Residents near Winnipeg’s North End wastewater treatment plant may notice intermittent odours through September as the city brings a new $518-million headworks facility and its biological odour-control system online, city officials warned.
The city says the temporary odours are expected while bacteria and other microorganisms used to treat foul-smelling air become established within the new Headworks Facilities at the North End Water Pollution Control Centre (NEWPCC).
The facilities began coming online August 26, marking a major milestone of the first of three major phases in the roughly $3.2-billion overhaul of the North End plant — the largest capital project in Winnipeg’s history.
Around 70% of the city’s wastewater is treated at NEWPCC.
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The new odour-control system uses a two-stage biological treatment process. In the first stage, bacteria living on foam beds target hydrogen sulphide, the compound associated with a rotten-egg smell. A second stage uses microorganisms grown on pieces of rock to treat remaining odours before air is discharged from the facility.
“The new headworks facility does things differently,” the city said in a statement. “We use a specific kind of bacteria to eat the smelly compounds first. That’s right, its new odour control system involves teeny, tiny living organisms being grown on foam and on rock-like pieces.”
Because the microorganisms need time to grow and become established, the city says odours may intermittently escape from the plant during the startup period. The issue is expected to continue through September as the system ramps up operation.
The city added that a similar process is used at Winnipeg’s South End Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The NEWPCC Headworks Facilities collect wastewater arriving at the plant through deep underground pipes and pump it to ground level, where large debris and grit are removed to protect downstream equipment and treatment processes.
The headworks project ultimately cost $518 million, up from an estimated $408 million in 2019.
“For too many years, the North End treatment plant was a project everyone knew had to get done, but progress was far too slow. We’ve changed that,” said Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham in a statement.
“Today, the first major component of the largest capital project in Winnipeg’s history is operational, and work is moving ahead across the rest of the plant,” he added. “This is real progress on a project that is essential to protecting Lake Winnipeg, meeting our environmental obligations and supporting the future growth of our city.”
The headworks project is the first of three major upgrades intended to increase treatment capacity and bring the North End plant into compliance with environmental requirements.
The second phase includes new biosolids facilities, a project whose estimated cost has increased from $553 million to approximately $1.035 billion.
The overall NEWPCC upgrade is now estimated at roughly $3.2 billion. The Manitoba government has set a 2032 deadline for the work to be completed.
“The NEWPCC upgrades are so important,” said Councillor Ross Eadie, chair of the city’s Standing Policy Committee on Water, Waste and Environment. “The Headworks Facilities coming online today is the first step toward meeting our licence requirements and helping protect our local waterways for future generations.”
