Seymour Capilano Filtration Plant School Program Drinking Water Treatment Glossary Acids: compounds containing hydrogen (H+) that produce a solut i on with a pH of less than 7 when they dissolve in water.
Gravity: at racti ve force between two or more masses.
Adhesion: the at racti on between the molecules of two diff erent substances in contact with each other.
Keystone species: species (e.g. salmon) whose presence or absence will greatly impact the health of the ecosystem they are part of.
Backwashing: reversing the fl ow of water through a water treatment fi lter in order to clean the fi lter materials for reuse.
Nitrification: the process in which ammonium (NH4+) is converted into nitrate (NO3-‐).
Bacteria: an organism consisti ng of a single prokaryoti c cell surrounded by a complex polysaccharide coat.
Part per million (ppm): a measurement of chemical accumulati on; 1ppm means one parti cle mixed with 999,999 other parti cles.
Bases: chemical compounds containing hydroxide (OH-‐) that produce a soluti on with a pH of more than 7 when they dissolve in water.
pH scale: a number scale for measuring how acidic or basic a solut i on is.
Biochemical Oxygen demand (BOD): a measure of the amount of oxygen required by microorganisms to consume the organic nutrients found within a body of water. BOD value is most commonly expressed in milligrams of oxygen consumed per litre of sample during 5 days of incubati on at 20 °C.
Buoyancy: the ability or tendency to fl oat in a fl uid.
Pressure: the amount of force per unit area. Reservoir: a large natural or arti fi cial lake or holding pond used to collect and store water (or other substance) for human use.
Run-‐off: water not absorbed immediately by the surface and fl ows downhill over land.
Salinity: a measure of the amount of salts dissolved in a liquid.
Carbon cycle: the nutrient cycle in which carbon is moved through Sedimentation: the process in which soil part i cles and decaying organic matt er accumulate in layers on the ground or at the the biosphere. bott om of large bodies of water. Chlorination: the addit i on of chlorine to water primarily for the Suspended solids: solids that neither sink nor fl oat in water. purpose of disinfecti on. Sustainability: using natural resources in a way that allows Concentration: the amount of a substance dissolved in a given an ecosystem to sustain ecological processes and maintain volume of soluti on. biodiversity over ti me. Contamination: the introducti on of chemicals, toxins, wastes, or micro-‐organisms into the environment in concentrati ons that are Turbidity: is the cloudiness or haziness of a f l uid caused by parti cles within it. harmful to living things. Viruses: ti ny, non-‐living part i cles capable of reproducing only Dechlorination: the process by which chlorine is removed from when inside a host cell. treated water.
Denitrification: the process in which nitrogen is returned to the atmosphere.
Viscosity: the resistance of a fl uid to fl ow.
Density: the mass of a given volume.
Water cycle: the system of water circulati on on, above, and below Earth’s surface.
Dissolved oxygen: is a measure of the amount of oxygen naturally dissolved in water.
Wavelength: the distance from one point on a wave to the same point on the nearest wave.
Flocculation: when small part i cles come together into larger parti cles (called fl ocs).
Seymour Capilano Filtration Plant School Program On-site Tour Experience What can we expect the day to look like? ARRIVAL
10:00 – 10:10 am
• Logistics
WATER TREATMENT OVERVIEW
10:10 – 10:40 am
• Who is Metro Vancouver? What do we do? • The drinking water produced by the SCFP is some of the highest quality in the world • Water quality concerns • Primary treatment and secondary treatment methods
TREATMENT PLANT TOUR
10:40 am – 12:00 pm
Seeing how it all works • Control Room – Coordination of entire water and waste water system
• Filter Deck – Sand and anthracite filtration in action • UV Gallery – UV disinfection at work • Mechanical Bay – Career connections • Quality Control Lab – Under the microscope and water testing
Student Page
Seymour-Capilano Filtration Plant School Program Pre-Visit Activity for SCFP Tours
Reference: Seymour-‐ Capilano Filtration Project Poster
Name:
Drinking Water Treatment Glossary
Instructions: Work in small groups to find the answers to the following questions. 1. Where does Metro Vancouver’s drinking water come from?
2. How is filtration related to the use of chlorine when maintaining water quality?
3. What are the three main steps that occur during filtration at the plant?
4. What is flocculation?
5. During backwash treatment, how much of the backwash water is returned to inlet blending?
6. What is turbidity?
Answer Key
Seymour-Capilano Filtration Plant School Program Pre-Visit Activity for SCFP Tours 7. What is the primary disinfectant for the Seymour and Capilano water sources?
8. What is the secondary disinfectant? Why is it needed?
9. List the five concerns that have been addressed by Metro Vancouver to allow us to have high quality water. i.
iv.
ii.
v.
iii 10. Review the diagrams of the Twin Tunnels a. How deep is the tunnel when it is under Grouse Mountain? b. How long will the deep rock tunnels be? c. What is the diameter of the tunnel from the Capilano Reservoir to the filtration plant? d. What is the height of the Capilano Shaft? e. What is the height of the Seymour Shaft? f. What is the max water level allowed for the Cleveland Dam? 11. Sustainable practices: a. What does the term sustainability mean?
b. How has the construction of the Seymour-‐Capilano project used sustainable building and environmental technologies and practices? Give three examples.
c. For the next five years, what are some of the pros and cons regarding how the Seymour-‐Capilano water treatment plant will impact the Metro Vancouver area. Support your answer.