Capital Regional District Wastewater Treatment Program (Canada)

Challenge

In Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, the Capital Regional District (CRD) is currently in the process of implementing a major wastewater treatment program to provide tertiary level treatment. Stantec is leading the procurement and owner’s engineering services for support of 10 major contracts, including two major pumping stations, two large-diameter forcemains, a SCADA system, a wet-weather attenuation tank, a 108 mld wastewater treatment plant, a 20 km residuals pipeline, and an anaerobic digestion and drying facility. This program culminates a five-year effort in which technical planning was completed by Stantec and District representatives. The largest capital project undertaken in the region’s history, it will upgrade their wastewater conveyance, pumping, and treatment facilities.

Stantec developed conceptual designs of the facilities, and established project controls including scheduling and budgets. Stantec led the preparation of technical procurement documents and provided assistance in the selection of contractors for the project. Stantec is assisting the CRD with design reviews and construction management.

Approach

The project is being delivered by several procurement methods including DBFOM/DBF/DB and conventional DBB delivery models. Capital costs, schedule, affordability, and procurement strategy were the key challenges within the overall program. Determining the most appropriate procurement method took into consideration various risk allocation and transfer scenarios, together with a business case evaluation for the different program components. The business case evaluations determined that an optimal mix of procurement strategies for each of the program’s components could be delivered using an overall hybrid procurement model. This hybrid approach to procurement, using multiple delivery types based on best fit for each project, enables the program to be delivered in a much shorter period than previously anticipated while at the same time optimizing risk transfer and adhering to local market conditions.

As the owner’s engineer and technical consultant, Stantec developed all of the contract documents for procurement of the $765 million program. This included preparation of procurement technical specifications for the following major contracts:

  • McLoughlin WWTP, DBF
  • Hartland Biosolids Facility, DBFOM
  • Clover Point Pump Station, DB
  • Macaulay Point Pump Station, DB

Results

The project is progressing well with the McLoughlin Wastewater Treatment Plant, Hartland Biosolids Facility, Macaulay, and Clover pumping stations and conveyance facilities currently under construction. The construction program, including procurement, is being delivered in only four years, much quicker than comparable programs.

Stantec fast-tracked the technical planning phase to meet a stringent Ministry of Environment order. The innovative plan developed in partnership with CRD will result in cost savings of $400 million over previously developed concepts. Technical options for the plan were evaluated using a value-based TBL framework considering social, economic, and environmental factors, with a focus on minimizing energy consumption and greenhouse gases.