I participated this week in a tour of the CRD sewer system that serves Oak Bay and Saanich. The tour, organized by Oak Bay Director of Engineering Dave Marshall, also included Councillors John Herbert and Kevin Murdoch, Oak Bay senior staff Mark Brennan and Phil Barnett and CRD staff who conducted the tour.
We visited the Haro Woods meter, the Penhryn pump station (lift station), the Currie Rd. pump station and the Trent St. pump station. These various sites are monitored and maintained by the CRD and three of them, Trent St., Penhryn and Currie Rd., are good examples of how well these buildings are designed and landscaped to fit with their local neighbourhoods.
I learned about stormwater, overflows, peak flows and the intricate and extensive engineering systems that keep sewage underground and on the move. We don’t often think about our sewage system beyond the daily flush and seeing it from an engineering perspective gives it a whole new meaning.
The tour was informative and interesting and I am grateful to Oak Bay staff and the CRD for taking the time to show us the operation.