North Battleford city council has moved ahead to deal with a long-standing bio-solids issue.
Lystek International Inc. from Ontario has been contracted to modify the waste water treatment plant and install bio-solids treatment equipment at a capital cost of $3,197,250 plus GST.
The idea is to convert the bio-solids into a fertilizer. Lystek's process uses alkaline stabilization to treat the bio-solids, with Class A registered fertilizer being the end product.
In a news release the City says it is the first plant in Western Canada to take on the Lystek technology.
City Public Works Director Stewart Schafer stated in a memo that no further staff would be needed, but there would be a covered lagoon required to store the liquid fertilizer. It would be pumped from the wastewater treatment plant to the lagoon for storage.
Lystek estimated the lagoon would cost $550,000 to build and that is factored into their their bid. It was estimated construction will take about a year.
The new equipment is required under rules being mandated by the province. Under the City's current permit to operate sewage works, they are required to have a Water Security Agency authorized and approved sewage bio-solids treatment and disposal process in place by Nov. 1, 2015.
City administration's RFP to design criteria called for construction of a facility that would convert the bio-solids to a class A fertilizer, using a process acceptable to the Water Security Agency. Each proposal was to estimate capital and operating costs and include in their capital costs commissioning and training services, as well as provide ongoing operational support for a five-year period after commissioning. The awarded firm will enter into a cost share profit contract with the City to market the fertilizer.
Schafer reported to council they got three proposals back. One bid from Algoma Bio-Septic Technologies Inc. had a lower capital cost of around $2.3 million but a much higher operating cost of over $2.6 million per year. N-Viro Systems Canada Inc. had a higher capital cost of over $5 million and also a higher operating cost of $236,250.
Under the Lystek proposal the operating cost came to $71,400, or $21 per tonne.
Schafer cited a number of advantages with the Lystek proposal when reporting to council Jan. 27. The fact there would be no increase to staff was a big factor.
"We did not want to increase our manpower extensively," said Schafer.
The fertilizer produced through Lystek's proposal is a registered fertilizer that is safe for use on crops, said Schafer. The other two proposals would have converted the biosolids into a soil amendment product that would see more limited use.
A longer-term advantage is that there will be diversion from the landfill where the bio-solids were sent previously.
Councillors knew about that issue from their previous tours of the wastewater treatment plant where they saw the smelly and watery sludge that is sent out from there - material that Schafer said was very hard to deal with at the waste management facility where it is disposed of into the pit.
In response to a question from Councillor Ryan Bater about the benefits that would be seen from diverting from the landfill, Schafer said it "isn't going to fill up our pit as fast."
Plus, had they continued to accept this material there, the pit would have had to be reclassified as "biological hazard material" that would have meant more costs. Schafer said operation costs at the pit should go down as a result of the changes.
Another advantage to the deal is that they will generate income from sales of the fertilizer as part of a revenue sharing agreement with Lystek.
In a statement, officials with Lystek welcomed North Battleford's decision to contract with them.
"We are thrilled to be working with the community of North Battleford as we expand our market leading solutions into Saskatchewan and across Western Canada" said Kevin Litwiller, director of business development for Lystek.
"We look forward to working with the City to showcase our proven technology and continue demonstrating our commitment to reducing costs and environmental impact."
