June 24, 2011

PHOTOS: RJ BURNSIDE

Excavation for the Ecoflo System.

FEATURE | Sewer and Watermain/Water & Wastewater

Peat filter system treats sewage at Milton, Ontario community centre

DAN O’REILLY

correspondent

Residents in a rural portion of Milton, Ontario now have a long-awaited new community centre with four tennis courts and 32 parking spaces, thanks in large part to a $1.97-million federal government grant.

But the Campbellville Community Centre & Nassagaweya Tennis Courts Redevelopment would have been drastically scaled back if an on-site natural sewage system hadn’t been installed, says the project consultant.

Designed by +VG Architects and built by general contractor DeFaveri Construction, the 3,928-square-foot (365-square-metre) centre is serviced by a non-obtrusive and barely visible EcoFlo Peat Filter System.

Installed over a two-week period by septic subcontractor Slagter Construction, it is comprised of a septic tank, a biofilter — basically two peat-filled chambers — and a tapered absorption bed of sand that allows the treated material to slowly seep back into the ground.

“We looked at alternate methods and a conventional raised tile bed would have taken up too much room, says Anne Egan of R. J. Burnside & Associations Limited.

Installed Ecoflo System and Building.

“Without this system, something would have to give,” says Egan, explaining that possibly the building size would been decreased or one of the courts and some of the parking spaces would have been lost.

Burnside recommended the system as the best technical and financial method to overcome the limitations of the tight 1.4-acre site at the corner of the Guelph Line and the Campbellville Sideroad. There are no sewer services in the area and certain setbacks had to be maintained for future road expansion.

With an estimated 9,000 to 10,000 units already in place throughout Ontario, peat filter systems are not a radically new or experimental technology, says Egan.

“But all are unique, every one is different, and their successful installation depends on local soil conditions and groundwater level.”

The sand for the absorption bed also has to be of certain size or fluid won’t seep back into the ground at the correct speed or “percolation rate.”

That why it was critical the coarseness of the sand trucked into the Campbellville site from the CBM Aggregates McNally Pit in Aberfoyle, Ontario had to be monitored very closely. The tight site conditions also dictated that the filter system had to be in place before construction of the centre started, says Egan.

Apart from the sewer servicing, there were other design and construction challenges, says project architect Travis Forrest.

“We had to deal with constraints due to shallow bedrock and the site’s location within the Bronte Creek Watershed. The final design also had to adhere to the Niagara Escarpment Commission and Conservation Halton regulations for site development.”

The new centre replaces an original 1950 building that over the years had also been used as service station and fire hall. Built with load-bearing masonry and structural steel with pre-finished wood siding and stone veneer exterior finish, the fully accessible facility features a room for community use and the local tennis club, says Forrest.

Construction started in late August 2010 and substantial performance was achieved at the end of March. At any given time, there were between five to 20 workers on site, depending on the stage of the project, says DeFaveri project co-ordinator Derek Meigs.

There are a number of on-site sewage solutions and systems available that will allow communities and developers to proceed with projects in rural areas while fully protecting their water resources, says Ontario Onsite Wastewater Association director Denis Orendt.

The association was recently authorized to deliver training courses to on-site installers by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, he says.

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