 degrees C. The N-type semiconductor is Indium

oxide

which

causes the

ionized oxygen to reduce conductiv ity of the InO film. As hydrogen sul phide reacts on the surface, the elec trical conductivity increases. These sensors have a very long life and few interferences. They are humidity dependant and non-linear but can be linearized electronically.

WATER DATA

for in-siiu lake profiling, stream surveys, bays, estuaries, acid rain in\'estigations

logging &L surveying battery-powered waterproof

Metallic Oxide Sensor (MOS)

Utilizing a different oxide make up on the sensor bead for toxic gases, this MOS sensor operates as described under combustible gases. In addition to sensitivity to hydro gen sulphide and carbon monoxide the MOS sensor can be calibrated to

fluorocarbons, solvents, fuels, am monia, cyanides, etc., thereby pro viding a broad range toxic gas

accurate readings-high quality economical • ru

_TEFLON MEMBRANE

tioned on the silicon substrate to

QUALITY HYDROLAB

HET CHEMISTRY OXYQEN QAB BEN8DR

i.M

response.

reliable

OXYGEN DEFICIENCY

Wet Chemistry Oxygen Gas Sensor All currently available portable

SURVEYOR® II

gas detectors that monitor for oxy gen use a form of wet chemistry for

Water Quality Instrument

detection.

Our experience, and input from professionals like you have produced a new generation. The field-proven SURVEYOR II is compact, highly portable and

vanic Cell, Polarographic Cell and Galvanic Cell using capillary barrier technology. Figure 5. Oxygen passes through a thin film membrane porous to oxygen but not liquids and a low current is produced. This sensor is relatively

easy to use

TEMP

Call us today to discuss your particular application or to

TRUE D.O.

receive more information on

the SURVEYOR II and Hydrolab's

family of water quality

COND

monitors and recorders.

ORP DEPTH

30 years of producing multiparameter water quality instruments for the field

SALINITY

200 meters H1J 1H5

TEL. (514)354-2511 TELEX 05-829558 FAX. 514-354-6948 D 223 SIGNET DRIVE. WESTON. ONTARIO CANADA M9L1V1 TEL.: (416) 747-9889 FAX 416-747-7570

interference

free and the sensor

signal is linear. Most sensors are throw-away after 10 to 18 months use. The polar ographic sensor may be rejuvenated with a new membrane and electrolyte. To know

which instrument to

use, you need to be aware of the spe cific hazards in the confined spaces in your workplace. Once you know what to be on the look-out for you can choose the instrument with the

sensor configuration most suitable for your application.

GENEQ inc. □ 7978 JARRY E.. MONTREAL. QUEBEC, CANADA

These include the Gal

Circle reply card No. 113

COMBUSTIBLE SENSORS Both combustible sensors will

work well; the determining factors should be contamination, sensitiv ity, ruggedness and of course re placement costs. You might get a good deal on the instrument, but if it

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 19S8

costs a small fortune to maintain, initial gains may become a major liability later.

ture individual specific hydrogen sulphide and carbon monoxide sen sors in addition to a combustible

sensor and oxygen deficiency cell. These instruments are typically re

TOXIC SENSORS

This is the area that causes con

ferred to as four-function units.

cern to many Safety Officers. As discussed earlier, there are three main types of toxic sensors. To put them in perspective we will split them into two categories. Chemical ly specific and non-specific. The two chemically specific are; wet chemis try (with some interferences) and thin film (with few interferences). The non-specific sensor is the metal

When using instruments with chemically specific sensors it is very important to he aware that should any other toxics he present, other than those the unit is designed for, the instrument will not respond to them. Therefore they are not recom mended for applications where unknown toxics may he present or may appear during the workers time in the confined space. The munici pal field is one area where many dif

lic oxide semiconductor. SPECIFIC

Chemically specific sensors of the wet chemistry and thin film con figuration are now widely used in portable instruments. They use little energy, are chemically specific (with some interferences) hut are rel atively expensive to replace.

These sensors are typically used for Carbon Monoxide and Hydrogen Sulphide detection. Each sensor will only detect the gas it is designed for (with some interferences).

Some portable instruments fea

ferent toxics can he encountered. NON-SPECIFIC

The MOS sensor is a non-specific sensor. In those applications where chemical specificity is not required, this sensor is well suited. It uses

more energy hut is rugged and inex pensive. It will react to a wide range of toxic gases and vapours including hydrogen sulphide and carbon monoxide. However, it may not alarm at precisely the TLV of the

Stabilize and sanitize

sludges for easier, ecologically sound waste disposal.

many toxics it may encounter, hut it will he in the ballpark. The MOS sensor is widely used in the munici pal field where many unknown toxic hazards exist. If chemical specifi city is required, then the wet chemis try or thin film types should he used. OXYGEN DEFICIENCY

All three wet-chemistry sensors are widely used in portable gas de tectors. The factors for sensor deter

mination should he replacement cost, operational life, ease of sensor replacement and durability of the sensor.

Never use an oxygen deficiency detector to detect toxic gases that your toxic gas sensors are not sensi tive to. To reduce the oxygen level down to the alarm point could require a lethal level of toxic gas. SUMMATION

There are many instruments on today's market featuring all or some of the sensor technologies discussed here. Be sure ofwhat you are looking for and what you are looking with, before sending workers into poten tially hazardous areas. *Ross Humphry is manager of Enmet Canada Ltd.

WILL YOUR NEXT ALARM MONITOR DO ALL THIS? CHATTERBOX will keep you in direct touch with your unattended facllity-as easily and simply as picking up a telephone.

It calls you. If an alarm condition occurs, it dials up to 8 fieldprogrammable phone numbers and identifies the specific problem in plain English.

REVEH.SiBtE CONVEYOR

F^EWATERFO SLUDGF CAKE

OUICKliWF

You call It. Call it from any telephone at any time to hear a complete status report.

Control your facilities by phone. Use the Remote Super visory Control option to turn equipment on or off from any telephone.

RACO'SCHAHERBOXDOES! DOLE MIXERS IHANSFORM SCUDGE CAKE to GRANULES OlSCHAPGtU SLUDGE LIME RANULEG

3 PHASE lAOTOfl

Roediger's "Lime Post Treatment" module economically dusts dewatered sludge with quicklime (CaO) killing bacteria and odour. Municipal sludges to industrial and food processing wastes now effectively treated. Call (416) 736-9888 for technical assistance.

NEEDRSVS Circle reply card No. 111 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Chatterbox Is the only Alarm Monitor that lets you start small and add features as your needs dictate.

Modular design allows monitoring of 4,8,16,24, or 32 channels. Solid state voice synthesizer(eliminates broken tape loops).

Customize your messages by using our exclusive 230 word vocabulary. Integral surge protection on all Inputs minimizes high voltage damage. Industry-leading 2 year warranty covers parts and labor. You demand a reliable and cost effective solution to your monitoring and control needs. Call RACO now orsend In this card. Summa Engineering Limited

1295 Eglinton Ave., East, Unit 15 |

ingineeriog

Mississauga, Ontario L4W 3E6

Tei.: (416) 624-3188 Teiex: 06-961313

Circle reply card No. 112 19

Swimmer's Itch traced to snails

During the recent hot

By Tom Davey

summer, Canadian

bathers enjoying a cool ing dip in some rivers and lakes may have been puzzled by an irritating itch and mild skin rash which occurs after they emerge from the water. Schistosome Derm atitis or Swimmer's itch is a mild

form of dermatitis resulting from contact with the minute larvae of a trematode worm.

Hugh Graham, a scientist with the Ontario Ministry ofthe Environ ment, says that adult parasites are carried by various waterfowl, espec ially migrating ducks. Parasite eggs are passed in the mucus or feces of the birds which then infect suitable snails which act as inter mediate hosts. Infected snails later

skin of human swimmers and re

peated exposure can develop an allergic response which results in swimmer's itch. The parasite is not able to develop in man so quickly dies. Researchers

stress that the

rashes seldom persist more than a few days and are not seriously detri mental to human health. Only occa sionally do severe cases require medical treatment to relieve discom

fort. The Ontario Ministry has re searched the problem for several years and established that it is a natural phenomenon, unrelated to

sulphate which is known to have molluscidal (snail killing) properties while being non-toxic to humans when applied to water bodies. In a single section of one large lake studied,Environnient Ontario researchers noted some

21 million snails of the species which could be potential car riers of the larvae which cause

'swimmer's itch'.

Snail-killing

chemicals could also be fatal to

other non-target aquatic life. More over, carrier snails constitute a very small percentage of the total snail population. Even if chemical con trols were successful, there is the probability of recolonization by the snails following the dissipation of

pollution. Keeping ducks from prob lem waterways would be one way to

the chemicals.

release large numbers of small (less than one millimetre long)fork-tailed

control swimmer's itch but this is

Ottawa Valley, researchers observ

not felt to be a practical solution. To

ed that carrier snails usually inhab

larvae which swim near the water's

date, scientists have found no effec

ited areas which were less than 12

surface. Normally a few larvae pen

tive methods to control the snails,

etrate the skin of ducks at the surface

other than the removal of the snail hosts. Chemical control of the host

feet in depth. With this in mind, swimmers equipped with masks and snorkels, have successfully removed significant numbers of the host

where some adult parasites com plete the cycle. Other larvae releas ed by the snails can penetrate the

snails was considered using copper

In problem areas in the Upper

snails from extensive areas ofshore

line used by bathers. Some scientists feel this method may be just as effec tive as using costly chemicals, with

Gartner Lee appointments

out the risk of environmental dis

John Gartner

David Osmond

John F. Gartner, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Gartner Lee

a senior hydrogeologist presently managing Environmental Strategies Limited (ESL), a subsidiary of Gartner Lee, specializing in spi ll response, decommissioning and cleanups. Mr. Ted O'Neill (B.Sc.) is a senior hydrologist responsible for coordi nating surface water investigations. Mr. Lou Locatel li (G.E.T.) is a senior field coordinator responsible for all staff training, cleanups, hydrogeological and geotechnlcal investi gations, soil surveys and aggregate

Limited is pleased to announce the appointment of David S. Osmond, B.Sc.Agr., as a shareholder and a Director of the company. Mr. Osmond is an aquatic biologist who joined the firm in 1976. Seven addi tional shareholders have recently been appointed and they are:

Mr. Glenn Reynolds (M.Sc.) is a senior hydrogeologist at Gartner Lee specializing in ground water geo chemistry and organic contaminants.

ruptions to other organisms. Typical snail hosts are called Lymnaea emarginata which are common snails, about 20 mm long by 10 mm wide, living in clear, shal low areas of lakes and slow moving streams. Although some lakes and rivers in the Upper Ottawa Valley have been cited as problem areas, scientific literature notes that swim

mer's itch, in its various forms has

annoyed bathers in Quebec, Mani toba, Saskatchewan and

British

Columbia as well as many other parts of the world,including several American states.

Penetration of the skin by the larvae does not usually take place in the water so divers harvesting the snails would be at no greater risk than ordinary swimmers. When people leave the water, some larvae can get trapped in droplets, and

Mr. Don McOuay (B.A., A.D.Agr.) is a senior earth scientist/geologist specializing in terrain evaluation, land resource planning, resource inventory projects and site servicing

inventories.

where there is sufficient contact

Mr. Rob Dickin (M.Sc.) is a senior hydrogeologist special izing in ground water geochemistry, contam inant migration and environmental

assessments.

audits.

time for penetration to take place, the itch could develop. One simple way to avoid the itch is to towel off briskly after swim ming, rather than let the water dry

Mr. Dave Slaine (M.Sc.) is a senior hydrogeologiSt/geophysicist cur rently managing our Niagara Falls, New York office.

Mr. Geoff Westerby (M.Eng.Sc.) is

Gartner Lee Limited is an inde

on one's skin. This greatly reduces

pendent consulting firm offering Pro

contact time of the larvae on the skin. Because children are often in

fessional Services in Environmental

Management, with offices in Markham, Ontario and Niagara Falls, New York.

and out of the water more frequently than adults, and are less likely to dry-off, they are often at greater risk. ES&E

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Biological phosphorus removal can be effective and economical by Michael Yue and Vijay Thadani

In 1987, a demonstration

study for biological phos phorus (bio-P) removal, funded by the Ontario Minis try of the Environment(MGE), was conducted by Gore & Storrie Limited, at the Lakeview Water Pollution Control Plant(WPCP) in Mississauga, Ontario. The objec tive of the study was to demonstrate the economical and operational benefits of bio-P removal in a full-

scale operation. Lakeview WPCP was an ideal water pollution control plant to implement this study as wastewater

characteristics

and

plant capahilities were suitable. As well, the MOE has in recent years required the reduction in phosphorus levels to reduce the eutrophication of surface water systems. The study has indicated the bene fits fi'om both the efficiency and economic viewpoints, which may be attained from the implementation of bio-P removal. The study, which

1988

Dissolved oxygen levels and grab samples being taken from the Bio P system by Lakeview WPCP operations staff.

was carried out in three phases, tested the superiority of biological phosphorus removal in municipal wastewater treatment plants versus the conventional physicochemical

precipitation with metal salts, including alum, ferric chloride, and

lime. The use of physicochemical methods, though effective in phosContlnued overleaf

NOVEMBER 28 & 29 ROYAL YORK HOTEL

TECHNOLOGY

TORONTO ONTARIO

TRANSFER CONFERENCE

This conference serves as a forum for pre senting innovative environmental technolo gies and progress on research projects funded through the Research Advisory Committee of Environment Ontario. The conference will be of

particular interest to environmental groups and consultants, industry, municipalities, provincial and federal governments, as well as universities and research institutions. Research in the fields of

air pollution, water quality, liquid and solid waste, analytical methods and Instrument development, and environmental economics will be presented in five concurrent oral sessions, a panel discussion and in poster displays.

For Further Information Please contact: Conference Secretariat

c/o Congress Canada 73 Richmond Street West, Suite 300 Toronto, Ontario Canada fvlSH 1Z4

Attention: Shelly Stienstra Telephone:(416)860-1772 • Fax:(416) 860-0380

□

The Level Control that k monitors itself

□

•

Ideal for high or low level limit alarm applications, the self-checking capacitance-type FTC 681Z level switch continuously monitors itself from the tip of the probe to the out put relay. The microprocessorbased unit is immune to buildup, has an adjustable time delay, and features push-button calibration. Unique pulse frequency modulation (PFM) digital signal transmission guarantees a very high security signal. The ultimate in operating security and transmission security. Phone or rvrife to-day for details.

Dqvis Controls LIMITED

Environment

Ontario

Jim Bradley Minisler

Circle reply card No. 116

4251 Dundas St. West, Toronto. Ontario M8X 1Y3 416/233-3211

Telex 06-967604

Circle reply card No. 117

phorus removal, pushes the cost up dramatically as effluent standards

of retrofitting the plants for bio-P removal.

It was found that it is

are raised.

important to treat each plant on an

The concept of biological, instead of physicochemical processes, for phosphorus removal in the treat ment of wastewater was first appar ent when bio-P removal by activated sludge was discovered in the 1950's.

individual basis in terms of waste-

The benefits of bio-P removal were

quickly realized in the study - reduc ed chemical costs, reduced power costs for the aeration system, and better sludge reduction. Several fullscale feasibility studies have been conducted on existing municipal wastewater treatment plants with a view to determining the advisability

water properties, operational prob lems, and cost efficiency, before a retrofit is designed. The Lakeview WPCP in Missis-

sauga, Ontario, presently accomp lishes phosphorus removal by chem ical precipitation with ferric chloride.

The Lakeview

WPCP

serves the Region of Peel and is part of the South Peel sewage system serving Mississauga and Brampton and parts of Metropolitan Toronto. Operated by the MOE, it can treat 280,000 m'Vd of sewage. The Plant

was initially constructed in 1961 with a design capacity of 22,500 m'Vd (System 1). An extension (System 2) in 1967 increased this capacity to 56,000 m-'/d. The Plant was subsequently expanded to 168,000 m'Vd in 1972 (the second

plant), and in 1975 a third plant was added which brought the total facil ity capacity up to its present value of 280,000 m'Vd. The wastewater char acteristics and the plant were evalu ated and assessed, and deemed suit able for a bio-P retrofit. As a result, the Lakeview WPCP was selected

for a full-scale demonstration study for bio-P removal. On this basis, a three phase study was initiated to exhibit the benefits of biological phosphorus removal. The demonstration was conduct

ed in the first plant (System 1) and its expansion module (System 2). System 1 consisted of two equally

ASA PAM.â&#x20AC;&#x17E;

A023..f^2Ar..Ap7S... WkOTO TO

sized aeration tanks and four final

clarifiers. System 2 consisted of two equally sized aeration tanks and two final clarifiers. Each system had a separate return sludge facility. Both systems received their feed from the same primary effluent channel. System 1 was operated normally as a control unit and System 2 was used for the demon stration. Phase 1 of the demonstra

tion was simply an operation of the test aeration tank, without chemical addition, to purge the residual iron from the system and provide an acti vated sludge suitable for the study of biological phosphorus removal. Phase 2 involved the introduction of

an anoxic zone in the first pass of the test aeration tank and studied

the effect of minimum air supply on the removal of phosphorus and on system operation. Phase 3involved the introduction of an anaerobic zone in two test aeration tanks to

Quality design stands out for the active life ofa project. And that means better construction efficiency operating reliability and easy maintenance.To get the best solution,at a cost that's less than 1% ofthe average project's Lifetime,call on consulting engineersthe expert problem solvers who provide creative design ideas that hold water for years to come. For information on consulting engineer services and firms in your area,contact us. The Consulting Engineers of Ontario 86 Overlea Boulevard, Suite 403, Toronto, Ontario M4H 106 Telephone: (416) 425-8027

Ontario is great because it was engineered that way

Circle reply card No. 118 22

Consulting Engineers of Ontario

study biological phophorus removal efficiency. In this latter phase an assessment was made of the poten tial reduction in chemical precipi tant dosage while still achieving a high level of phosphorus removal. Also assessed were potential power cost savings. Operational difficul ties emanating from the process modifications were likewise examined. The results referred to in this article are based on Phase 3 of

the study. The operating parameters of the two systems are shown in Table 1.

Twenty-four hour composite samples were taken of the influent and

effluent of the control and

demonstration systems and anal yzed for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), suspended solids (SS) and phosphorus (P). Grab samples were taken of the recycled

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

sludge and placed in anaerobic con ditions to examine the release of

phosphorus and so assess the degree of bio-P removal. All analyses were performed according to Standard Methods and iron samples were analyzed on a Varian SpectrAA - 20. It should be noted that the system efficiency in terms of BOD and SS

Table 1 Average Operating Parameters of Control and Test Systems Control System Test System A.T. 1 & 2

Average Flow (m /d)

was observed in the

12,430

7.46 0.64

2,729

0.25 83.0

Final Settling

3,256

0.29

Final 1-4

Detention Time (hrs.) Surface Overflow (m'/m^.d) Weir Overflow (m'/m.d)

6.72 0.74

3.85 23.91 87.09

0.39

82.7

86.2

Final 5

Final 6

3.82 23.91 68.26

3.54 25.73 73.48

Table 2 Average Effluent Parameters

Control System Parameter

Final 1-4

Test System Final 5

Final 6

waste-

water characteristics and plant capabilities. The economic advant age was impressive - a reduction in chemical use of approximately 70% can be realized by converting the existing Lakeview system to bio-P removal. Furthermore, a reduction in sludge volume of approximately 17%

3,026

MLSS SVI

qualifications for

11,250

7.16 0.64

Organic Load (kg BOD/m'.d)

not affected by implementation of bio-P removal. The average effluent quality of the two systems during the study period of approximately

certain

24,740

Detention Time (hrs.) F/M

obtained from the Lakeview biologi cal phosphorus removal study, have led to the following conclusions which will most assuredly be of great interest to other wastewater plant staff, provided they meet

A.T.

Aeration

removal at the Lakeview WPCP was

three months is summarized in Table 2. The observations and results

A.T. 3

bio-P

removal system. As well, the study demonstrated that, given the char-

acteristics of the influent waste-

Gore & Storrie Limited has the view

water at the Lakeview WPCP, bio-P removal is possible through the

that municipalities, and other like public institutions in charge of environmental and public Jrealth projects, take a good look at retrofit ting and installing biological phos phorus removal systems for effective

introduction of an anaerobic zone in the aeration tanks and therefore a

16% reduction in aeration power requirements can he expected. In the light of the above results obtained in the Lakeview WPCP,

and economical treatment of wastewater.

HYPOCHLORITE DE SODIUM

Ualtemativesure Pour la desinfectlon de I'eau, le traltement des eaux usees, le controle des odeurs,

['elimination du cyanure. FABRICATION BRISTOL-MYERS UNE DIVISION DE BRISTOL-MYERS CANADA INC

5555, rue Cyplhot Ville de Saint-Laurent (Quebec)H4S 1R3. T6I.(514)331-7571

Environmental Science & Engineering. October 19HH

Circle reply card No. 119 23

R.V. ANDERSON ASSOCIATES LIMITED CORPORATE APPOINTMENTS

Kenneth Morrison, P. Eng.

