ARTICLE
Lagoon upgrade demonstrates robust cold weather nitrification
Manning, Alberta, a town of 1,100 residents, operates two 30,400 m3 (eight-million gallon) wastewater treatment lagoon cells that receive an average flow of 975 m3/day (0.26 million gallons/day).
A recent amendment to Manning’s ammonia limit, setting a discharge limit of less than 1 mg/L, was beyond the lagoons’ existing treatment capabilities. With a limited budget, Manning had to rethink its wastewater treatment process. The town needed a treatment solution that would enhance ammonia removal within its existing lagoons despite Alberta’s cold winters to avoid the cost and requirements of a mechanical plant.
Optimizing lagoon performance with BioCord®
BioCord Reactors are essentially condominiums for bacteria. The BioCord media offers an optimized environment for nitrifying bacteria to establish and remain active , particularly in cold climates like northern Alberta. Designed to be installed in lagoons, the BioCord could seamlessly integrate into Manning’s cells to improve year-round ammonia removal while avoiding the cost of a large capital project.
Bishop Water operated a wintertime pilot system on site from October 9th, 2024, to March 26th, 2025, to test the BioCord’s nitrification performance. A 40-foot sea container was shipped to Manning, equipped with three BioCord Reactors, a feed pump, transfer pump, three 0.5 HP compressors, along with probes and sensors.
The pilot demonstrated and monitored ammonia removal under average and extremely low wastewater temperatures while tracking BioCord’s impact on alkalinity, pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), and total suspended solids (TSS).
BioCord® Reactor pilot system installed at the Manning, Alberta wastewater lagoon to evaluate year-round nitrification performance.
Proven ammonia removal performance under cold-weather conditions
After a four-week acclimatization period to establish a robust, steady-state biofilm, the results were consistent: the BioCord Reactors removed enough ammonia to meet the new discharge limits while increasing dissolved oxygen and maintaining the alkalinity and pH levels.
Ammonia removal exceeded 99% for much of the trial, reducing influent concentration from an average of 18 mg/L to as low as 0.02 mg/L. The average effluent ammonia concentration was 0.87 mg/L, comfortably below the 1 mg/L permit limit.
The system consistently removed 50 grams of ammonia per day, even when the wastewater temperatures remained below 2 °C (28 °F) for several weeks. No supplemental alkalinity was necessary.
Contact us to learn how BioCord Reactors could improve your lagoons’ performance.
