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Sewer and Watermain

June 24, 2009

Stimulus comes too late for Vancouver Island general contractor

Stimulus dollars won’t help Parksville, B.C.-based Ballenas Engineering, which is set to close its doors permanently later this month. The Vancouver Island general contractor is a casualty of the downturn in the construction and forest industries.

June 22, 2009

Tires could play role in cleaner landfills

A Goderich engineer’s vision for old tires could gain traction as Ontario’s tire industry powers up its recycling efforts this fall.

June 11, 2009

Cathodic protection prolonging life of iron watermains

The Municipality of Port Hope, Ont. is slowly replacing its cast iron water main system. Some of the town’s pipes go back almost a century and are showing the signs of age.

June 10, 2009

Roadbuilders urge deadline extension for stimulus funding

A six-month completion deadline extension for outdoor projects attempting to secure federal stimulus funding would help address weather and regulatory challenges, say local road and sewer building associations.

May 20, 2009

Fer-Pal Construction fined in Burlington watermain accident

Fer-Pal Construction Ltd., a Toronto company that does watermain construction, was fined $90,000 on May 12 for violations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), after a worker was injured.

April 28, 2009

Day of Mourning light must shine brighter in Ontario

The light of hope cast on improved workplace safety by today’s 25th anniversary events for the Day of Mourning still needs to shine longer and brighter, say industry representatives.

April 23, 2009

Pipeflo crew takes a close look at deeply buried Hamilton sewer line

The typical Canadian sewer line runs no deeper than about four metres below the surface. A 270-metre length of sewer line running north from the intersection of Locke Street and York Boulevard in Hamilton lies more than 25 metres below the surface — and it needed repair.

April 20, 2009

CO-X-CO Construction nears completion of Yonge Street watermain project

Toronto’s Yonge Street corridor, which runs north from Eglinton Avenue to Lawrence Avenue, experiences a high volume of both vehicle and pedestrian traffic during most of the year.

April 15, 2009

Municipal waterworks projects keep London-area contractors optimistic

A $20 million project that will supply water to two communities near London is one of several reasons why the area’s local construction community remains optimistic despite the recession.

April 9, 2009

Quantum Murray employs temporary buildings to contain PCB-contaminated site

When Ministry of the Environment staff called for bids to remediate the largest site of PCB-contaminated soils in Ontario, they posed an unusual challenge: contain any related dust and runoff.

March 28, 2008

Portions of Ontario Water Resources Act frustrate contractors, delay projects

The Ontario Water Resources Act was designed in part to protect the province’s water resources from industrial and commercial users who might draw more water out of provincial aquifers than they can reasonably sustain.

March 28, 2008

Potholes wreak havoc on infrastructure

Mountains of snow and frequent freeze-thaw conditions in Toronto and much of Ontario this winter have pounded streets and highways into pothole nightmares. But municipalities could face more than road repairs in the months to come as a result of the pothole epidemic.

March 28, 2008

L82 Construction marks 25th anniversary by building new headquarters

More than 25 years ago, in the depths of the 1980s recession, Emanuel “Manny” De Melo found himself out of work after his employer folded. He wasn’t alone; soaring interest rates had left many Canadians within the construction industry in the same position.

March 28, 2008

New concrete pressure pipe will start as gravity pipe, then become forced main as needs change

Burrowing under Highway 410 and through a number of river crossings while staying clear of hydro lines, a 4.5-kilometre-long sanitary diversion sewer now under construction in Brampton may be the first of its kind in the Greater Toronto Area.

March 28, 2008

Northern Ontario’s short construction season poses challenges

Of all the differences between the north and the south when it comes to construction, one factor has the biggest impact on sewer and watermain projects – the north’s short building season.

March 28, 2008

Sustainable pipes delivering safety

The Ontario Sewer and Watermain Construction Association submits that reliable and sustainable water piping systems are not only an economic convenience, they are a survival, safety and medical necessity.

March 28, 2008

York Region interceptor sewer project employs most current tunnel technology

A year after construction started, a $76-million interceptor sewer employing the most recent advances in tunnel technology is nearing completion in the York Region town of Richmond Hill.