The Engineer, Volume 37, No. 1, Spring 2024

The Engineer

VOLUME 37, NO. 1 SPRING 2024

Nova Scotia’s source for engineering news

THE PROJECT ISSUE

Eight great Nova Scotia builds

Nova Scotia Court Ruling

Faces of Service: Engineers Who Volunteer Cover Photo: Nova Scotia Department of Public Works 1

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Table of Contents

The Association of Professional Engineers of Nova Scotia

The Engineer

VOLUME 37, NO. 1 SPRING 2024

Nova Scotia’s source for engineering news

THE PROJECT ISSUE

Eight great Nova Scotia builds

Nova Scotia Court Ruling

Faces of Service: Engineers Who Volunteer Cover Photo: Nova Scotia Department of Public Works 1

Cover Photo: Highway 104 Twinning, Nova Scotia Department of Public Works

President & CEO report Regulatory update Upcoming events Faces of service: Engineers who volunteer

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The first annual Project Issue

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Spotlight on Local Innovation

17

Engineering students tackle water insecurity abroad

22

Profile: Emeka David Okaekwu, P.Eng.

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Positive Pause Planning for increasing renewable generation and declining system inertia In memoriam

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The Engineer is a quarterly publication of Engineers Nova Scotia.

Views independently expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of Engineers Nova Scotia Council and Staff. Engineers Nova Scotia reserves the right to edit or adjust content/articles submitted for publication.

Engineers Nova Scotia Council 2023-2024 President Dr. Adam Donaldson, P.Eng. Vice-President Dr. Sue Molloy, P.Eng. Past-President Denise Pothier, P.Eng. Councillor Krista Phillips, P.Eng. Councillor Dilan Watson, P.Eng. Councillor Cliff Johnston, P.Eng. Councillor Ian Squires, P.Eng. Councillor Dr. Allison Mackie, P.Eng. Councillor Leon MacLellan, P.Eng. Councillor Roxanne Tate, P.Eng. Councillor Laura White, P.Eng. Ex-Officio Members DS (Pal) Mann, P.Eng. Crysta Cumming, P.Eng. Dr. John Newhook, P.Eng. Zone Representatives Harry Daemen, P.Eng. Darrin McLean, P.Eng. Oliver Browning, P.Eng. Andrew Polegato, P.Eng. Vivek Tomar, P.Eng. Conrad LeLièvre, P.Eng. Ron Marks, P.Eng. Committee Chair Persons Dr. Craig Lake, P.Eng. Debra McLellan, P.Eng. Holly Sampson, P.Eng. George Goad, P.Eng. Matthew Glynn, P.Eng. Jeff Knapp, P.Eng. Browren Allard, P.Eng. Darrell Marsh, P.Eng. Andrew Thalheimer, P.Eng. James Beck, P.Eng. Lawrence Murphy, P.Eng. Christine Bonnell-Eisnor, P.Eng. Helen Langille, P.Eng. 3

CEO & Registrar Engineers Canada Director Dean, Faculty of Engineering Professor, Civil and Resource Engineering, Dalhousie University Antigonish/Guysborough Cape Breton/Victoria Colchester Cumberland Halifax/Hants Kings/Annapolis Pictou Board of Examiners Complaints Continuing Professional Development Discipline Emerging Professionals Finance & Audit Honours & Awards National Engineering Month Professional Practice Safety Sustainability Student Affairs Women in Engineering

President and CEO Report

Stronger Together In today’s busy, complex and often specialized environment, working together to leverage our exceptional potential, our unique perspectives and our extraordinary problem-solving skills, creates a formidable synergy. Working together to fulfill our profesAdam Donaldson, Pal Mann, CD, FCSSE, sional obligations to the Ph.D., FEC, P.Eng., ICD.D., P.Eng., public is the very core of President CEO & Registrar self-regulation.

Strengthening our profession is a Many of you who have followed our multifaceted task, but a good starting progress over the past year may have point is fostering a positive and inclurealized that the theme we have been sive culture. Encourage open communication, value diverse perspectives and championing is “Stronger Together.”

When we introduced this theme in prioritize collaboration. Investing in 2022, we emphasized that a healthy employee development and providing community is essential to our own opportunities for skill enhancement well-being. As we take care of each other can also contribute to organizational in our day-to-day lives, it is no large leap strength. Additionally, effective leadto acknowledge how we must also take ership, clear goals and adaptability to care of each other in our professional change are crucial. Regularly assess and refine processes to ensure efficiency lives.

As professionals, we understand and stay attuned to the evolving needs how our multi-disciplinary engineering of your team and industry. Remember, teams, reinforced with experts in finance, a strong organization is built on the law, diversity and media, are successful collective strength of its individuals when faced with seemingly impossible working towards common objectives.

In the spirit of “Stronger Together,” tasks. The same holds true for self-regulation—an activity that focuses on taking we ask you to consider how your energy may help our profession. Two things care of our professional community.

Our committee volunteers and our that we can all do immediately are: Review our recently published Equity, stakeholders help our profession to remain healthy, relevant and current. Diversity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility Their efforts provide the opportunities Handbook with openness to determine if to maintain and grow our ability to there are concepts and actions that may not only provide quality engineering be of benefit to your personal growth, or expertise to our fellow citizens, but to as ideas for your workplace. This founalso be a progressive profession; one that dational document can be helpful for us understands and meets the expectations to have meaningful conversations as we establish a common lexicon to deal with of a diversifying society.

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this complex, evolving and omnipresent issue. The more we understand each other, the closer we can become.