Harold McColm, P. Eng.

Geoffrey Addison, P. Eng.

Chris Doherty, P. Eng.

Gary Farrell, C.G.A.

Ian Marshall, P. Eng.

Victor Chin, P. Eng.

Kenneth A. Hyde, P. Eng., President of R.V. Anderson Associates Limited is pleased to announc€ the following appointments:

• Kenneth A. Morrison, P. Eng., Vice-President, responsible for business development and branch operations;

• Harold McColm, P. Eng., Associate Director, responsible for transportation and municipal engineering works; • Geoffrey Addison, P. Eng., Associate, manager, municipal wastewater treatment; • Victor Chin, P. Eng., Associate, senior projects manager for environmental planning; • Chris Doherty, P. Eng., Associate, manager, water resources engineering;

• Gary Farrell, C.G.A., Associate, manager of finance, responsible for the daily manage ment of the firm's finances and adminstration;

• Ian Marshall, P. Eng., Associate, senior project engineer in the environmental engineer ing group.

These appointments reflect the increased responsibility and senior level of commitment by thest professionals to the firm as well as to the municipal, environmental and civil engineering industr) in general.

Since 1948, R.V. Anderson Associates Limited has provided consulting engineering services to the

private and public sectors including municipalities, federal and provincial government agencies private developers, industries and other consultants. Circle reply card No. 120 24

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Computerized metering pump

maximum metering accuracy, a computer has been integrated into the pump. A specially developed microprocessor makes metering pro grammable and allows a dialog

^=1 What's New New portable gas detector

with the user.

The new "Quad 400" four function portable gas detector from Enmet Canada Ltd. is said to be state of the

ProMinent Fluid Controls

Circle reply card No. 150

art in portable gas detectors for con fined space entry.

Two-wire transmitter

sor, it features oxygen deficiency as

In addition to a combustible sen

loop accessory modules VersaLoop is Magnetrol's new line of two-wire transmitter loop acces sories. Each accessory is an individ ual module, offering the end user the opportunity to design their own sys tem, and add or delete modules as

smart, programmable metering pumps that can be operated in a

their needs change. Available accessory modules include power supplies, current trips, characterizers, analog meters, digital meters and bar graph meters. These modules are designed to be used with any 4-20 inAdc two-wire

dialog mode. An LCD readout dis

transmitter signal.

plays the actual pump status. According to the company the gamma/4 has features that normally would require additional expensive ancillary equipment. The heart of the new pump is an

They can be mounted in a variety of ways; including, DIN rail, with or without dust covers; individually in panelboards; or, as a complete sys

ProMinent Fluid Controls has intro

duced a programmable microproces sor-based metering pump. In their standard versions, ProMinent° gamma/4 series are

well as enrichment and two chemi

cally specific sensors for toxics; one for hydrogen sulphide and one for carbon monoxide.

The Quad 400 also features a

detachable sensor assembly with a 20' cable. The four LCD digital dis plays are backlit through a photo cell and the instrument features low

battery alarm and automatic purge on start-up. Enmet Canada Ltd.

tem in its own enclosure.

Magnetrol

electronic circuit. In order to obtain

Circle reply card No. 151

There's no excuse for

bad odor anymore.

IOC INDUSTRIAL ODOR CONTROL

Circle reply card No. 152

TERM-GATOR

TERRA-GATOR® the productive solution to fluid waste! Your waste problem could become plant nutrients that brighten municipai parks or boost crop yields on the farm. Disposing waste sludge with the Terra-Gator pressurized In

jection system is an effective method of acceierating the process of decomposition.

The injection system can dispose up to 4000 gallons in a 4 minute cycle. Odor problems are minimized. Terra-Gator systems have flotation tires and high torque

X-O is a true Odor Neutralizer.X-0 is guar anteed to work for you or your money back. Accepted by Waste Professionals for use in

air-scrubbers and at al l areas generating

power units that provide mobility in areas unsuitable for trucks or tractors.

On-the-site field service is unequalled in the industry—a good reason why Terra-Gator is favored by engineers.

nuisance odor. INDUSTRIAL DIVISION

P.O. Box 156,

REHAB

Collingwood, Ontario

SALES AND SERVICES

L9Y 3Z5

ag'chem

4900 Viking Drive Minneapolis, MN 55435 (612)835.2476

(705) 445-3233

Circle reply card No. 121 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Circle reply card No. 122 25

What's New AM plastic centrifugal fans

These fans were designed for the handling of gases and corrosive air found in industrial applications

Fabricated Plastics Limited

such as hospitals, laboratories,

has

metal finishing, mining, and chemical plants.

introduced a new line of all plastic construction centrifugal fans.

Fabricated Plastics Limited

"Fabco-Kt Oktavent Fans" are the first machine made hand assem

bled fans available in North America, and feature one-piece vacuum formed fan casings in plastics such as PVC and Polypropylene. The casing outlet can be orientated to eight different discharge angles. Capacities range from 50 to 9000 cubic feet per minute. Fan discharge

Circle reply card No. 153

Liquid level switch diameters range from 6 to 20 inch diameter with Static Pressure up to 6 inches.

Madison Company's Model M5602 multi-level switch is designed for reliable liquid level sensing in a wide range of applications with high temperatures, high pressure or corrosive conditions. This all stain less steel switch is available in a

variety of stem lengths with up to 6 floats. The M5602 can be furnished

>•••-

•• • •

^ • S • f

•• ••••

•• mm

••

• •

• ••••

••••

with either male thread, pipe plug or flange mounting. Rated at 60 watts, it can withstand temperature up to 200°C and pressure up to 200 psig. Bestobell Canada Limited

Circle reply card No. 154

A Wealth of Online Information

Intelligent non-contact measurement system

What is WATDOC?

WATDOC is a database producer which provides an online link between information seekers and the sources.

WATDOC offers specialized data bases containing tens of thousands of references to water resources and related environmental issues.

You can bring Canadian research right to your fingertips. Who uses WATDOC?

Anyone can use WATDOC's data bases — scientists, engineers, planners, academics, researchers, information specialists, etc.

To reach WATDOC ..

For current information about the databases — access, coverage,

costs, etc., write or phone:

The Nivosonic Intelligent Measure

ment System offers the ability of non-contact

level

measurement

with experience-based intelligent software.

The Nivosonic can decipher and ignore false readings, provide auto

WATDOC

Inland Waters Directorate Environment Canada Ottawa, Ontario K1A0H3

matic electronic linearization for

different container sizes and shapes. It is capable of interfacing with up to 64 transmitters, display instru ments, alarms and controllers and

(819) 997-2324

offers a continuous self-monitoring function for fault control.

The sensor, signal line, transmit ter and evaluation programme are ■ A ■

Environment

Envlronnement

1^1

Canada

continually monitored; when a fault occurs, the alarm is set and the fault code is stored in memory. Davis Controls Ltd.

Circle reply card No. 123 26

Circle reply card No. 155 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

SYSTEMS LTD.

