A British Columbia resort offers a case study of an innovative MBR design that takes advantage of temperature extremes to improve sludge thickening in winter months and storm event control in summer.
Due to a growing tourism industry in British Columbia, the Cultus Country Resort 60 miles east of Vancouver is in need of wastewater treatment. For utilities, water systems and water products company Corix, an opportunity to build and operate a wastewater treatment plant in its native Canada was too good to turn down. It has extensive experience in the water treatment industry and has now turned its interests to designing, building and operating its own MBR plants in Canada. Since Eimco Water Technologies is also interested in the Canadian market, the two Canadian companies started talking. Some of the factors considered in the decision-making process included current and future permit compliance issues, fluctuating loading conditions and treatment capacity.
After considering bids from several vendors, including at least two Canadian companies, Cultus Country Resort selected the team of Corix and Eimco Water Technologies to install a membrane bioreactor (MBR) system using Kubota submerged membrane equipment. Cultus is Eimco Water Technologies first fully designed Enviroquip MBR System for a wastewater treatment plant in Canada. .
The Drivers
When asked about some of the drivers that led to the Enviroquip system’s selection, Corix engineer John Sainas said, “In BC, all developers must complete an environmental study. The environmental study mandates what treatment quality is required. For this developer the fact that there were water wells in the area was key in setting low effluent specs: BOD < 10 mg/L, TSS < 10 mg/L, and fecal coliforms < 2.2 CFU/100 ml. While there are other ways to achieve this, membranes are in vogue and their dependability is proven, enabling Corix to make a decision to go with membranes.”
Additionally, because Corix will operate the facility, Sainas adds, “It was really our ability to work on an OEM basis with Eimco Water Technologies that was the key. It enables us to make a profit and add value to our delivery.”
The Process
Cultus Country Resort serves summer tourists to British Columbia’s beautiful Cultus Lake. The Harsh Canadian winters minimize tourism during the cold season and, consequently, the selected wastewater treatment system design for the resort had to be flexible enough to handle a range of hydraulic demands.