Consider volunteering with Engineers Nova Scotia. While our CEO Advisory Committees are healthy, we always require seasoned, mid-career Professional Engineers— especially from outside the Halifax Regional Municipality—to consider nominating themselves for terms on Council, or for volunteering on our Legislative Committees (Board of Examiners, Complaints Committee, Discipline Committee, and Nominating Committee) or on our Committees of Council (Finance & Audit Committee and Awards Committee). Through volunteering, not only can you contribute to the regulation of our profession, but you can also build your network, develop new skills and gain valuable experience that may help you in your career. You can learn more about the benefits of volunteering through the nonprofit hub website.

As we hit the mid-stride of winter, we hope that you continue to enjoy what Nova Scotia winters have to offer, that you stay safe, and that you can make well-being a priority. And remember, warmer, brighter days of spring and summer are not that far off.

Kind regards, Adam Donaldson, Ph.D., FEC, P.Eng., President Pal Mann, CD, FCSSE, ICD.D., P.Eng. CEO & Registrar

Regulatory Update

Nova Scotia court ruling reinforces right to practice legislation contrary to the public interest for Mr. Connors to be discharged. She stated at paragraph 40 of the decision:

Photo: iStock

In 2021 and 2022, Mark Connors, who is not a professional engineer, sealed documents with an engineering stamp and signed off on plans as an engineer. He created the stamp using his computer to modify a real engineering stamp and made up a number.

Engineers Nova Scotia was notified of Mr. Connors’ unauthorized use of an engineer seal and number by a member of the public. Engineers Nova Scotia issued Mr. Connors a cease-and-desist letter and notified the police.

Following investigation by the police, Mr. Connors pled guilty to committing a single count of fraud under $5,000 between 2021 and 2022 in relation to work undertaken for two proponents, contrary to section 380(1)(b) of the Criminal Code of Canada.

At sentencing, Mr. Connors sought a conditional discharge following successful completion of a period of probation.

He noted that the work undertaken for the two proponents was not done to a poor standard, that he was very familiar with the electrical codes, and was simply helping people in a climate where engineers are difficult to find.

The Crown, on the other hand, sought a short (three months) sharp period of incarceration, aimed at denouncing Mr. Connors’ conduct and sending a firm message of deterrence to those who would impersonate a professional, thus placing the public at risk and diminishing trust in the profession. The Crown took the position that the sentence should be served in the community and be followed by a 12-month period of probation. The Crown argued that it was contrary to the public interest that Mr. Connors receive a discharge.

In her decision on sentence, Judge van der Hoek reviewed the educational requirements for professional engineers and the need to ensure the protection of the public. Judge van der Hoek noted that Engineers Nova Scotia’s powers are limited as its governing legislation does not provide explicit statutory authority for Engineers Nova Scotia to enforce its Act outside of its disciplinary powers against members.

Judge van der Hoek acknowledged that it was clearly in Mr. Connors’ interest to receive a discharge. However, Judge van der Hoek found it would be 5

The need to protect the public from those who would hold themselves out as a professional is simply too pressing and important. This was not a one off. Mr. Connors’ actions were persistently carried out overtime and for profit. Engineering is not simply stamping drawings, and I am not convinced Mr. Connors realizes just how much he has impacted the public trust and risked the safety of the public that had cause to rely on him…Society has to be able to trust that an engineering stamp means something. Just as a person who consults a doctor relies on advice that a mole is not skin cancer, the source of advice from all professionals is backed by knowledge, skill, training, and oversight by a trusted regulator - in the public interest.

In weighing the aggravating and mitigating factors, Judge van der Hoek concluded that the former far outweighed the latter. She noted this was not a momentary loss of judgment, but a sustained and involved effort undertaken over time. Considering all the purposes and principles of sentencing, Judge van der Hoek sentenced Mr. Connors to a short sharp period of custody, to be served in the community, followed by a period of probation with the conditions recommended by the Crown.

OFFICIAL COURT DECISION

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Upcoming events March 2

Public Engineering Day at the Halifax Central Public Library This event is open to the public as an opportunity to cultivate curiosity in STEM. This year’s hands-on design competition aimed at youth 11-14 is a new one— “The Tallest Paper Tower Challenge.” All participants will be entered into a raffle to win a summer camp at Supernova!

Trivia Night Join Engineers Nova Scotia’s National Engineering Month committee for an evening of trivia, with pizza and beverages! There is no cost to attend this event, but registration is required.

March 16 7th Annual Curling Bonspiel Team registrations are now being accepted for this year’s National Engineering Month Bonspiel. Every team will get to play 4 one hour (4-end) games.

March 21

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Upcoming events

March 6 and March 20

Virtual Town Halls As part of the online National Engineering Month activities, join Engineers Nova Scotia President, Dr. Adam Donaldson, FEC, P.Eng. and CEO and Registrar, D.S. (Pal) Mann as they share their thoughts on engineering in Nova Scotia and Engineers Nova Scotia’s way forward. Planning is underway for two sessions in March to permit as many registrants to participate as possible. This moderated, interactive session will allow you to engage the President and the CEO in topics that are important to you.

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Faces of service: Engineers who volunteer

A Q&A with Kulvinder Singh Dhillon, FEC, MBA, P. Eng. gained over time, and I feel closer to the organization. One always learns new things by participation and interaction with others.

Engineers Nova Scotia’s vision is to create a safe and sustainable Nova Scotia protected by accessible, progressive and trusted regulation of the engineering profession; what does this mean to you?

Introduce yourself!

I came to Canada from India as a graduate student in 1971 to the Nova Scotia Technical College, now Dalhousie University. After completing my degree and appropriate work experience, I received my P.Eng. from Engineers Nova Scotia in 1973.