EFACTS

NEW,EFFICIENT EMULSION-BREAKING SEPARATORS: cut waste handling costs up to 98% handle fresh or salt water, mechanical or chemical

■ automatic, unattended operation ■ capacities from 800 to 63,000 GPD

emulsions

■ leasing available

use no chemicals

■ free payback study

Write for your free copy today,or call FAST Systems Ltd.,305 Lakestiore Rd. E., Oakvllle, Ontario, L6J 1J3. Tel: (416) 842-4640, Tlx: 06-982422, Fax: (416) 842-0633.

Send me the facts on the FAST Oil/Water Separators. Name

Title

Company Address

City

Environmental Science & Engineering. October 1988

Prov..

P/code

Circle reply card No. 124

Preserving and renewing our vital infrastructure assets

Consulting engineering

MacLaren, in the inaugural issue

plays an important role in the provincial and national economy. In 1984, industry billings nationally

of Environmental

structure

been actively researching, reporting and promoting public awareness of the situation with regard to sewers and watermains. There are several

other existing reports which are very useful and surprisingly consis

This had a

further spin-off benefit to industry

tent in results and recommendations.

in Ontario in excess of one-half bil lion dollars worth of materials and

By D.P. Sexsmith

equipment supplied to projects Consulting Engineers of Ontario member firms have been heavily involved in partnership type rela tionships, usually with municipali ties and/or the Province in creating Ontario's infrastructure in

water

supply and distribution and wastewater management. They continue to be involved in providing engine-

Rehabilitation" which

The Ontario Sewer and Watermain Contractors Association has

that the Ontario share of the export market amounted to approximately

abroad.

reviewed many of the recent studies.

amounted to $2.11 billion of which $1.77 billion was earned in the domestic market, and $340 million from the export market. Ontario firms held a major share of the dom estic marketplace, and it is estimated

30% ($100 million).

Science

Engineering presented an article entitled "The Magnitude of Infra

ering services to permit evaluation of existing systems, and rehabilita tion or reconstruction of system elements. In the U.S. the National Council

on Public Works Improvement has recently released its report entitled Fragile Foundations, A Report on America's Public Works to the

President and the Congress. Jim

In reviewing the literature, 1 was surprised at the consistency of the results. For example, the Ontario Sewer and Watermain Contractors

Association and the Ministry of Environment estimate that the capi tal cost of replacing existing sewers and watermains is $36 Billion and $32 Billion, respectively. These are very consistent estimates.

This replacement cost figure is an interesting one to dwell on for a

We'll analyze 30 Water Quality Parameters and give you results that are fast, accurate and reproducible. FAST Our standard turnaround time for potable water is 5 days. We conducted 18 months of research to de

velop our Rapid Chemical Analysis program (RCAp)and have invested heavily in state-ofthe-art instrumentation and dedicated per sonnel in order to provide you with this level of service.

w ^fm NGAIA

ACCURATE We use quality, micro-processor based instruments to achieve a high level of accuracy. And we require only 100 ml of sample water to perform a complete analysis. REPRODUCIBLE A stringent quality control/quality assurance

program combined with advanced robotics, spectrometry and micro-processor techno logy ensures our ability to generate reproducible results every time.

To date we have analyzed in excess of 260,000 parameters in samples from all ten provinces, all levels of government, major and minor consultants, large and small

industry, and private citizens. The confidence level of our clients is extremely high. So when you require fast, accurate, repro ducible standard water quality analysis, give us a call. The service fee for potable water is ^60.00 per sample.

iMNN

AQUA 400 Matheson Blvd. E., Unit 6,

Mississauga, Ont. L4Z 1N8 Phone (416) 890-2555 Fax (416) 890-0370

30 PARAMETERS OF SERVICE • Sodium

• Ammonia

• Potassium

• Iron*

• Magnesium

• Ortho Phosphate • Manganese*

• T. 0. C.

• Calcium

• Bicarbonate

• Cation Sum

• Hardness

• Copper* • pH • Conductivity

• Alkalinity

• Zinc*

• Carbonate

• Ion Balance

• Chloride

• Colour

• Saturation pH

• T.D.S.(Theor.)

• Nitrate & Nitrite

• Turbidity

♦ Langelier Index

♦ Conductivity(Theor.)

• Sulphate • Silica

"Total metal. Water soluble fraction available as an alternative.

• Anion Sum

Circle reply card No. 125 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Consultants' Directory

moment. The literature suggests that the life expectancy of sewers and watermains is 60 years, 120 years or forever, depending on the source of data, materials used, design and installation procedures, maintenance procedures and usage.

Water Supply & Sewage Disposal • Roads & Bridges Flood Control • Solid Waste Disposal Municipal Drains • Land Use Planning

These estimates are not hard to

OUR EXPERTISE INCLUDES A SOLID AND EXTENSIVE BACKGROUND IN

agree with but given the available

ALL ASPECTS OF CIVIL, MUNICIPAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING.

information and the long time hori zon, the specific life expectancy becomes a philosophical argument. Almost all references suggest that about 1% of the capital costs expended per year is necessary to

Ainley and Associates Limitedj CONSULTING ENGINEERS & PLANNERS .

COLLINGWOOD (705) 445-3451

BARBIE (705) 726-3371

maintain and rehabilitate the facili

ing systems. Compared to practices

This amount translates to some

$300 M per year. This spending level is adjudged to be necessary to avoid double these costs for essen

BELLEVILLE (613) 966-4243

• Environmental Auditing and planning • Regulatory affairs

ties. This 1% is an average for exist and experiences with other capital expenses, this 1% annual cost seems a small number but is probably cor rect, given the type of installations.

management

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING LTD.

• Waste Auditing and management planning

Environmental and occupational health and safety specialists Serving industry in Canada

• Air, soil, waste and water

analytics/studies

225Sheppard Ave. W., Wlllowdale, Ontario M2N 1N2

(416)226-0148

tial emergency replacements if timely and proper maintenance is not carried out. These costs do not

include for losses due to excessively leaky watermains or costs of treat ing excess wastewater from leaky sewers or the costs of overloading and overflowing of leaky sewer systems. This recommended expenditure level is 3 or 4 times the current level of funding. How do you get this extra money? Let's review a couple of things by asking some questions. • Why is an expanding industry in

R.V. Anderson Associates Limited consulting engineers

Water Resources

Transportation Municipal Services Land Development Tunnel and Shaft Design

Toronto (416) 497-8600

Welland (416) 735-3659

Pollution Control

Sewerage Systems Water Supply

ASSOCIATED

ENGINEERING

this Province able to collect from

$100 - $540 per year per customer for a cable hookup to watch more tele vision, not watch television, but

ENVIRONMENTAL Water

ENGINEERING •

SERVICES

Wastewater

more television?

• Why is the growth area in auto mobiles sales in the more expensive

STE. 107. 16 FOUR SEASONS PLACE

ASSOCIATED

TORONTO. ONTARIO M9B 6E5 TELEPHONE (416) 622-9502

.ENGINEERING

cars?

• Why are people willing to spend $15 M in one week to buy 649 lottery tickets?

• Why do residential telephone cus tomers in Ontario spend an average of $200 per year in long distance charges, not in basic charges, but elective long distance charges? Each of the expenditures associ ated with the previous questions involves a voluntary action. I sub mit it also involves the purchasing of a perceived direct benefit by the spender. These two points are not characteristically perceived by tax

payers in their contributions to gen eral revenue at any level of govern ment.

