West Vaughan Sewage Servicing Project

What are the potential impacts during construction?
There will be temporary, disruptions including lane reductions or closures, sidewalk restrictions and bus stop relocations near some of the tunnelling compound sites; every effort to minimize any impacts will be made.

• Residents may experience noise outside of regular construction hours
• Advance notice will be provided if there are any planned service disruptions to your water or wastewater services or any utilities
• Access to homes and businesses will be maintained throughout the project
• Pedestrians are advised to follow directional signs as temporary sidewalks and detours will be in place

What is wastewater?
Wastewater refers to any water used in homes and businesses that leaves through a drain. Activities such as flushing toilets, taking showers, doing laundry and washing dishes produce wastewater. This water is collected and moves through sewers to treatment plants to remove contaminants before being returned to the environment.

How does wastewater collection and treatment happen in York Region and Vaughan?  
Wastewater generated in homes and businesses in Vaughan is collected through local sewers that are built and maintained by the City of Vaughan; it then moves into a larger sewer called the York Durham Sewage System, owned and maintained by York Region, and sent to the Duffin Creek Water Pollution Control Plant located in the City of Pickering, to be treated. 

What are the benefits of the project?
The West Vaughan Sewage Servicing project will provide new sewage infrastructure and increased capacity to support future growth while providing long-term, sustainable, wastewater servicing for surrounding communities in Vaughan.

What type of sewer pipes are built to move the wastewater?  
There are two types of large sewer pipes in York Region:  

• Gravity sewers – these pipes are built on an angle so that gravity can be used to move the wastewater from one point to another
• Forcemain sewers – When wastewater must move uphill, it is pumped through a forcemain. Sewage Pumping Stations are needed to pump the wastewater through the forcemains

Only Gravity Sewers will be built as part of the West Vaughan Sewage Servicing project.

How will the sewer be built? 
Two large tunnel boring machines which look like giant drills, will dig the tunnels underground for the new sewer pipe. The new sewer will be approximately 17 to 51 meters below the ground surface. The tunnel boring machines may run continuously, 24 hours a day, seven days a week to ensure timely completion of the project.

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What is a construction compound?  
Construction compounds are temporary work areas, where the tunnel boring machines are launched or received. Construction equipment and materials needed to build the new sewer are stored in the compound. The compounds are surrounded by hoarding or fencing to help limit disturbances, protect the public and minimize noise. 

After the sewer has been built, the construction compounds will be removed, and the area will be restored to a better condition before construction began. The shafts become permanent infrastructure and areas where inspections and maintenance work will happen in the future.  

How long will the tunnelling project take to complete?
It will take approximately five years to build the new sewer.  

Will there be night and weekend work?
There will be temporary night and weekend work as required during the tunnelling work phase, more information will be provided before the work will begin.