I started my engineering career in Halifax in 1972, in the construction industry. I joined the former City of Halifax as Sewerage and Drainage Engineer in 1974. In 1984, I was appointed Chief, Engineering Design and then Chief Engineer in 1994.

In 1996, after creation of the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM), I was appointed Director of Engineering and Transportation, then Director of Public Works including Project Manager, Wastewater Treatment Systems—a public private partnership.

I retired from HRM in 2002 and joined the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board as a full time Board

Member until 2016. I also acted as a first Dispute Resolution Officer for the Halifax Regional Water Commission for five years.

Please outline your volunteer experience with Engineers Nova Scotia.

I’ve been involved with Engineers Nova Scotia activities for a long time. I was first a member of the Professional Practice committee, and then went on to be member of the Complaints committee, which I’m still involved in.

I also just retired from the Awards and Honours Committee after serving for 13 years and being Chair for the last five of those.

Why do you volunteer?

I feel one way to give back to the profession and the community is to volunteer for its activities. It allows a sharing of experience and knowledge 9

The Association is more than 100 years old and regulations need to evolve with the changes in environment and current needs of the public. The public expects us to provide safe, cost effective and timely solutions. Advancement in technology and recent immigration levels have raised new topics for the profession and regulators. This requires appropriate updating to regulations thus providing necessary tools to its members.

Do you have any advice for engineers-in-training? What do you wish you knew when you were first starting out?

Coming to Canada as an overseas engineering student wasn’t easy, and I faced difficulties in being recognized for my knowledge and experience. I wish I had known some of the major cultural differences, including the work environment and ethic when I originally came to Canada.

Going back to university and interacting with Canadian engineers was helpful to understand these differences.

Still, I feel that with hard work, flexibility, a positive attitude and a desire to learn, anything is possible.

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FIRST ANNUAL

PROJECT ISSUE

SHOWCASING WORK OF NOVA SCOTIA ENGINEERS FROM THE PAST YEAR Project: IWK Emergency Department Expansion Location: Halifax County Submitted by: Nova Scotia Department of Public Works The IWK Emergency Department receives about 34,000 visits per year, and it is the region’s only healthcare facility focused on women, children and youth. The expansion will increase capacity and improve spaces for mental health and addictions care. It will include three triage rooms, 24 private examination rooms, two trauma rooms, a dedicated x-ray room, CT scanner, a double ambulance bay and improved communication technology.

P.Eng. Participant: Gerard Jessome, P.Eng.

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Project: Halifax Common Aquatic Facility Location: Halifax Submitted by: Halifax Regional Municipality The new Halifax Common Aquatic Facility celebrated its grand opening on July 6, 2023, replacing the 60-year-old outdoor swimming and wading pool and the nearby recreational building. The facility features a 13,500-square foot outdoor pool, which includes swim lanes, beach-style entry, spray features, climbing walls and underwater seating.

Built to Rick Hansen Accessibility Certification Standards, the facility features universal washrooms, showers, lockers and a lifeguard room. An indoor multi-purpose room provides year-round activity space that can be booked for a range of events such as live music events for youth, community celebrations, meetings or recreation programming. The facility has also been constructed to be net-zero ready and includes a nail-laminated timber roof and 98 KW solar array featuring 202 panels. Patrons can also enjoy a splash pad that reuses water to irrigate the nearby soccer field. The facility is free for all users.

P.Eng. Participant: Greg Mackay, P.Eng.

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Project: Cogswell District Project Location: Halifax Submitted by: Halifax Regional Municipality The Cogswell District Project aims to revitalize the 1960s-built Cogswell Interchange area, transforming it from an overbuilt interchange, into a vibrant downtown neighbourhood. The $122.6M initiative involves reinstating the original street grid network, realigning and upgrading underground utilities, integrating green energy infrastructure, and constructing six building lots and four parks. This transformation marks a significant effort to create a thriving community hub in the heart of downtown, enabling future development.

P.Eng. Participant: Matthew MacEachern, P.Eng.

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Project: New Taxiway to Runway 14 (NTR14) Location: Halifax Stanfield International Airport (HSIA) Submitted by: Tetra Tech Canada Inc. The NTR14 project at HSIA was built over two construction seasons with completion in Fall 2023. The new parallel taxiway connects the main apron to the Runway 14 threshold allowing safer and more efficient use of the runway.

NTR14 eliminates the previous need to back-track on the runway, which reduces occupancy time and emissions.

P.Eng. Participants: Michael Eakins, P.Eng., Chris Bresowar, , P.Eng., Brian Walker, P.Eng., Caroline McKay, P.Eng., Richard Blommers, P.Eng.

Project: Sobeys Inspiration Hub and Loyola Residence Solar Façade Location: Saint Mary’s University, Halifax Submitted by: Saint Mary’s University The Sobeys Inspiration Hub and the adjacent Loyola Residence’s Solar Wall. stand as landmark projects at Saint Mary’s University.

The Hub, a new 43,000-square-foot building primed for entrepreneurship and collaborative learning, stands as a beacon of innovation. In concert with this, the Loyola Residence has undergone recladding and now boasts North America’s tallest building-integrated photovoltaic wall and is complemented by a photovoltaic array on the Hub. P.Eng. Participants: Jillian MacMillan, P.Eng. Benjamin Doucet, P.Eng. Dennis Gillis, P.Eng.

