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Water and Wastewater

May 10, 2012

Toronto studies construction of new islands

The City of Toronto, Waterfront Toronto and the Toronto Region Conservation Authority will lead the Waterfront Landforms Environmental Assessment Study on a new landform south of Ashbridges Bay.

May 3, 2012

Manitoba government increases apprenticeship tax credits

The Manitoba government announced its Rural and Northern Apprenticeship Training Strategy, which increases the tax credits available to companies that hire apprentices and journeypersons. It is also contributing to mobile training labs operated by Red River College and offering online courses for prospective plumbers, carpenters and refrigeration and air-conditioning mechanics.

May 2, 2012

New round of P3 Canada funding opens

PPP Canada’s fourth call for proposals for the P3 Canada Fund will focus on public infrastructure projects that promote jobs and stimulate economic growth.

May 1, 2012

Hamilton, Ontario strategic plan includes redeveloping industrial land, rapid transit

City Council in Hamilton, Ontario approved the 2012-2015 Strategic Plan. Priorities include biosolids management and water quality upgrade for the Woodward Wastewater Treatment Plant, rapid transit, development and servicing strategy for the west harbour lands and a secondary plan and redevelopment strategy for the bayfront industrial area.

May 1, 2012

Yukon infrastructure receives $37 million in joint funding

Over $37 million in joint federal and territorial funding toward was recently committed to 15 Yukon infrastructure initiatives.

April 18, 2012

Atlantic mayors ask federal government to share costs of wastewater construction

Atlantic mayors are calling on the federal government to commit to a fully-funded, cost-shared funding plan to implement its new national wastewater regulations. Mayors from Atlantic Canada’s largest municipalities were recently in Halifax as part of their Atlantic Mayors’ Congress, where 30 mayors from Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador meet twice a year to discuss common issues.

March 30, 2012

Ontario budget a “coup” for construction

Ontario has a $15.3 billion deficit and Finance Minister Dwight Duncan said the “strong action” taken in this budget puts the province on track to balance the deficit by 2017-18. Karen Renkema, the Ontario Road Builders’ Association’s (ORBA) government relations director, praised the Liberals for addressing the infrastructure deficit.

March 28, 2012

Ontario reduces municipal infrastructure funding in 2012 budget

In its 2012 Ontario Budget the provincial government said it remains committed to working with municipal partners to help ensure the sustainability of their core infrastructure. Despite that intention, the 2012 budget allocates $683 million for municipal and local infrastructure, down from $731 in the 2011 budget.

March 22, 2012

Graham Construction, Jardeg ink $49-million wastewater construction deal in Cornwall, Ontario

The City of Cornwall, Ontario announced Wednesday that a joint venture comprised of Graham Construction and Engineering and Jardeg Construction Services Ltd. has been awarded the largest contract in the city’s history. The joint venture will upgrade the Wastewater Treatment Plant and Pumping Station on Montreal Road for $49 million.

February 21, 2012

Drummond report on Ontario public service recommends full cost pricing for municipal water

The Commission on the Reform of Ontario's Public Services today recommended Ontario municipalities charge rate payers the full cost of water and to consolidate the 80 local electricity distribution companies along regional lines.

June 24, 2011

Peat filter system treats sewage at Milton, Ontario community centre

The Campbellville Community Centre & Nassagaweya Tennis Courts Redevelopment in Milton, Ontario does not have access to a sewer, so Slagter Construction was contracted to install an EcoFlo Peat Filter System. The community centre itself was designed by +VG Architects and built by general contractor DeFaveri Construction.

June 24, 2011

Aquatech Dewatering drains tailrace section of dam on Abitibi River in Ontario

Ontario Power Generation hired Barclay Construction Group to remediate concrete at the Abitibi Canyon Generating Station near Smooth Rock Falls, Ontario. Barclay in turn hired Aquatech Dewatering Co. of Concord, Ontario to drain the tailrace section.

June 24, 2011

Bennett Contracting works on reservoir, pumping station expansion in Mississauga, Ontario

The 40-year-old Streetsville Reservoir and Pumping Station in Mississauga, Ontario is receiving a major overhaul. Millgrove, Ontario-based Bennett Contracting is the general contractor in charge of the $16 million first phase.

June 24, 2011

How the Lakeview Water Treatment Plant in Mississauga, Ontario will save space

A new 41,519-square-foot, 400 mega litres-per-day Lakeview Water Treatment plant is now under construction in Mississauga, Ontario. Kenaidan Contracting is the general contractor and CH2M Hill is the consultant on the project, which will use a combination of ozonation, ultrafiltration (UF) and ultraviolet (UV) technology.

June 24, 2011

Procurement alliances will be key to securing water work, C.D. Howe Institute report finds

Contractors who want to be part of addressing Canada’s massive sewer and water infrastructure deficit need to align themselves with consortiums capable of delivering design-build-finance-operate (DBFO) contracts and to become active in promoting policies that will see such contracts become commonplace, says Elizabeth Brubaker, executive director of Environment Probe. Brubaker wrote a report titled A Bridge Over Troubled Waters for the C.D. Howe Institute.

June 24, 2011

Aqua-Pure Ventures of Calgary honoured for work in fracturing shale deposits for natural gas

Calgary-based Aqua-Pure Ventures Inc. has been chosen by The Artemis Project as a 2011 Top 50 Water Companies Competition winner, for its work in recycling water used to hydraulically fracture shale deposits to release natural gas in the North Texas Barnett Shale. Aqua-Pure supplies Nomad 2000 units to distill the water using mechanical vapour recompression (MVR), separating contaminants from the effluent.

June 24, 2011

Newfoundland agency in talks with NATO on use of water quality monitoring technology

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is currently in talks with the Water Resources Management Division (WRMD) of Newfoundland and Labrador to use its water monitoring technology to monitor the Dead Sea and the Jordan River in the Middle East. WRMD transmits data from sensors, which measure factors including temperature, pH level, turbidity, specific conductance and dissolved oxygen, via satellite.

June 24, 2011

Mueller Water Products’ Echologics unit detects leaks in water pipes

A Canadian company has developed a leak-detection and water pipe-condition assessment technology that’s making its mark across North America.

June 24, 2011

Xogen technology aims to eliminate biosolids in wastewater treatment in Orangeville, Ontario

After first introducing its innovative wastewater treatment concept to the Town of Orangeville, Ontario in 2009, Xogen and its pilot project are up and running and treating 1,800 litres of wastewater per hour. Xogen is an electrolytic process that not only aims to eliminate biosolids, but also requires a much smaller facilities footprint than conventional treatment approaches.

June 24, 2011

Veolia Canada provides consulting for wastewater plants in Winnipeg

Under a 30-year consulting contract, Veolia Canada will provide advice and expertise regarding the operation and maintenance of Winnipeg water pollution control centres. A new biosolids plant will be used to convert treated sewage into either compost or agricultural fertilizer and may also be converted to pellets that can be burned to generate electricity.

June 24, 2011

Genivar engineer compiles history of Thunder Bay, Ontario water supply tunnel

Larry Betuzzi, structural engineer with Genivar, did extensive research on the Loch Lomond Water Supply System, originally started by the city of Fort William in 1906 and decommissioned by its successor City of Thunder Bay, Ontario in 2007.