TransAqua sewage plant eyes finish line for $90M upgrade to reduce effluent in Petitcodiac

The TransAquasewage treatment plant in Riverviewis astep closer to meeting federal clean water rules by the end of the month, the goal of a $90.4-million upgrade that began three years ago.

The sewage plant has completed about 80 per centof construction as part of the upgrade. OnMonday, itswitched from using a chemical treatment system to biological treatment.

The idea is to reduce the amount of "solids" discharged into the Petitcodiac River at Outhouse Point, cleaning up the muddy waters of the waterway also known as the Chocolate River.

Kevin Rice, TransAqua's general manager,callsita significant milestone.

"The effluent that's leaving this facility into the Petitcodiac River will be much cleaner, a lot less solids and a lot more oxygen being put back into the Petitcodiac River to let the aquatic life thrive and prosper," Rice said in an interview.

TransAqua treats sewage and wastewater from Moncton, Dieppe and Riverview.

In a Facebook post, Moncton Mayor Dawn Arnold celebrated the milestone.

"All of this opens the door to much richer aquatic life, a cleaner river and a healthier environment throughout the Petitcodiac River watershed," Arnold wrote.

Under the old system,wastewater effluentpumped into the Petitcodiac River underwent onlyprimary treatment a process that involves removing solids that float or sink and using chemicals as part of the process.

The new system addssecondary treatment, which removesdissolved organic material. Further work will add an ultraviolet disinfection process.

The target was to complete the work by the end of 2020 to comply with the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and the Fisheries Act. It will meetCanadian Recreational Water Quality standards by 2021 with the UV treatment aspect.

The planning to reach this point dates back years, but was predated by criticism of the discharge of sewage into the waterway.

In 2002, the Petitcodiac Riverkeepers organization released a list of the 10 worst pollution sources of the river system, naming the causeway, the sewage plant and the former Moncton landfill, which is along the bank of the river between the Gunningsville Bridge and the causeway.

Rice said the public will likely not notice any difference. But there are some people who will notice.

When surfers plan to ride the tidal bore up the river, they call TransAqua ahead of time so it can temporarily halt discharging wastewater into the river.Once the upgrade work is complete, that won't have to happen.

"After December 31st, they're more than free to go and surf at their heart's content," Rice said.

TransAqua plans to hold an open house for the public to visit the site and learn about the changes next summer.

The conclusion of the work is roughly coinciding with the final steps to remove the causeway between Riverview and Moncton, a structure upstream of the sewage plant that also altered the river's water quality.

The province is spending $60 million to replace the causeway with a bridge that will restore free-flow of the river.

"I think with these projects all combined, it's going to make a huge difference to the health and quality of the Petitcodiac River," Rice said. "I think we all would certainly want to celebrate in 2021."

With the change to biological treatment, Rice said it's even more important that people don't dump grease or petrochemical products down the drain.

He said they've also had issues with people flushing wipes, condoms, tampons or using garburatorsthat the system isn't meant to handle.

The provincial and federal governments jointlypaid$45.2 million for the upgrade, while the remaining$45.2 million was paid by TransAqua through wastewater bills paid by residents and businesses.