The

media exposure

of the

baak.

beak consultants limited

ye-

Tel: (416) 458-4044 Fax:(416) 458-7303

Environmental Specialists •Watershed Management •Process & Design Engineering •Fish Toxicity •Groundwater Contamination beak

bcolc

analytical

Tel:(416) 458-4044 Fax:(416) 458-7303

services

Environmental Analysis

question of infrastructure rehabili tation has been very high in the last few years. There seems to be little

•MISA/EMPPL •GC/MS

•Dioxins •Metal Scans

•Conventional Pollutants •All Matrices

Continued overleaf

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERS

CANVIRO

CANVIRO CONSULTANTS

C INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATER TREA TMENT

A Division Of

C MUNICIPAL WASTEWATER

CH2M HiLL ENGINEERING LTD.

TREA TMENT

C HAZARDOUS WASTE SERVICES C

Waterloo, Ontario 519-579-3500 (Fax) 519-579-8986

WATER RESOURCES

Toronto, Ontario 416-858-2330 C LAB SERVICES

(Fax) 416-858-3779

Infrastructure (Cont'd.) argument about the cost or necessity or even the revenue creating aspects of the necessary increases in expen diture. Where is the groundswell of public demand to make these increased expenditures? Even in these days of instant information dissemination and

public enlightenment a lack of reality permeates our thinking on

Comprehensive

the value of essential services and

Environmental

Analyses 178 Louisa St., Kitchens Kitchener, Ontario A/?H 5M5 FM: N2H 1-519-579-4230

^ ^ Concord Scientific Corporation coTsuitTntf

what we are willing to pay for them. To illustrate this point, our Federal Minister of Environment, Tom McMillan, also writing in the Environmental Science & Engineer ing publication, points out that we are willing to pay $18,000 for a cubic meter of whiskey and $800 for the same amount of cola. At the same time, we have never been asked to pay more than 50 cents for a cubic meter of water delivered to each floor in our homes.

Hazard and Risk Control

Analytical Lab Services

Occupational Hygiene Services Pollution Control - System Design

Instrumentation Development

The

Dispersion and Acid

Indoor Air Quality Studies Safety and Environmental

Deposition Modeling

Audits

Municipalities, in co-operation with the Provinces, have been proposing a 1/3 municipal, 1/3 provincial and 1/3 federal government commit ment to provide catchup funding for

Head Office: 2 TIPPETT RD., TORONTO, ONTARIO M3H 2V2 (416)630-6331

Branch Offices: OTTAWA•OALGARY

Back to the funding alternatives. Federation

of Canadian

infrastructure rehabilitation.

The

Feds have refused each time they are asked; amazingly unequivocally for polititians, yet the municipalities ENGINEERS PLANNERS ARCHITECTB

DELCAIM

A NATIONAL S. INTERNATIONAL COMPANY

would not want to bet on the Feds re

OFFICES ACROSS CANADA S. OVERSEAS

entry to the game. As an aside - Ontario, through the MOF, has agreed to pay its 1/3 while chastizing the Feds to come up with their 1/3. Municipalities are quite willing to postpone their increased spending while waiting for the Feds to change their mind. This general approach seems to

M.M. DILLON LIMITED

5IILL©ini

TORONTO LONDON omwA

WINDSOR

environmental engineers & scientists urban planners transportation engineers

WINNIPEG REGINA

indicate either a diversion of exist GCG DILLON CONSULTING LIMITED EDMONTON RED DEER YELLOWKNiFE

PORTER DILLON LIMITED TORONTO 1416) 229-4646 • EDMONTON (403) 483-8094 • HALIFAX (902) 453-1115

HALIFAX

Professional Services In

Environmental Management Gartner Limited

and provinces keep asking. With the'emphasis on deficit control and the general lack of funds for discre tionary spending by the Feds, I

•Environmental Strategies •Resources Planning •Waste Management •Hydrogeology

•Biology •Water Quality •Engineering Geology •Spill Response

ing money from other existing pro grams or an increase in taxes. Given the relative political sex appeal of better sewers vs. better schools, hospitals or other social programs, the diversion would appear to be a tough sell. There has been a documented

shift in the proportion of spending by the different players in the infra structure game in this Province over the last few years. The shift has

resulted in the municipalities spend ing higher percentages of infra structure costs. It is particularly noticeable in transportation. In 1945 road costs were shared 7%

140 Renfrew Drive ■ Markham - Ontario • L3R 6B3 ■ Telex 06-986278

Telephone (416) 477-8400 30

Municipal, 93% Provincial. By 1980 the numbers were 70% Municipal, 30% Provincial

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Gore S Storrie Limited In the 60's the Ministry of Trans portation and Communications

Consulting Engineers & Architects WATER • SOLID & HAZARDOUS WASTES• WASTEWATER

received 30% of the Provincial bud

get. By the 80's, MTC was receiving 7%. Can municipalities continue to increase property taxes, their

DRAINAGE • WATER RESOURCES • ENERGY RECOVERY

1670 Bayview Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M4G 3C2 Telephone(416)485-7715

virtual sole source of taxation to

cover increased expenditures?

Fax(416)485-0014

Another alternative to raise the

money is the user pay, designated taxes, etc., concept. Elected officials have traditionally resisted this approach. This may be understand able. This alternative does not pro vide funds at the political level for discretionary spending. This reduces political power. It is inter esting to note, however, that some political jurisdictions are advocat ing that charges for water should be more realistic. This, in effect, in Ontario, represents a user-pay con

cept. It would seem to be an attrac tive alternative particularly to Municipalities. Even the revenue collection mechanism is in place. Water suppliers have customers. To load wastewater management costs on top of water costs is already established. Water metering is tech nologically in place. It seems an obvious solution. If properly pre sented, it also represents the per ceived direct benefit for increased

spending concept presented earlier. To relate to previously noted numbers, the necessary funds, on average, would result in increased

Ottawa • St. Catharines • Barrie

Process

Design

320 ADELAIDE STREET SOUTH, LONDON. ONTARIO

Hisey and Barrington Limited Consulting Professional Engineers

R.R.#2, King City, Ontario LOG 1K0 727-4365

• Gas Chromatograptiy

OTHER SERVICES • Process Evaluation

• GC/MS

• TOX, DOC.TOC

• Effluent Sampling • Stack Sampling Industrial Hygiene Surveys

■ Hazardous Waste Evaluation

Martin Kretch Limited Consulting Engineers. Planners. Landscape Arctiitects. Fax:(416)459-7869 220 Advance Bouievard, Brampton ,Ontario. L6T 4J5(416)459-4780

MANN AQUA

• Specializing In Inorganic Water Quality Analysis • 30 Parameter Rapid Chemical Analysis program featuring 5-day turnaround

sonic methods of determining leaks We have had for

methods of determining

400 IVIatheson Blvd. E., Unit 6, Mississauga, Ont. L4Z 1N8 Phone: (416) 890-2555 Fax: (416) 890-0370

where and how we need to bolster

distribution and collection systems. These permit programmed mainten ance rehabilitation and replace ment on a planned, more cost-effec tive basis, than previously. We are beginning to do needs and inven tory studies on watermains and sewers. We probably need to do much more on developing manage ment methods for sewer and water

LABORATORY ANALYSIS

• Atomic Absorption

Knox

We have methods for examining sewers by TV and we have new

systems. Pavement management systems are in the forefront here it seems to me. We need to develop systems regarding the proper time

CANADA N5Z 3L2 • TELEPHONE (519) 686-7558 comprehensive environmental laboratory and field services

Consultants for water and pollution control projects

per year.

years

ENVIROCLEAN

Division of MacLaren Plansearch

total water rate increases of 30 - 40%

in watermains.