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Project: Highway 104 Twinning Sutherlands River to Antigonish

Location: Pictou County and Antigonish County Submitted by: Nova Scotia Department of Public Works The project twinned 38 km of highway including 10 km of new, four-lane divided highway, 28 km of twinning existing highway, two new interchanges and 24 new bridges. More than 5.6 million cubic meters of earth was moved, and 320,000 Tonnes of asphalt was laid. The project created more than 2 million hours of work and included environmental enhancements like wildlife corridors and improved culverts to help with fish passage.

P.Eng. Participant: Donald Maillet, P.Eng.

Project: West Bedford School Location: Halifax County Submitted by: Nova Scotia Department of Public Works West Bedford School is the largest public-school built in Nova Scotia. It will serve up to 2,000 students from pre-primary to grade 12 in the rapidly growing Bedford area. The school features state-of-the-art facilities, including a central space for athletics, arts and a cafetorium. It also features libraries, science labs and technology areas.

P.Eng. Participant: Tonya McLellan, P.Eng.

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Project: Bayers Lake Community Outpatient Centre Location: Halifax County Submitted by: Nova Scotia Department of Public Works The 134,000 square foot outpatient facility is the first public-private partnership (P3) healthcare project in Nova Scotia.

It includes 104 clinical spaces to support services including renal dialysis, diagnostic imaging, eye care, as well as orthopedic assessment and rehabilitation. The design uses energy efficient and environmentally responsible technologies which achieved a silver level of certification under the LEED rating system.

P.Eng. Participant: Gerard Jessome, P.Eng.

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Spotlight on Local Innovation Presents

Tiannie Paul, EIT When Tiannie Paul, engineerin-training (EIT), thinks about innovation, she thinks about people—she thinks about community-building.

Paul, the first Mi’kmaw woman to graduate from Cape Breton University’s Engineering Diploma program, is guided by her intuition and uses her emotion as strength. Throughout her short yet fruitful engineering career, she remains acutely aware of her intent, and impact on those around her.

Upon completing a Bachelor of Environmental Engineering at Dalhousie University in 2021, Paul went on to work as an Operations Engineer for the Atlantic First Nations Water Authority (AFNWA) for two years. She is currently on education leave to pursue a master’s in applied science in Civil Engineering, also at Dalhousie.

Paul with Dr. Graham Gagnon at a special graduation ceremony for students who missed their graduation moment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, July 6, 2022.

“My Wabanaki world views led me to pursue a career in western engineering so I could have the confidence and knowledge to help my community of Eskasoni First Nation, and other First Nation communities, to be good stewards of the water.”

- Tiannie Paul, EIT At the Spotlight on Local Innovation, Paul will be presenting on the Community Lead Sampling Program she led with AFNWA. With the help of two colleagues, community water operators and support staff from Dalhousie University’s Centre for Water Resource Studies, Paul conducted the collection and sampling of several First Nations community’s water systems to measure lead and copper concentrates.

“It was my first time running such a large project, and as an EIT, it was challenging but I loved every moment,” says Paul. “I got to engage with elders, youth and household members and feel their gratitude. I know I’m doing what I’m meant to be doing.”

Once the project got approval from the Chief of each community, Paul and her team did individual engagement— introducing themselves, explaining the aim of the sampling and getting the community boards’ feedback on whether they wanted the project to be applied within their public buildings or households.

This monitoring—recommended by Health Canada—routinely happens in municipalities, but very rarely, if ever, in First Nations communities. As someone who grew up with boil water advisories and water pressure issues, Paul empathizes with those facing the burden of not having safe drinking water.

“One of the struggles I face as an Indigenous engineer is that people forget I’m human and I’m going to express my feelings before I put on my engineer 17

hat,” she says, “If I hear something awful that’s happening within a community, I’m going to cry and react before I may have solutions—who wouldn’t?”

The Centre for Water Resources Studies (CWRS) team wore orange shirts designed by Paul for recognition of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Day September 30th.

In all her engineering work, Paul applies the Etuaptmumk, “two-eyed seeing” principle— taking both western and indigenous knowledges into account to create a mutually accepted and beneficial path forward. Paul recognizes the code of ethics and regulations she must abide by as an engineer in Nova Scotia but in an equal effort stands by the Indigenous knowledges she grew up with.

Spotlight on Local Innovation Presents

Debra McLellan, P.Eng., & Eli According to Paul, if engineers are to do their due diligence and keep people safe, they must also consider diverse needs, colonization and environmental stewardship.

“Innovation to me is gaining new knowledge and techniques to share with our peers. Humans do not exist in a vacuum; we need the living and non-living parts of our world to be healthy, so we can be healthy and forge a collective way to conduct projects that account for different perspectives.”

At the Spotlight event, Paul hopes that through sharing her project details and lived experiences, the audience will leave with an increased mindfulness, particularly on how essential engagement and transparency are when engineers work with First Nations communities.

Wherever her career may take her, Paul is certain about one thing—that her time is valuable, and she’ll spend it building meaningful relationships.

“MI’klukwe Mkite’tmsi aqq Kksalsi.”

“Work hard, believe in yourself, and love yourself.”

Upon approval by the Utility and Review Board, Nova Scotia Power’s Battery Pilot Project will be the largest battery storage project constructed in Atlantic Canada to date.

Debra McLellan, P.Eng., Project Manager and Senior Technical Advisor of Energy Storage, and Elizabeth Dionne, P.Eng., Senior Electrical Engineer, have blended both a technical knowledge of the province’s utility grid with their green solutions and consulting experience, to help Nova Scotia Power’s Battery Pilot Project come to life.

The pair will be tackling the project development thus far and the strategic plan going forward in their Spotlight on Innovation presentation this March.

