Metro Vancouver’s South Surrey Interceptor, which conveys sewage from South Surrey, White Rock and Langley to the Annacis Island Wastewater Treatment Plant, has been named 2019 Canadian Project of the Year and was also recognized as runner up for new installations.
The Tunnelling Association of Canada bestowed the industry recognition, for projects worth up to $100 million, on the Surrey section, which is 800 metres long and over three metres in diameter and was built using trenchless microtunneling. On the same day, industry publication Trenchless Technology awarded the project 2019 Runner Up for New Installations.
The project is the largest diameter sewer pipe installed in a single-pass installation using microtunnelling in Canada. Initially proposed as open cut, the trenchless technology helped Metro Vancouver avoid significant disruption to area business parks and the complete closure of 152nd Street near 56th Avenue in Surrey.
The existing South Surrey Interceptor was constructed in the early 1970s but twinning of the pipe began in 1999 to increase sewer capacity and address regional growth. The microtunnelled Surrey section is one of the last to be installed for the twinning project, resulting in more than 10 kilometres of new sewer.
The project was constructed by Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd., with Stantec serving as consultant. Project challenges for this project included low ground cover, proximity to a City of Surrey sewer pipe, and a tight window for working with existing utilities in the ground.