Addition of Backflow Preventers at Fifth St. Sewage Pumping Station

completed

This project will install a backflow preventer to allow bypass volumes to flow and relieve sewage collection pressure, while preventing river water from entering the sewage collection system during spring thaw. The Fifth St. Sewage Pumping Station is the last pumping station in the Town of Hearst’s wastewater collection system. During the spring thaw, the Mattawishkwia River rises to elevations higher than the level of the pumping station’s 600mm bypass pipe, thus adding additional volume that is pumped to the sewage lagoons. This added volume from the river increases the volume sent for treatment in the lagoons by at least 15%, increasing energy consumption unnecessarily, causing additional wear and tear on equipment, and most significantly - increasing the potential for sewer backups into houses in the vicinity when the station’s pump capacity is exceeded.