The presentation will also cover the lesser-known capabilities of batteries— the components that most people don’t consider. Think: frequency and voltage regulation for the entire grid, not just a storage solution.

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The Pilot Project proposes the battery storage sites be distributed to three different areas across the province, maximizing the benefit and potential of the energy grid from as far as Cape Breton, all the way to the other side of the province, with effects running off into New Brunswick.

“There is a lot of battery research going on in Nova Scotia right now, and having this project is building excitement and building the energy storage expertise for the future,” says McLellan.

“There are more and more folks getting into this space and development work is going on—not only in stationary energy storage, but in electric transportation.”

Another lesser-known impact of battery usage is the vast response capability, which would allow the province to manage through large-scale power outages—a main concern for Nova Scotians as extreme weather conditions become increasingly common.

izabeth Dionne, P.Eng. Coming from a background of coordinating transmission outages in Nova Scotia Power’s energy control centre, Dionne sees a pressing need for the

project’s implementation. If everything goes to plan, the battery team is hoping to open its first service location by the end of 2025, and its last in 2026.

Nova Scotia Power’s Grid-Scale Battery Team. Pictured from left to right: Debra McLellan, Senior Technical Advisor, Energy Storage, Elizabeth Dionne, Senior Engineer, Susan Smith, Stakeholder Lead, and David Arsenault, Senior Engineer.

“In one way or another, we’ve come to rely on power, so it’s about finding ways to make it cleaner, more efficient, more reliable and more resilient,” says Dionne. “Using existing technology and new technology, we can move away from traditional methods of energy...I’m excited to take that on.”

With respect to the innovative capacities of the project, its novelty and newness within the province is clear— Nova Scotia has never seen battery storage to this extent.

“What is unique about Nova Scotia is that we have a large proportion of wind energy,” says McLellan. “As we get into using the capabilities of our 19

This is a generic rendering of a typical grid-scale battery facility. The size, amount and layout of containers are subject to change.

batteries—even though it is a commercially available and proven technology—there’s going to be nuances and fine-tuning and optimizing for the site-specific application in Nova Scotia.”

Set by the federal and provincial government, Nova Scotia Power is on a path to phase out coal and reach 80 per cent renewable energy by 2030. The Battery Pilot Project is a key component of fulfilling this target.

Evidently, McLellan and Dionne are jumping the unique hurdles that clean energy poses, paving the way for battery storage solutions in the province.

Spotlight on Local Innovation Presents

Dawne Skinner, P.Eng.

Pictured are co-founders Dawne Skinner, P.Eng. (Chief Innovation Officer) and Allison Murray (CEO) Dawne Skinner, P.Eng., is no stranger to innovation. In fact, the word is quite literally in her title— Chief Innovation Officer and Co-Founder of Acuicy.

Acuicy is a startup software development company focused on decarbonizing supply chains with data-driven and tailored recommendations. The startup aims to make these recommendation tangible, actionable and accessible so that companies that have set net-zero emissions goals can reach their targets.

According to Skinner, a whopping 75 per cent of a company’s emissions are produced solely in their supply chains.

To rework these parts of a business, a re-education and incentive program are required.

This is where the “innovation” comes in.

Skinner’s presentation at the Spotlight on Local Innovation event will provide an overview of Acuicy’s mission. She hopes attendees will leave feeling empowered to harness their technological ideas into a potential business, and for those already entrepreneurial, to

confidently expand their scope.

“For us in little old Nova Scotia, sometimes people don’t think scaling globally is possible, but it is,” she says.

“If you have an idea, there is so much support in Atlantic Canada from incubators, non-dilutive grants and mentors; it’s really a great place to do something innovative.”

Skinner attributes her career trajectory to the Master of Business Administration she completed in 2018 at the University of Bradford School of Management in West Yorkshire, England. The program, “Innovation, Enterprise and the Circular Economy,”, ultimately shaped her holistic view of engineering.

“Many sustainability frameworks have failed because they’ve always been at a cost and businesses aren’t willing to impact their bottom line,” says Skinner.

“The circular economy actually shows that you can be profitable while reducing your negative impacts on the various environmental, social and governance (ESG) components.”

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Upon studying the circular economy in detail, Skinner has led some of the first federal government studies and worked alongside a variety of large corporate clients who’ve significantly reduced their footprints.

She has also obtained two degrees at Dalhousie University—an undergraduate in Environmental Engineering, and a master’s in Civil Engineering, focusing on water and wastewater treatment. Skinner is currently pursuing her PhD in Industrial Engineering, also at Dalhousie, with a focus on using predictive analytics to optimize circular supply chains.

Skinner finds strength—and, in turn, success—through creativity.

Being Chief Innovation Officer means always pushing to improve systems and overcoming their persistent structural barriers. Although a process might seem set in stone and inevitable, Skinner finds satisfaction in finding new ways of solving problems with her cross-industry perspective.

“Innovation is not just technology. We don’t often think of engineers as creative, but it’s about thinking ‘how can I take something that works in one industry and apply it to another’—which you need a breadth of experience for. It’s also about imagination; we must figure out how to be creative in problem-solving since what got us into a mess will often not get us out of a mess.”

- Dawne Skinner, P.Eng.

For her, creativity is innovation.

After working most of her career in consulting, Skinner has the knowledge to create complex, adaptive systems, while remaining aware of the engineering works’ upstream and downstream implications.

Although the future of a startup is never completely clear, she is committed to growing Acuicy—particularly in

Nova Scotia—by harnessing existing technology and bringing in top talent.