Marshall Macklin Monaghan Consulting Engineers Surveyors Planners

275 Duncan Mill Rd., Don Mills, Ontario MSB 2Y1 (416) 449-2500 Toronto• Edmonton • Burlington • Mississauga•Whitby

to rehabilitate sewers from a cost-

effective standpoint. How long can various materials and methods of construction and/or rehabilitation

last? This is going to take accelerat ed efforts by all the players, the Province, Universities, Municipali

Sewer Flow

noMttnRio. TECHNiCAL

SERVICE

Sewer Shed Typifigation

Data Collation

ties and Consultants.

In summary, the CEO supports the concept of major increases in spending in infrastructure rehabili-

Monitoring

"TECHNICAL SUPPORT TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING PROFESSIONAL"

Calibration MiSA Spec Reports

23 OLD PARK LANE, KITCHENER, ONT. N2N 2J7

(519) 748-8024

Continued overleaf

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

MacUren ^gineers

MacLaren Plansearch

Environmental Engineering and Environmental Management Consultants • Water supply, treatment & distribution

• Automated mapping & facilities management • Hydrogeology & coniaminani migration • Environmental studies, audits, & planning

• Wasiewaicr collection, treatment, & dispo.sal • Waste management • Energy from waste

• Computer sciences

• Water resources engineering

• Economic «& social studies

• Biological surveys

• Laboratory services

2235 Sheppard .Avenue Easl

tation of the sewers and watermains in this Province is in the order of

about $25/capita/year. It appears that a user-pay con cept for raising the money will have a greater chance for success than other alternatives. It also results in

Branch ofriccs; Kingston, London, Ottawa, Waterloo. Windsor, Winnipeg

VS'illowdale, Ontario, Canada M2J 5A6

tation. CEO also is ready to partici pate in the spending exercise. The necessary increased cost of rehabili

Telephone: (416) 756-4919''3866

Lavalin

paying a more realistic price for water. Finally, increased efforts by all players are required to increase the effectiveness of water and sewer age management systems. Mr. Sexsmith is President of

NovaTec Consultants Inc.

Kostueh Engineering and Con sulting Engineers of Ontario.

Environmental Engineers & Scientists waterwastewatertreatment etfluentdisposal sludgehandling

Classifieds

underwaterinvestigations computerapplicationsandanalysis treatmentpiantoperationassistance bio/chemnutrientremoval #300,40 PoweU Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6A1E7 (604)-682-8777 Fax:682-3521 #1, 665 Queens Avenue, Victoria, B.C. V8T1L9 (604)-384-1499 Fax:384-1201

i:kh\UM\^ SLUDGE MANAGEMENT SLu

Complete Digester and

ONTARIO RESEARCH FOUNDATION Energy & Environmental Engineering Division □

Waste Treatment

□ □

Technology Development Water Quality Surveys Waste Management

□

Pilot Studies

Lagoon Cleaning Land Application Systems

□ □

Analytical Services Contaminant Transport Modelling

□

Ambient Air Studies

□ Emission Source Testing □ Occupational Health

Program Development Tel: (416) 648-3463 1435 Jerseyville Rd. W., Jerseyville, Ontario LOR 1R0

2395 Speakman Drive

Mississauga, Ontario L5K 1B3 □ Tel. 416 822-4111 □ Fax 416 823-1446 □ Telex 06-982311

paul theil associates limited consulfing engineers

CARBONITE FILTER MEDIA ANTHRACITE FILTER MEDIA

also suppliers of quality filter sands and gravel ANTHRAFILTER MEDIA & COAL LTD.

21 COVENTRY ROAD, BRAMPTON, ONTARIO L6T 4V7 (416) 792-2215

66 Brant Street Hamilton. OnL L8L 6A6

Tel; (416) 523-1850

Specializing in Municipal Services, Stormwater Management and Urban Flood Relief

ECONOMICAL • EFFECTIVE FULLY GUARANTEED

THE

CANADA

SURCG PRODUCTS, INC.

416/671-1010

800/556-0111

ODOMASTER

PROCTOR & REDFERN WORLD RENOWNED SINCE 1946

GROUP Consulting Engineering Planning, Architecture, Landscape Architecture

FILTER MEDIA • Anthracite Filter Coal • Filter Sand & Gravel

45 Green Belt Drive

• Ion Exchange Resin • Filter Cartridges

Don Mills, Ontario, M3C 3K3

(416) 445-3600

(0.35, 1. 5, 10. 20, 50 & 100 micron)

Brampton, Hamilton, Kenora, Kingston, Kitchener, London, North Bay, Ottawa, St. Catharines, St. John's, Ntld., Sault Ste. Marie, Simcoe, Sudbury, Thunder Bay

Eldon Technologies Limited 1260 Lakeshore Rd. E

Mississauga, Ont. L5E 3B0 Tel.: (416) 271-1600 Fax; (416) 271-0554

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

CWWA focusses on water metering,drinking water guideiines and operator certification The metering project is aimed at providing system managers

CWWA has established a Canada-

wide Committee to review the up dated Health and Welfare Canada

with

Drinking Water Quality Guidelines released by the federal government last spring. Following completion of a review process in September, the Committee will also be reviewing

analyses of the long-term costs and benefits of installing and maintaining meters for a given system. Once these tools are available, the association will be seeking ways to work with municipal and provincial authorities to implement meter ing for those systems where it is demonstrably beneficial. Statistics indicate that many Canadians do not yet have munici pal water supply and even more do

comments from other sources.

consolidated report representing CWWA's views is expected to be sub mitted to the federal government this Fall. This will be the first time

that municipalities and municipal utilities have had direct input into the lengthy development and review process.

Responding to growing public concern about the quality of munici pal drinking water, the association is also working with federal and pro vincial authorities to collect data on the contents of over-the-counter bot

tled water. By publicising compar isons of tap water and bottled water, the association hopes to dispel some of the myths about drinking water safety in public supplies.

