HOW CAN WE BETTER IDENTIFY POLLUTANTS ENTERING URBAN WATERWAYS THROUGH THE CITY’S INFRASTRUCTURE TO MORE EFFECTIVELY MINIMIZE THE SOURCES?
Project Description: Rehabilitating our urban river systems from centuries of human impact is highly beneficial from a triple bottom line perspective, yet complex to achieve. Pollutant discharges to the environment can occur from a variety of sources, including storm sewers, combined sewers, and from unknown sanitary sewer cross-connections. To improve the water quality in the urban river systems, it is important to identify, regulate, and minimize sources of pollutants to each receiver. The identification of the pollutant sources is key - like 'contact tracing' of a virus. Confirming the precise sources is important, so that there is certainty in knowing that the effort you put into eliminating the source will be worth the time and cost.
For this challenge, we are looking for new ideas to help improve the Chedoke Creek subwatershed by better tracing the contributing pollutants. The developed solutions should however consider flexible application in any of Hamilton's subwatersheds. The City's Water/Wastewater Systems Planning team works to deliver studies and monitoring programs related to City infrastructure, with one goal being improving our wastewater/stormwater capture and treatment to minimize impact on the City's natural systems. We collaborate with many other groups within Hamilton Water to achieve this. For example, the Wastewater and Stormwater Collection Systems group leads the Sewer Lateral Cross Connection Program which strives to identify and fix any sanitary cross connections to minimize potential sewage to the environment. Since 2011, this program has proved to be effective and identified and fixed over 180 cross connections in the Chedoke Creek watershed.
We are looking for a partner team to work on one of the following challenges related to identification of pollutant sources:
1) Further optimization of the Sewer Lateral Cross Connection Program. Are there any new methods, technologies, procedures that can even better (i.e. faster, more cost effective) identify and target potentially remaining cross connections?
2) Develop or research and recommend emerging water quality sensor technology to monitor pollutants of concern at pipe outfalls or in-creek, preferably remotely and/or in near real-time.
The solutions should consider value for money to provide specific, quantifiable benefits in response to this challenge statement
City Staff: Christina Cholkan - Project Manager Public Works
Mani Seradj - Senior Project Manager, Public Works
Calvin Huizinga - Project Manager Sewer Lateral Cross-Connection Program, Public Works
Deliverables: Primary Research (i.e. conducting surveys and/or collecting data), Secondary Research (i.e. review of literature and finding information from books and online), Feasibility Study, Business Case, Prototype (physical), Pilot,
Project Start Date/ Availability: Fall semester 2020 (September - December)
Location: Ward 1
City wide City Strategy Priority: Healthy and Safe Communities, Clean and Green and Build Environment and Infrastructure