The City of Toronto has selected Stantec to provide design and construction administration services for a new high-rate treatment facility aimed at reducing combined sewer overflows into the Don River and Toronto’s waterfront.
The 600-million-litre-per-day High Rate Treatment Facility (HRTF) will be constructed on the new landform at the Ashbridges Bay Wastewater Treatment Plant. It will provide primary treatment for excess flows collected during wet weather events before they are discharged.
The HRTF is part of Toronto’s Don River and Central Waterfront Wet Weather Flow System, a major network of tunnels and other infrastructure being constructed to capture and manage combined sewage and stormwater that would otherwise overflow into local waterways during heavy rainfall.
According to Stantec, the HRTF will be one of the final major components of the broader wet weather program and is intended to improve water quality in the Lower Don River, Taylor-Massey Creek and Toronto’s Inner Harbour.
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The system is designed to reduce the volume of untreated combined sewer overflows entering waterways during wet weather, improving environmental conditions and recreational opportunities while helping the city adapt its wastewater infrastructure to increasingly severe rainfall events.
“Toronto is making an important investment in protecting its waterways and preparing its infrastructure for the future,” said Jeff Berg, vice president and project manager at Stantec, in a statement. “We’re pleased to work with the City to provide a solution that enhances water quality, safeguards public health, and strengthens climate change resilience.”
Stantec said it will work with the city and construction team using a Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) delivery model. Under this approach, the construction manager becomes involved during design to provide input on constructability, scheduling and cost management before construction begins.
The project is currently in the design and engineering phase, with construction scheduled to be completed in 2036.
Stantec has previously worked with Toronto on several major infrastructure initiatives, including phases of the city’s Basement Flooding Protection Program and sections of the Gardiner Expressway Rehabilitation Project.
