Town of Drayton Valley

The Town of Drayton Valley Water Treatment Plant serves a population of approximately 6200 people and a number of commercial and industrial facilities. With more stringent Alberta Environment Standards and Guidelines and an Approval to operate expiring soon, the Town of Drayton Valley needed to assess the current water treatment and storage infrastructure and prepare a plan to accommodate the dynamic growth in population and industrial activities. They were faced with two immediate challenges: insufficient treated water storage and chlorine contact time, and non-compliance with the 2006 Alberta Environment Standards and Guidelines. After a thorough analysis, both technical and financial, and an evaluation of different alternatives, ISL recommended constructing a new treatment facility consisting of ballasted flocculation pre-treatment and a micro-filtration membrane. Completed in 2009, the new facility meets the present standards and guidelines and the anticipated future regulatory limits with little or no upgrades. Membrane treatment reduced the reliance on chemical disinfection, thus eliminating the generation of potentially carcinogenic disinfection by-products. The new facility also included sufficient clearwell storage, improving the overall chlorine contact time. A large treated water storage facility is located beneath the plant, thus eliminating the need to construct a reservoir and pump station within the distribution system.