Assessment of the Environmental, Social and Economic Performance and Incidents Related to Use of the ECOFIXE System in the First Lagoon of an Aerated Lagoon Wastewater Treatment System Dedicated to Treating Household Effluent

The Municipality of Ascot Corner will conduct a pilot project to test the Ecofixe system, a biomass augmentation system that will increase the treatment capacity of aerated lagoon wastewater treatment facilities. By introducing the Ecofixe system, the municipality hopes to increase its treatment capacity to support its growth. Also, this technology uses existing facilities – no new infrastructure is necessary – and reduces energy costs. The system consists of a series of interconnecting modules placed in the lagoon. Each module contains a fixed-bed medium that develops a large quantity of biomass. The modules use a fine-bubble aeration system that enhances oxygen transfer to the biomass and reduces the facilities’ energy requirements. Each unit is prefabricated and ready for installation when it arrives at the site. The environmental objective is to improve treatment capacity and quality at the treatment station, which is running at maximum or excess capacity, while meeting discharge standards. The probability of achieving the target performance depends on the target flows and additional loads to be processed: • Ascot Corner expects the required short-term treatment to be a flow of 375 m3/day of household wastewater, which is an increase of 36% over the 276 m3/day design capacity. This increase percentage is typical of the target increases for similar projects with the addition of conventional MBBR (Moving Bed BioReactor) or SMBR (Suspended Media Biological Reactor) systems that require larger capital expenditures and construction of new infrastructure. The proposed technology can develop biomass similar to these systems and the pilot project will show the municipality whether the system is able to meet discharge standards at the planned flow of 375 m3/day. • The long-term treatment requirement (for at least 10 years) is expected to be a flow of 500 m3/day, which is 180% of the design capacity. This increase is larger than what is normally associated with conventional MBBR and SMBR systems. The pilot project will confirm whether the Ecofixe system, as installed, will perform sufficiently or if adjustments (more media, aeration or addition of a module) will be necessary. Effluent quality will be analyzed by a certified laboratory and the parameters analyzed will include BOD5 (biological oxygen demand); SS (suspended solids); and NH4 (ammonium). Also, aerated lagoons generate GHGs (which may account for up to 30% of all a municipality’s GHG emissions). The Ecofixe system, which does not involve enlarging lagoons or building new facilities, avoids such expenses. The pilot project therefore includes impact analysis of GHGs and electricity consumption. The final deliverables will include analysis of wastewater quality, GHG and electricity use impacts, and the social and economic impacts over a one-year period following start-up of the Ecofixe system. The project is supported by Ascot Corner’s strategic sustainable development plan which specifically mentions the need to increase wastewater treatment capacity to support a number of objectives, including user densification in the urban perimeter. Ascot Corner is facing challenges relating to wastewater treatment that are typical and widespread in other municipalities in Quebec and Canada. The information collected during the pilot test can therefore be reused by many municipalities. (Project description from original funding application)