The ACWA facility, which will undertake research on wastewater treatment technologies, is claimed to be the first of its kind facility to be integrated inside an operating industrial wastewater treatment plant.
The facility features the streams; an experimental wastewater treatment plant, where methods to remove contaminants will be developed and tested.
It also houses an analytical laboratory, where the biological and chemical characteristics of wastewater and treated effluents will be analyzed. Three additional labs on campus at the university will also support ACWA research.
The facility’s site includes 3.8km of naturalized, experimental streams that are similar to real-life water situations.
Researchers and trainees will evaluate the effects of actual wastewater effluent on living ecosystems in real time with the help of the streams’ size, number, and connectivity to the city plant.
University of Calgary president Elizabeth Cannon said: "There is no other facility like this and we expect it to offer groundbreaking water research with global impact.
"It is a place where researchers, practitioners and industry can work together to solve important problems facing cities everywhere."
Agilent Technologies has provided analytical tools and software designed to help researchers in analyzing their data.
Image: An aerial view of the Advancing Canadian Wastewater Assets facility at the Pine Creek wastewater treatment plant in south Calgary. Photo: Courtesy of University of Calgary.