“Being in the startup world has been a huge learning curve,” says Skinner. “I’m used to submitting a 50-page proposal for a $50,000 job, and with startups, you pitch for three minutes, and someone can cut you a $500,000 cheque. If there’s anybody out there sitting on an idea and is nervous about being an entrepreneur,

just know that I was too, and it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Pictured are Dawne Skinner, P.Eng., John Alapatt (Sr. Fullstack Developer), Aman Gahir (Sr. Fullstack Developer) 21

Education

Engineering students tackle water insecurity abroad Every spring, about a dozen student volunteers from the Dalhousie University chapter of non-profit organization Global Engineering Brigades travel to a developing country to help a community implement clean water systems.

At the end of April this year, President of Dalhousie’s Global Engineering Brigades Gabriela Greggain, and Fundraising Head, Ashley MacDonald—both third year Civil Engineering students at Dalhousie—will make their way to a small community in Honduras where they will complete a week of surveying work alongside local technicians, engineers and decision-making committees organized by the community.

The team of dedicated volunteers will spend their early mornings and afternoons taking GPS coordinates of the community’s existing or newly planned water route, track the data and experiment with planning programs to determine technicalities like pipe pressures and pump locations.

Global Brigades, founded in 2003, is a global movement advocating and work toward widespread health and holistic development. In partnership with universities across North America and Europe, the organizations send student volunteers to assist communities that have requested assistance in one of three areas: water and sanitation infrastructure, sustainable health systems or economic development.

The ultimate aim of the annual project-based brigades is to enable a community to be self-sustaining in the long-run. Projects are designed for a 10-year demand, based on the community’s needs.

“Global Brigades comes up with creative solutions to help the communities fund the project, and continues to work with them through the project’s implementation and down the line to help them monitor it,” says MacDonald.

“It depends on community to community how fast they can raise funds and start construction—some do fun events like soccer tournaments.”

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The major barriers that communities face in obtaining safe drinking water is having the funds, as well as the people with the expertise to develop the collection system safely and efficiently. As part of their volunteer efforts, MacDonald and Greggain—who have both been on previous year’s brigades—will help the community forecast a budget for the determined water systems project.

Both engineering student believe that face-to-face consolation is the cornerstone to a successful project.

“All of the projects we do with Global Brigades are focused on community involvement and sustainability,” says Greggain. “Communities are asked to form water committees for consultation, so by the time we arrive they have their own sort of mini government to make decisions and they’re motivated to take care of it long-term.”

Dalhousie engineering students have been doing brigades to underdeveloped countries since 2017. Greggain points out that the turnover of volunteer and executive members is constant, given

there are always students graduating or caught up in the demands of schooling. This is simply the nature of a student organization—both Greggain and MacDonald will move on upon completing their undergraduate degrees.

When the team is not fundraising for their trip, they’re organizing local events on-campus or in and around Halifax to raise awareness about water insecurity in Canada and beyond.

“It’s really easy to read an article about water insecurity and see a big number of people who don’t have access, but it’s an entirely different thing to put a face to those numbers,” says Greggain.

“For those that are not able to come on the brigade—we want to educate them year-round.”

Volunteering with Dalhousie’s Global Engineering Brigades has been an eye-opening experience for MacDonald in a similar manner.

“It’s an empowering process—not just for the communities, but also for us,” says MacDonald. “Being able to learn and share information about

water insecurity really puts things into perspective—every day I am so fortunate to turn on the tap and have running and drinkable water.”

With many engineering graduates at Dalhousie likely going on to work somewhere in Nova Scotia, Greggain and MacDonald are passionate about expanding the student body’s worldview, remaining aware of the privileges and biases they may hold.

“Engineers should wake up each day and know that they’re going to make a positive difference in someone’s life,” says Greggain. “You need the emotional knowledge alongside the technical knowledge, and giving young students the opportunity to be well-rounded in the engineering profession is incredibly important to us.”

RECENTLY MOVED? NEW EMPLOYER? Use our website to update personal information or email info@engineersnovascotia.ca It’s a registrant’s responsibility to keep their info up-to-date. engineersnovascotia.ca

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Profile

Emeka David Okaekwu, P.Eng., on building a new life and seeking personal growth

Emeka David Okaekwu, P.Eng., is best known through his tenacity—his will to always push for something more, something better.

From Nigeria to South Africa, to the US and Canada, Emeka has spent the last two decades building himself a fruitful and purposeful life. Now, as a registered professional engineer in Nova Scotia and Regional Director for the Safety Branch of the Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration, Emeka looks back at his career trajectory—with both its triumphs and hurdles—and feels immense gratitude.

His journey to Canada was not a linear one, nor was it easy. Emeka describes the process as “pendulating”.

He first conceived of the idea to immigrate back in 2011, soon after he had wrapped up his master’s degree in Telecommunications Engineering at the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa and was just beginning his career. Although he wanted to advance the quality of his education in a country that had reputable engineering

programs, moving away from his family was too daunting and Emeka ultimately decided it wasn’t the right time.

Two years and a breadth of valuable work experience as a telecommunications engineer later, Emeka sent his first permanent residence application to Canada, feeling well prepared for the undetermined, yet exciting path that lay before him.

But by the time Emeka’s application arrived in Sydney, Nova Scotia, the pool was full, and his papers were set back.

“When my application wasn’t approved, I felt demoralized,” says Emeka. “After writing my English assessment and passing with a certain grade, preparing my work experience alongside a ton of other requirements, it took time, money, emotions—it took everything.”

Emeka continued work in South Africa and went on to pursue another master’s degree, this one in Engineering Management from the University of Johannesburg. He landed a new job at Huawei Technologies, optimizing radio networks, where he worked for a year and a half before moving onto management at the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA).

