Page 6 - The Battlefords, Thursday, December 1, 2016
Regional Optimist
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Filtration system soon to be operational By John Cairns Staff Reporter
December promises to be an active month for City administration in their ongoing efforts to replace the water supply following the Husky oil spill into the North Saskatchewan River this summer. Despite colder conditions, the temporary water line that has been coming from the town of Battleford remains operational for the time being. But officials are looking forward to shutting off that line for the winter once the long-planned General Electric filtration system becomes fully operational later this month. The installation of the filtration equipment is the last part of a three-pronged plan to replace the water supply from the river, in addition to the Battleford water line and the four new wells built at the groundwater plant, Water Treatment Plant No. 1.
The GE filtration equipment will allow the City to access water from the North Saskatchewan River again, though not at the same rate as before the spill. The filtration is designed to stop oil “globs” from getting into the plant, with the main risk being potentially costly equipment damage. It was a big concern of City Manager Jim Puffalt, who noted that “little balls of oil” were likely to come down the river during the freeze-thaw period in the spring. That was why it was important, said Puffalt, that “we’re not taking water from the river until that system is in place.” The GE filtration equipment consists of sand pressure vessels that will be used to prevent the oil from getting into the plant. Once the filtrated water enters the plant, F.E. Holliday itself will have hydrocarbon-testing moni-
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tors to treat and remove any remaining hydrocarbons from the water supply. The plan was to install the equipment back in September but there had been some minor delays in obtaining the equipment, according to City officials. Also, dredging work had to take place to remove the sand buildup around the intakes in the river. City Manager Jim Puffalt confirmed that the dredging work has now been completed and GE was on the scene and working to have the filtration system installed. The timeline calls for the filtration system to be commissioned Dec. 5. Training is then to be completed in the week afterwards, with GE specialists coming to the city to provide training to city operators. Once that is completed, the GE filtration will be fully operational, but Puffalt indicated Monday that is not likely to happen until closer to Christmas.
Time Ticking Down on Pipeline Supply
In the meantime the City has been relying on their wells, as well as the Battleford water supply. The supply line is hooked up to a hydrant located next to the Battleford Town Hall and runs to the F.E. Holliday plant. The line is not built to handle winter conditions, however, and Councillor Greg Lightfoot asked administration officials whether that was a big concern. Puffalt responded it was a concern and that they were working to protect that line. “It looks to get to minus 17 next week,” said Puffalt. “So we have started the process of protecting that line, protecting the joints, particularly, more than
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anything else.” According to administration’s report, additional insulation and protection to the metal components was being added to keep the line operational during freezing temperatures. But the line won’t be operational once it freezes up. Director of Operations Stewart Schafer told reporters that the flow is keeping the Battleford line going right now, and some heat has been applied in strategic areas to maintain the valves. “But yes, we’ll have to eventually shut that line down.” Once the filtration equipment is operational, the plan was for the Battleford line to shut down. Schafer told reporters that the valve will be turned off and the line will be drained, however, they will leave it in place until next spring, when it will be turned on again to meet the usual increase in demand for water for lawns and gardens. “We still need the water even though we will have the GE filtration system going, as well as the wells,” said Schafer. The point was made at the meeting that the four new wells at Water Treatment Plant No. 1, which have been operational for a few months, were not going to provide enough water for the city on its own. Lightfoot asked how imperative it was to have the F.E. Holliday plant back up and running. It was “very imperative,” Puffalt responded. Schafer agreed, as he noted the wells were only supplying about 60 per cent of the usage. The rest was coming from the Battleford pipeline. “We’re still relying on the pipeline coming in,” said Schafer. “During the summertime, we will be
needing both the pipeline and the GE filtration system, as well as the wells, to replace the total water produced at the F.E. Holliday plant.” Before the oil spill incident, Schafer noted F.E. Holliday was running at 100 litres per second of water. Now, Schafer estimated the pipeline produced 20 litres per second,
the wells 30 litres per second, and the new filtration system would bring 40 litres per second. “Which leaves us a little under, but we figure we’ll get by with that,” said Schafer. As for the temperatures, City officials acknowledged they have been lucky that the weather has co-operated up to this point.
News-Optimist.ca Last week’s News-Optimist online poll:
Last week Husky Energy released its final report on its investigation into the July 21 pipeline rupture that spilled oil into the North Saskatchewan River. The report cites ground movement as the cause of the break. What do you think? • Pipeline construction should be subject to more stringent environmental standards. 13% • Existing pipelines must be more closely monitored. 37% • Husky Energy still hasn’t satisfactorily explained why it took so long to discover the break. 32% • No more pipelines should be built. 18%
This week’s News-Optimist online poll:
More than a year after moving operations to a temporary location, Canada Post has announced the old post office building on 22nd Street is for sale. Officials say no decision on a new location will be made until the building is sold. What do you think? • Canada Post should have dealt with problems in the historic building and resumed operations there. • Canada Post should sell the building for $1 to a developer willing to restore it to active use and move back in. • Canada Post should not wait until the old building sells. They should begin working on a new downtown location immediately.
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