By Robert Ferguson, P.Eng.* From its inception, the associa tion has been committed to develop ing pricing systems for the services that are fair and reflect the costs of

the services. Last fall, it proposed a preliminary strategy for a compre

the

tools

undertake

not have wastewater treatment facilities. The Association is consid

ering a study and survey to report on methods for ensuring full cost pric ing to the users for water and wastewater services.

hensive review of water and waste-

Response to the association's

water service costs and prices. With

various committees shows there is

assistance from Environment Can

widespread interest in helping smal ler cities handle their unique prob lems. Surprisingly, it is not only

ada, CWWA will shortly begin work on this review with a project on metering.

smaller

communities

who have

indicated such an interest, but also a number of people from some of Canada's largest cities. The im

WHMIS is HERE!

mediate

aim

of CWWA's Small

System Committee is to develop strategies involving the federal and provincial governments that will draw on this interest; additionally we will seek all skills and resources from communities of all sizes to

GREET HIM WITH

STW PARKIW&

CHEMIS

identify the needs, problems and po tential solutions for small systems. CWWA has always supported and sought ways to strengthen the activities of its certification, educa tion and training committee. Its first goal was to achieve reciprocity for operators, a process that already was underway when the association

Your First-Choice Chemical Management Software • MSDS module provides rapid entry and retrieval of data. • Labelling module drives standard laser/dot-matrix printers. • Advanced design makes searches fast, even with incomplete information.

• User programmable libraries for standard phrases reduce typing. • Satisfied customers include major corporations and utilities. • Other modules available include:

—Chemical Inventory/Tracking —CAD-based Site Maps and Floor Plans —Employee Training For information contact: Bennett Environmental Consultants Ltd. 200-1130 W. Render Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6E 4A4 • Phone (604) 681-8828

Circle reply card No. 126 Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

was founded.

With the develop

ment of standardized tests that

have been accepted by most provin ces, the association now is in a posi tion to serve as a clearing house for the setting of exams. In the coming year, it will be working to develop and promote high-calibre training and educational materials. As discussed in the last issue of Environmental Science and

Engineering, sharing expertise internationally and seeking to en hance Canada's standing as a world leader in the development, produc tion and marketing of an environ mental industry product is another of the association's key aims. ToContinued overleaf

POLLUTECH LIMITED

CWWA focusses on metering (Cont'd, from previous page)

Helping Management Make Better Environmental Decisions 768 WESTGATE ROAD, OAKVILLE, ONT. L6L 5N2

TEL: (416) 847-0065

FAX: (416) 847-3840

1149 VANIER ROAD,SARNIA, ONT. N7S 3Y6 TEL:(519)339-8787 DIALCOM:21-POU003

DIALCOM: 21-POU004

wards this end, the association will be dedicating its time to such objec tives and seeking to develop water and wastewater activities in con

junction with the Canadian Inter national Development Agency (CIDA). Canadian municipalities and the Federal Government have an obli

\ph S.

gation to share their achievements in

POLLUTION CONTROL & CONTRACT OPERATION 471 D'ARCY STREET, NEWMARKET, ONTARIO L3Y 1M9

(416) 853-1223

water

members

Water Supply•Pollution Control*Drainage-SCADA Simcoe Engineering Group Limited .Consulting Engineers Simcoe Building 345 Kingston Rood,Pickering,Ontario. L1V 1A1

Tel (416) 286—2285 Fax (416) 286—1361 Branches Brampton. Buffalo.

totten

and

wastewater

with

others, particularly in the develop ing countries. Finally, emphasis will be put in the coming year on expanding the association's publishing program. In addition to its own quarterly Bulletin, arrangements are being made to provide association with

selected issues of

Water Watch, a monthly compen dium of legislative, research and industrial

activities related to

Canada's water resources published by the Rawson Academy of Aquatic Science.

As well, negotiations are under way to extend the association's cur rent arrangements that make the publications of such sister organiz ations as the American Water Works Association and the Western Canada Water and Wastewater

sims hubicki Engineers Architects and Planners Toronto, Whitby, Cobourg, Kingston Bracebridge, Ottawa, Simcoe, Waterloo

and Kresin Engineering and Planning Ltd., Sauit Ste. Marie

Association directly available to its own members to the publications of an even broader range of Canadian and international organizations. Having gained rapid acceptance as an organization whose time has come, I believe the Canadian Water and Wastewater Association in the

TRITON €NGIN€€RING SCRV1CCS LIMITCD

Consulting engineers

coming year will be able to demon strate that it has a vital role to play in the field of municipal environ ment management.

ORANGEVILLE- FERGUS- GRAVENHURST *Mr. Ferguson is President of the Canadian

Water

and

Wastewater

Association and Deputy Works Com missioner ot Metropolitan Toronto. SEWERAGE SYSTEMS

ROADS AND BRIDGES

MUNICIPAL SERVICES

FLOOD CONTROL

WATER SUPPLY AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEMS

WILLMS & SHIER / BARRISTERS & SOLICITORS specializing in

Land Use Planning & DevelopmenI, Environmental Approvals, Waste Disposal and Municipal Law John R. Willms / Donna S.K. Shier / Catherina Spoel

P. Douglas Petrie / David O. Cox 73 Richmond Street West, Suite 200, Toronto. Ontario M5H 1Z4

Ad Index Ag Chem

Mann Aqua

R.V. Anderson

Mecorsys

Bonnet Env. Cons. 33

MOE

Bristol Myers

Monenco

Can Am Ins.

23 7

Neptune

Davis Controls

Odomaster

Mueller

CEO

Ecodyne

9,11,13,15 8

Purospan

35 19

Eurodrive

Summa Eng.

FAST Systems

Trojan Tech.

Geneq

Watdoc

X-O

416 863-0711 • Fax; 416 863-1938

John Vissers

Magnetrol nilUlllMtKii

lAKllllllUliiUi

Environmental Science & Engineering, October 1988

Company Profile

Purospan Industries Inc.

Hectronic measuring and zontrolsystems

Filterpresses

Purospan, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Canadian company, Magna International, delivers complete industrial waste water systems to meet the environmental and resource recovery requirements of a large part of the manufacturing sector including:

DE-AQUATOR® ultrafiltration

Compact clarifiers

• Electroplating • Anodising • Printed Circuit Board Production

units

• Metal Hardening • Scouring Plants • Paint Shops • Latex Processing

• Photographic Proc. Labs • Printing works

Pursopan is the exclusive Hcensee of

ton exchange circulation

Demineralization

ystems

Gutling Products for North America. The Gutling Company of West Germany is one of Europe's leading producers of engineered environmental systems. Purospan is backed by over 25 years of experience in this field derived from over 1000 successful installations world-wide by Gutling. This knowledge, combined with the renowned manufacturing expertise of Magna International gives Purospan the leading edge.

Batch and continuous detoxification plants

MEFAX System

Circle reply card No. 127 Purospan Industries Inc. A Magna International Company 594 Newpark Boulevard, Newmarket, Ontario, Canada L3Y 4X1 Telephone:(416) 853-0777, Telefax:(416) 853-4449 35

(!/.'P^i'y'.^P^ :. :^v'

At$832

We've pulled another one out ofthe hat! The NEW Kotronâ&#x201E;˘ Two-Wire Level Transmitter.

It's new technology which makes the Kotron Two-Wire Transmitter extremely reliable, rugged and compact. Whether liquids or sohds,the level is accurately . indicated by a linear 4-20 mAdc output.

It is intrinsically safe when used with approved barriers and accommodates any Kotron probe. The prices vary slightly with different probe styles and lengths. For more information, call Magnetrol at (416)678-2720 or write for Bulletin 50-123. The real level control is a Magnetrol,

MAGNETROL INTERN AT lONAL NOW

APPROVED

6291 Dortnan Road, Mississauga,Ontario L4V-1H2

Circle reply card No. 128