April 7, 1998

  To:Works and Utilities Committee

 From:B. H. Gutteridge

Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services

 Subject:Odour Containment Program

Main Treatment Plant

 Recommendations:

That this report be received for information.

 Council Reference/Background/History:

 At its meeting held on February 11, 1998, when dealing with Clause No. 1 of Report No. 2, Biosolids Demonstration Facility - Harbour Remediation & Transfer Inc., the Works and Utilities Committee requested that the Interim Functional Lead for Water and Wastewater Operations submit a report on the measures taken to ensure that odours are monitored and reduced, and such report to also provide the history and operational information related to the biosolids loading building at the Main Treatment Plant.

 Comments and/or Discussion and/or Justification:

 The Main Treatment Plant has included in its construction a number of odour treatment facilities. There are three systems in place to treat the collected odourous air. One system is stand alone wet chemical scrubbers which are used to scrub odours for isolated buildings such as the Mid Toronto Pumping Station and the Grit Removal and Screening for Primary Tanks Nos. 7 to 9.

 Another system is ozone treatment, which is used for larger areas such as Primary Tanks Nos. 10 to 12, the screening and grit removal areas, as well as the air from the covered aeration tanks. The third system utilizes the foul air from the dewatering process and the solids unloading facilities as combustion air in the incinerators.

 In order for the air treatment facilities to work effectively, the truck doors on the Primary and Grit Buildings, as well as the Solids loading facilities must be closed. To ensure that the doors are closed and not left open, signs have been placed near all these doors, directing that they be kept closed. In addition, staff have been instructed to close them if they are found open.

 In addition to the treatment systems we have in place, we also have a formal odour complaint process. Should a complaint be received regarding odours, an odour complaint form is filled out by plant staff. The complaint form records the time of day, wind direction and general climate conditions, i.e. sunny, cloudy, raining, etc., and any process changes are noted, e.g cleaning tanks, equipment breakdown, etc. The complaint is investigated, corrections made as required, and the form is then sent to the plant manager for his review. The complaint form is then forwarded to Divisional Head Office for review and filing. In 1997, from the Main Treatment Plant, we had 36 odour complaints, and to date in 1998, we have 2 odour complaints.

 At its meeting on October 12, 1994, by adoption of Clause No. 1 of Report No. 16 of The Works Committee, Metro Council authorized the design and construction of a vehicle loading facility for biosolids at the Main Treatment Plant. The facility was designed to be able to provide biosolids for two demonstration projects of 10,000 dry tonnes each, one for direct land application and one for further processing prior to beneficial reuse.

 This facility was designed to provide for storage of 400 cubic metres of biosolids and provide an ability to deliver a maximum of 29,600 dry tonnes per year of solids. The facility was made up of a building housing loading hoppers which were skirted for odour containment and the foul air removed by an exhaust fan connected to the combustion air for the incinerators.

 The facility went into operation in August, 1996. There have been minor mechanical problems which have been addressed by the plant maintenance staff. There have been odour emissions which are related to odours escaping from the loading trucks into the room surrounding the loading hoppers. These odours are exhausted to the atmosphere where on some days they are drawn in to the fresh air intakes of the incinerator building. These odours then make it unpleasant for the operations staff in the incinerator complex.

 We are in the process of reviewing the necessary improvements to the odour control system of this facility to be able to deal with these fugitive emissions, as well as to provide treatment to these odours when there are no incinerators in service.

Conclusions:

 We will continue to review and improve our odour control and treatment capabilities at the Main Treatment Plant.

 Contact Name:

 Mr. R. M. Pickett, Director, Water Pollution Control Division

Telephone: (416) 392-8230

Fax: (416) 397-0908

E-Mail bob_pickett@metrodesk.metrotor.on.ca.

 M. G. Thorne, P. Eng.

Interim Functional Lead

Water and Wastewater Operations

      B.H. Gutteridge

Commissioner of Works and Emergency Services

 rmp:mmFile No. 1001.20-108