Greater Vancouver Regional District’s

Liquid Waste Management Plan

GVRD• 21 municipalities & one electoral area• Delivery of cost-effective utilities such as water,

sewerage & drainage, & solid waste management• Environmental stewardship & livability in the region• Area size (Land & Water) : 329,202 hectares• Population: 2 million• Annual population growth rate: 1.6%

Greater Vancouver Region

Historical Context

• The Sewerage and Drainage District and the first sewer plan date from 1914

• The Rawn report recommended a sewerage plan for the growing region in the 1950s

• The current LWMP provides a new path for the future

Sewer System: 1950

Outfall Locations:•Untreated Sewage to Marine/Rivers

Sewer System: 2000

Combined Sewer Outfalls

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

1910 1930 1950 1970 1990 2010 2030 2050 2070

Mill

ion

litre

s pe

r day

0

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2,500,000

3,000,000

3,500,000

4,000,000

4,500,000

5,000,000

Popu

latio

n

Sewage Volumes

Population

Estimated Volume of Untreated Sewage Discharge

VSA Operational Plan

First Sewerage Treatment Plants

Annacis Is. Sewerage

Treatment Plants

LWMP Background

• The LWMP is a plan under the Provincial Waste Management Act

• Stage 3 and Addendum approved by all municipalities and GVRD - March 2001

• Provincial Minister approved LWMP – April 2002• Federal agencies have participated in

development of the Plan• BIEAP / FREMP partnership used to address

Federal issues

LWMP Strategies

1. Conserve Resources

2. Maintain Infrastructure and Stretch Capacity

3. Maximize Environmental Benefit per Dollar Spent

Strategic Context

• 1. Conserve Resources– Pollution prevention– Water conservation– Stormwater as a resource

Strategic Context

• 2. Maintain Infrastructure and Stretch Capacity– $12 billion dollars in existing wastewater

assets

Strategic Context

• 3. Maximize Environmental Benefit per Dollar Spent– Limited financial resources and affordability

context

LWMP Management Process Based On:

• Appropriate monitoring program• Defensible Triggers• Acceptable Risk• Reasonable Options• Mutually Agreeable Timelines

Process Context

• A science-based approach is needed• There must be an understanding of

environmental risk• The cost and benefits of options must be

considered• The LWMP incorporates these into a

formal upgrading trigger process

District Board to select appropriate responses in

consultation with Ministry of Environment,

Lands, and Parks & Environment Canada

NO

LWMP Upgrading Trigger Process

Discharge(s) meets Water Quality

Objectives and other established criteria

Define and evaluate risk in consultation with

Ministry of Environment, Lands

and Parks & Environment Canada

Assess options, costs, and benefits

Actions

YES

Monitoring

Ongoing Review Ongoing Review by Environmental by Environmental

Monitoring Monitoring CommitteeCommittee

Municipal Wastewater Collection and Treatment System

Air

Effluent

Solid

Atmosphere

Surface Water

Land

Re-use

Release Receiving Environment

TreatmentCollectionInfluentProducts & Pre-disposal

Sources

Treatment Plants

Treatment Plants

Treatment Plants

• Established base level of treatment– Secondary to river– Primary to marine

• Upgrading based on environmental need and triggers

• Addendum No. 1 clarifies growth-driven upgrading at Iona and Lions Gate

Recommendations - WWTPs

• Base expansions for – growth, renewal, and substantial

compliance• Investigate and monitor high loading sources• Assess copper reductions via water treatment• Evaluate U.V. at Annacis, Lulu, Northwest

Langley• Monitor conditions and re-examine issues

Source and Demand Management

Source Management• Why:

– Protect workers, infrastructure, WWTP processes– Improve biosolids quality– Stretch capacity of existing systems– Reduce effect on the environment

• Sectors:– Industrial– Commercial & institutional– Residential

Source and Demand Management

• Emphasis on Pollution Prevention• Control of Toxic Substances Discharged to

Sewer• Consistent with Canadian Environmental

Protection Act (CEPA 1999)

Source Control

Sewer Use By-

law

Pollution Prevention

Local Limits

Methodology

Water Conservati

on

Public Education

Pollutant Reduction

Substance Prohibition

Reduction at the Source

Sector Control

Programs

• Promotion of water conservation• Eliminate stormwater discharges to

sanitary sewers• GVWD program to reduce copper levels• Education programs targeting green

buildings, sustainable communities, residential, commercial and institutional practices

Source and Demand Management

Residuals Management

• The beneficial reuse of biosolids

Recycled Biosolids by Market Sector in 2000

8%

58%

32%

< 1%

< 1%1%1%

Gravel PitLandfill ClosureSilvicultureMine ReclamationSoil ProductsRanchesLandscaping

Total recycled in 2000:55,400 tonnes

Environmental Management

Environmental Management

• Designated WLAP water use protection is paramount

• A receiving environment science-based approach

• A formal process to determine upgrading needs

• A standing multi-agency Environmental Monitoring Committee

GVRD’s LWMP Environmental Management Program

• Receiving environment effects monitoring • Discharge characterization• Ambient monitoring• Risk assessments• Options evaluation

EMP Monitoring Components

• WWTPs (5 Plants) - monitor effluent & receiving environment

• CSOs (50)• Recreational beaches (32 beaches with

120 sites)• Stormwater (130 watersheds)• Regional monitoring• Municipal monitoring programs

Treatment Plants Receiving Environment Effects Monitoring

• Understanding the fate of discharges

GVRD’s LWMP Receiving Environment Monitoring

– water and sediment chemistry– benthic invertebrate community– acute and chronic toxicity– bioaccumulation & biomagnification– habitat impairment & community alteration

Detailed Benthic Infaunal Analysis

Receiving Environment Investigations

• Reviewed by Environmental Monitoring Committee

• Detailed environmental fate and effect studies

• Long-term monitoring programs• All receiving waterways in the region

LWMP Summary

• A long term commitment to sustainable wastewater management

• Action plans to address all identified issues

• Formally reviewed on a five-year basis• Coordinated with other agencies including

using BIEAP/FREMP as a senior level clearing house