In 2015, when Canada rolled out its Express Entry program, Emeka thought to himself: ‘let’s try this one more time.’

The P.Eng. recalls having just landed in Washington, DC, for his diploma in Telecommunications Management at the United States Telecommunications Training Institute, when he connected to Wi-Fi and saw the email of acceptance.

Emeka couldn’t stop smiling.

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He, his wife and three children first arrived in Canada in September of 2017.

Still at ICASA as Regulatory Manager, Emeka went back and forth to South Africa for a few months, managing the major career transition while his family adjusted to a new life.

It was in 2018, when Emeka fully settled in Canada, that he first heard about Immigration Services Association of Nova Scotia (ISANS).

“I was trying to break through into the Canadian telecommunications industry, and ISANS was able to refer me to a few different positions—including one that I interviewed for and was turned down for being overqualified,” says Emeka. “The real gamechanger for me was registering for the Orientation and Communication Skills for Engineers (OCSE) course.”

The OCSE course offered by ISANS introduced Emeka to a string of engineers in similar circumstances, who were also trying to find their way in a new country. He met friends, built his confidence and practised his interview skills through ISANS’ mock interview programming.

After a year of growing and learning, Emeka earned a role as an Electrical Engineer in the Safety Branch of the Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration for the province. Emeka has since moved up in the department to the role of Acting Senior Director of Compliance and Inspection Services, and now as the Regional Director.

He is most passionate about ensuring electrical engineers who are working underground are safe and working in

Women in Engineering Committee

Positive Pause Submitted by Anonymous

accordance with provincial regulations.

“My biggest piece of advice for other internationally educated engineers (IEEs) is to get involved with ISANS and ask lots of questions,” says Emeka. “You can be well-prepared to start working, but you need to understand how to succeed in a new setting.

I needed the right resources, and I wouldn’t have known if I hadn’t asked questions about the different opportunities out there.”

Emeka emphasizes the importance for other IEEs to develop their soft skills alongside their technical skills.

He tutored young black electrical engineering students during his time in South Africa and hopes to continue these teachings in Canada.

“I think seeing me, as an immigrant, and someone in the position I am now, is an encouragement for others to succeed too,” he says. “You can be the best at whatever you want to do, as long as you put in the work, and you remain diligent and humble.”

Alongside his volunteering aspirations, Emeka hopes to one day complete his doctorate and eventually get back into research work.

He has happily adjusted to life in Canada with his beloved family.

“Nova Scotia is now a place we can call home—it’s been a beautiful experience.”

Photo: iStock

Engineering internships during university provide exciting and rewarding opportunities for burgeoning engineers as they discover their future career.

However, as our profession works to meet the challenges of building more inclusive, diverse and equitable work environments, interns can face unwelcome behaviors, attitudes and opinions that may continue into their careers.

During my own internship, I was proud to be contributing to a unique construction project near my home community providing Quality Control services, not to mention the financial benefit associated with the long nights and lots of overtime. My excitement was dampened as the project progressed, however, due to unwanted attention and advances from a co-worker. I became so uncomfortable I decided that my only option was to remove myself from the project. This decision was a heavy one – I felt like I failed myself for not being tough enough and worse, I felt like I was letting my own team down by not being able to complete the responsibilities I had accepted.

As tough (and embarrassing) as it was, the decision to speak to my supervisor was very positive. Rather than taking the easier route to be able to avoid conflict with the other stakeholders on site by finding me a replacement, 25

I received validation that the behavior wasn’t something I needed to tolerate, and I was not the problem in this situation. Instead of removing me from the project which would have caused me to miss out on a meaningful learning experience, my supervisor modified the work schedule to limit the interaction I had with this person while also letting them know that their behavior needed to change. As a result, I was able to focus on my job and stick with the project through the end without further incident. Looking back, I recognize this as an important example of allyship that has contributed to me sticking with engineering as a career.

It is natural to want to avoid conflict and pretend that next time we’ll act differently. There are three points I want to emphasize from this experience that we can use, wherever we are on our career path, to continue shaping the engineering profession to one that is inclusive to all: 1. It is our responsibility to be role models of healthy workplace behavior and attitudes.

2. Removing the affected person further harms them by limiting opportunities for professional growth and development and further reinforcing the mindset that they are the problem.

3. Failing to address the problem only reinforces that it will be tolerated.

Sustainability Committee

Planning for increasing renewable generation and declining system inertia Submitted by Lawrence Murphy, P.Eng. New wind and solar projects are clas- generating units use large rotating Nova Scotia’s electricity grid is amid a transformation that will target having sified as Inverter Based Resources (IBR) masses, they provide inherent inertial much of our electricity generated from because the generators are coupled to support to the grid. If a large continrenewable resources by 2030. This the grid through inverters. Modern, gency event occurs, such as a large transformation is driven by Renewable utility-scale wind and solar projects generator tripping offline, the inertia in Electricity Regulations under the are among the cheapest forms of new the generators still connected to the grid Electricity Act requiring load serving energy, have very low emissions profiles will tend to keep their rotating masses entities (i.e. utilities) to ensure at least over the lives of the projects, and enable spinning. The stored kinetic energy in 80% of electrical load is supplied by decentralization of grid generation the rotating masses will be released into renewable energy by the year 2030 and resources. But these IBRs do lack a key the grid as electrical energy and will beyond. Legislation also exists to target attribute that synchronous generators slow the rate of frequency decay on the grid, allowing other frequency support closing of coal-fired generation plants possess - inertia.

