A more circular economy is growing in Selkirk , and on a weekly basis one of the most recent examples is the city’s use of reclaimed treated wastewater for watering trees and plants.
Raven Sharma, Selkirk’s Manager of Utilities, says the process of reclaiming or recycling water means the city is using treated wastewater instead of drawing from the aquifer.
“When the province awarded the City of Selkirk its environmental licence this February for the Canadian Premium Sands patterned solar glass plant that is coming here, we also got a Notice of Alteration (NOA) and that gave us the green light to reclaiming water from our wastewater for industrial purposes and for watering our trees and plants,” Sharma said.
“City staff and contractors hired by the city’s Culture, Recreation and Green Transportation (CRGT) Department are using Rewater, which is what we call reclaimed water from our wastewater treatment process, when they water trees and plants.”
Conserving precious drinking water
Watering of the city’s 8,000-plus trees and plants is ongoing and requires 5,000 to 9,000 gallons of water every week. By using Rewater instead of treated drinking water, the city is saving that much more water that can be used for consumption.
Selkirk has stood out in recent years as a city that has a secure water supply. In 2021 the cumulative effect of drought-like conditions year after year in Southern Manitoba forced communities to enforce watering restrictions to preserve a limited supply of water.
While Selkirk encourages water conservation as a regular environmental practice, there was no need in 2021 to put restrictions in place and there’s no need today.
The city’s Strategic Plan, Priority 3 – Safe and Sustainable Infrastructure, calls for the city to have a reliable water source.
Contributing to a circular economy
“We have a safe and secure supply of water in the City of Selkirk, and incorporating water recycling into our day-to-day practices only improves the situation,” Sharma said.
“On a weekly basis, we are leaving up to 9,000 gallons of water in the aquifer. We’re contributing to the circular economy and it’s possible because of our state-of-the-art regional wastewater treatment plant that treats effluent to a higher standard than provincial regulations require, and it is now really a regional water recycling facility.”
Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Duane Nicol said the city has been making strategic investments into core infrastructure and operational capacity for years, in particular the decision to invest in the city’s state-of-the-art water recycling facility.
Positioning Selkirk as a green industry leader
Watering of natural assets like trees is just the beginning.
“This foresight has given us the opportunity to use Rewater as an input for the CPS plant, turning a former waste product into a valuable manufacturing resource,” Nicol said.
“This one innovation will eliminate the need for using fresh water, potentially a million litres a day, for the glass processing, and because our treatment facilities operate without fossil fuels, there is almost no carbon footprint. It closes a resource loop and makes our local economy more circular – which is good for the pocketbook, and great for the environment.”
When the CPS plant opens in the city – creating as many as 300 jobs and pumping tens of millions of dollars into the local economy each year – it will become the first industry in the province to use Rewater in its operations for the cooling of glass. Its arrival will herald Selkirk and Manitoba as key players in solar power, a booming green industry.
