The Elmira Wastewater Treatment Plant is easy to miss in its location tucked behind an industrial park.But don’t let its low profile fool you. “It’s a little plant, but it puts out a big punch,” says Jeff Medd, project manager for the plant’s owner, the Region of Waterloo.That punch was necessary. By 2020 the facility, in the village of Elmira, Ontario, was facing a perfect storm of operational challenges. High-strength waste from industry and inflow from aging residential sewers were pushing the plant to its limits.Worse, the site was effectively landlocked, making construction of new secondary treatment capacity physically impossible.
