A new water treatment plant on the North Saskatchewan and pipeline to the Town of Shellbrook is gaining momentum.
The project involves a partnership between the Town of Shellbrook, RM of Shellbrook, and Prince Albert Rural Water Utility (PAWRU). PARWU General Manager Ken Danger said that they are pleased with the pace of the project and they hope it continues.
“I think that things are going reasonably well,” Danger said. “At this point too we have hired lots of consultants to undertake various projects and various parts of the planning, consultation (and) design.”
PARWU has now progressed to another stage of the project. In November 2021, Steve Irving the project manager sent out a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the Pipeline Hydraulic and Sizing Design. There will be four pipelines incorporated into this portion of the plan. A line from the Water Treatment Plant, going under the Shell River and then continuing to Shellbrook.
The other pipeline will connect to the River Crossing under the North Saskatchewan River from the Water Treatment Plant. It will then continue to PARWU’s Gerald Barden Pumphouse located on the southside of Prince Albert.
PAWRU decided this was an attainable project following a feasibility study that was completed in the first part of last year. This was followed by the purchase of a 25 acres parcel on the North side of the Saskatchewan River, and the awarding the engineering tender for the Process Treatment, Design, and River Water Sampling Analysis of the Water Treatment Plant to Associated Engineering.
The Steering Committee and PARWU board have been reviewing RFP’s for the North Saskatchewan River crossing and the environmental permitting requirements. The pre-design for the WTP is expected to be completed in early 2023.
Danger said the design process and the location of the water lines are the next big steps for the project.
“Of course, everything comes with complications,” he said. “There is more residential there, the Penitentiary is across the road. There are lots of things to be considered.”
The second component in the project is the Pipeline Hydraulic and Sizing Engineering, which focuses on the pipeline to Shellbrook and PARWU’s existing system. This component was awarded to Pinter & Associates Ltd in December of 2021 and is to be completed in May 2022.
The third and one of the more complex components of the overall project is the design and engineering for the North Saskatchewan River Crossing.
A Request for Proposal (RFP) outlined the key elements required in the planning of the Horizontal Directional Drill (HDD) under the river, which includes a field investigation, geotechnical exploration, and tender ready documents for its completion.
The River Crossing RFP has been awarded to Associated Engineering after a review and recommendation from PARWU’s Project Manager, Steve Irving.
“AE has considerable expertise in trenchless crossings, which are environmentally friendly and do not disturb the channel or riverbanks,” Irving said in a Steering Committee press release. “AE has an excellent team with experienced personnel in the key disciplines required, which weighted in the deliberation for my recommendation.”
This is the second component that has been awarded to Associated Engineering.
Scott Miller is the Project Manager for Associated Engineering on both projects awarded by PARWU. He said they’re excited to extend their contract with the utility to include the design of a trenchless river crossing water pipeline.
“Our team is currently undertaking the crossing alignment analysis, which will be followed by pre-design, geotechnical investigation, and then detailed design to be completed by Summer of 2022.” Miller said.
After a recommendation from Irving, a review by the Steering Committee, the PARWU board awarded the RFP for the Pipeline Hydraulic, and Sizing Design to PINTER & Associates Ltd. “PINTER has completed the pre-design of the water treatment plant for the PARWU and now excited to be part of the next phase of the project. PINTER will be providing a professional engineering service for the rural waterline connections to service a reliable and resilient distribution network to the community of PARWU with an independent water supply to support the growth of surrounding areas and prosperity.” PINTER’s Project Manager, Enkhnyamaa Jalbuu said.
Phase 1 will entail the Hydraulic Analysis and Design of the Pipelines. PINTER will engineer layout schemes, barriers, determine the pipe requirements and any potential booster stations along the way. Phase 2 encompasses the detailed design, fine-tuning the cost estimates, and preparing the tender ready drawings and specifications. The final plan for the pipeline engineering has a targeted completion for this spring,
Prince Albert Rural Water Utility (PARWU) first looked into building this plant in 2018 to serve its existing network of customers in portions of the RM of Buckland, the Rm of Duck Lake, the Muskoday First Nation and the RM of Prince Albert. PARWU also expanded to include representatives from the RM of Shellbrook and Town of Shellbrook.
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca
