Increased construction costs and a geotechnical investigation at the Whitney Pump Station 4 could cost more than $260,000.
At a special council meeting being held Wednesday, July 25 at noon, a staff report is recommending the construction contract be raised by $192,000 plus HST. If approved, the increase would bring the total construction contract up to $7.2 million.
In addition to the increase in construction costs, staff is recommending awarding the geotechnical investigation of the soil near the holding tanks to Wood Environmental and Infrastructure Solutions. That contract is worth $72,800 plus HST.
According to the project spreadsheet, the extra construction cash is to haul approximately 2,000 cubic metres of soil from the Deloro Landfill, import granular material and geotechnical fabric, wet well modifications, install a roll up door in the screening room, motorized valve cable modifications, and discharge sewage header modifications.
Work at the site located just east of the Whitney arena on Highway 101 had stopped last year.
At that time, staff said they were talking to a specialist to make sure the issue is localized. When construction restarts, there is about two to three months of work remaining
According to a report this week, the sewage holding tanks are built and need to be tested by filling the tanks.
“A few discrepancies have arisen relating to the soil bearing capacity recommendations and design of the foundations,” reads the report. “The discrepancies have created uncertainty with regard to the stability and performance of the equalization tanks when they are filled.”
While there is a specialty consultant doing an analysis on the tank foundations, they have asked for “additional specific non-conventional and specific soils data.”
According to the report, the investigation is “an important part of the process which ties into determining the action plan to test fill the tanks, prediction of potential tank settlement, and mitigation of potential foundation remediation costs related to the tanks.”
If the geotechnical investigation is awarded this week, the tentative schedule would allow for mob drills and field work in mid-August, lab testing in early September, and the report in mid-September.
Building Pumping Station 4, installing two stormwater equalization tanks, and upgrading the force mains is the first phase of a two-phase project to upgrade the sewage system in the east end of the city.
Work on phase one started in 2014, however ground-settling and legal issues have contributed to it not yet being completed.
Phase two is upgrading the mechanical, electrical and instrumentation systems, along with other work, at the remaining five pump stations. The $16.6-million project was awarded to Northec Construction Ltd in April.
Upgrading the system is required for the city to meet a Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) director’s order.
The deadline for phase one was Feb. 28, while the second-phase date is Oct. 31, 2020.
Right now, in Porcupine and South Porcupine, when the system’s capacity is exceeded raw sewage is bypassed into Porcupine Lake.
Earlier this year, a group of residents concerned about the future of Porcupine Lake met with the Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA), a non-profit specialty clinic funded by Legal Aid Ontario, to look at potential options to clean up the lake.
With the sewage bypasses, the residents are concerned about the odour, potential risks for health and the environment, and the overall future of the lake.
CELA will be in town next month for a public information session Aug. 9 and has also asked to meet with the city and Ministry of Environment and Climate Change to learn more about the upgrades.
You can read the full report on extra construction costs here and the investigation here.
Other items on the agenda for the special meeting are transferring unused funds from the Meadow Lane project to the Town Creek realigning project, and hiring a company to help the City of Timmins implement a Continuous Improvement Program.