Many legacy generators (including resources time to detect the event and by 2030.

Most of the renewable energy will those fueled by coal, oil, natural gas and respond.

The figure below illustrates the be supplied by utility-scale wind and hydro) are synchronously connected to solar generation connected to the trans- the grid. These synchronous generators timescale and general support characmission system. Upcoming generation produce electricity whose frequency teristics of inertia as well as primary, projects will displace a large portion of is synchronized with its mechanical secondary and tertiary frequency The figure below illustrates the timescale and general support characteristics of inertia as well as the coal and fuel oil generation currently rotation speed. Because synchronous response resources. primary, secondary and tertiary frequency response resources. supplying customers. This transition is required to meet federal and provincial green energy targets, but it does present technical challenges in managing grid stability and reliability.

Our 60 Hz grid frequency is maintained when total generation matches system load closely. When instantaneous load exceeds instantaneous generation, system frequency dips. In response, generators (or other grid resources) must produce more power to restore generation/load balance and stabilize grid frequency. If system frequency declines too quickly, Under Frequency Load Shedding (UFLS) protocols may be initiated, potentially tripping off certain loads to prevent more widespread outages and/or Figure 1: From PG&E, EPIC Final Report, Synthetic Inertia, February 20, 2019 damage to equipment.

Figure 1: From PG&E, EPIC Final Report, Synthetic Inertia, February 20, 2019

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In the generic case from Figure 1, a large system disturbance, such as disconnection of large generators due to a system fault, produces a rapid decline in grid frequency. The embedded inertia from synchronous generators slows the rate of decline in grid frequency (Rate of Change of Frequency, or ROCOF) so that primary frequency response measures have sufficient time to begin increasing system frequency.

Autonomous generator governor systems or Fast Frequency Response (FFR) from Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) are examples of primary frequency response. These measures are fast acting and rely on immediately available reserve power dispatched automatically by the local control systems of the primary response resources.

Secondary and tertiary frequency response measures are initiated by dispatch signals from the grid operator and contribute to the restoration of normal system frequency over the 20 seconds to minutes timescale.

Synchronous generators provide system inertia to slow the ROCOF and can provide primary frequency response to restore system frequency through their governor controls. While modern IBRs do not possess that inherent inertia, they do have the potential to provide faster acting primary response through FFR. With the potential of added FFR capability connected to the system, grid operators will seek to determine whether a lower critical inertia level can be tolerated as more renewables are brought online.

As renewable penetration increases and legacy synchronously connected grid inertia continues to decline, grid operators are examining what mix of resources and control measures can be implemented to maintain system stability and reliability, while continuing to reduce emissions in the electricity supply. In Nova Scotia, this challenge is a pressing one, given our 2030 goals.

New regional transmission connections, synchronous condensers and grid-forming BESS are also potential options to maintain grid inertia attributes (as well as short circuit current contribution) in Nova Scotia. Domestic hydrogen generators may be another option but may not support the 2030 timeline.

As part of their evergreen Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) process, Nova Scotia Power (NSP) published an updated action plan and roadmap in August of 2023. While the IRP and roadmap are not specifically intended to characterize transient stability benefits of resources, they do give us some insight into what new developments the grid is likely to see in the coming years.

Some key findings are as follows: • Up to 1500 MW of new wind and 200 MW of new solar generation is expected to be needed to serve domestic load by 2030 • An upgraded transmission Reliability Tie with New Brunswick will be required for all high renewable penetration scenarios • New fast-acting generation (likely fueled by natural gas or oil in the near term) will likely be required to maintain system stability, 27

• • •

•

although these resources will be run less frequently and for shorter durations than present day use cases At least 100 MW of grid connected batteries will be required Grid-connected synchronous condensers are expected to be required to maintain system inertia High levels of wind and solar curtailment (between 20 -50%) are projected after 2030 to preserve operating reserve and maintain system stability Nuclear Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) are envisioned in some long-term planning scenarios

The challenges related to transforming to a greener grid in Nova Scotia are significant, especially given our limited domestic hydro capacity. As renewable penetration increases and system inertia decreases, the Nova Scotia grid will need to be planned and operated using new methods. This is a global challenge that is driving a rapidly emerging market for fast frequency response, synthetic inertia and other grid support solutions. Gridforming BESS solutions offer promise for providing a suite of grid services to mitigate declining grid inertia, but these solutions are not yet widely deployed at the grid level. This represents both a challenge and an opportunity that will be incorporated into future grid management as these technologies emerge. This important, but challenging, paradigm shift will require thoughtful, coordinated rollout of new grid codes and system operating methods.

In memoriam

Deceased members We have been advised the following registrants passed way last year.

Our thoughts are with their families and friends.

Peter Alexander, P.Eng. David Allen, P.Eng.

Barry Bennett, P.Eng. Paul Benoit, P.Eng.

Geoffrey Braybrooke, P.Eng. David Burnett, P.Eng.

D. H. Brian Campbell, P.Eng. Patrick Cashin, P.Eng.

Donald Duncan, P.Eng. F. Albert Fulton, P.Eng. Amr Ghothani, E.I.T. Paul Klaamas, P.Eng. Rudy Klinger, P.Eng.

Robert Leahey, E.I.T.

Wallace McDougall, P.Eng. John Parker, P.Eng.

Michael Pothier, P.Eng.

J. Wayne Rogers, P.Eng. Lloyd Schofield, P.Eng.

Brian Stonehouse, P.Eng. Rednael Swaine, P.Eng.

Harold Thornham, P.Eng. Omer Viau, P.Eng. 28