SOUTH DUNDAS – Last week’s ice rain was problematic for the Hydro One power grid in some areas of South Dundas. However municipal wastewater infrastructure was largely able to keep up with demand.
When wastewater plants become overwhelmed with excess water, it can become necessary to bypass the wastewater treatment plant.
Bypassing the system serves to protect the plant and its processes from damage. Where sanitary and storm sewer infrastructure are connected a bypass can decrease the potential for basement backups. That is why during the rainfall event the municipality was advising its wastewater system users that any sump pumps tied into the sanitary sewer should be disconnected. Connections like these are largely responsible for system overloads during heavy rainfall events.
“We experienced high flows in the town of Morrisburg but the plants were able to maintain the water levels, so no bypass was required,” said Denis Villeneuve, manager of water and wastewater operations for the Municipality of South Dundas.
In Williamsburg: “We experienced extremely high flows.” reported Villeneuve. “The pumping station that flows to the lagoon ran as expected with no bypass needed.”
The Iroquois wastewater plant however, was the exception.
“Iroquois was similar in terms of high flows, especially on the east side of the town, which is gravity fed to the plant,” explained Villeneuve. “There was a temporary blockage on Lakeview Street that eventually released and resulted in abnormally high flows. This caused the plant to bypass for 14 minutes. Two residents reported water issues in their basements.”
“Our staff worked diligently throughout the entire evening to monitor all facilities until the levels subsided,” added Villeneuve.