Sustainable Water Main Asset Rehabilitation & Replacement Planning

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INTRODUCTIONCanada has a $31B water infrastructure deficit, due in large part to aging water systems. Asset management programs adopted by municipalities lack advanced data analysis, hydraulic modelling, and optimization which are crucial to making sound decisions about billion dollar investments in water main assets. Fluctuations in available financial resources, the varied state of deterioration of water mains, and coordination with road reconstruction projects complicate decisions about when, where, and how to rehabilitate water main assets. The research program will produce new knowledge and models to assist municipalities in making strategic investments in the rehabilitation of water main assets that will save them hundreds of millions of dollars. The research program will train 6 HQP (5 Doctoral students and 1 Master’s student) who will acquire highly-desired technical skills in water distribution system modelling and assume leadership positions as water professionals.PROPOSED RESEARCH PROGRAMThe program’s long-term objective is to develop a new platform of decision support and analysis models to optimize the scheduling of water main asset replacement and rehabilitation. Municipalities who adopt this new approach will be able to achieve multi-million dollar savings in infrastructure and electricity costs. Research conducted by 5 Doctoral and 1 Master’s students will use advanced statistical analysis methods and laboratory investigations to understand the links between soil, pipe, and environmental variables and pipe breaks and leakage. The research will use supervised learning theory, life-cycle costing, and advanced hydraulic modelling and optimization to develop new decision support models to help municipalities optimize the timing of pipe rehabilitation and the allocation of their financial resources.RESEARCH OUTCOMESThe research will develop new knowledge and a new platform of models to help Canadian municipalities undertake cost-effective water main replacement and rehabilitation programs. The research will create fundamental knowledge surrounding the factors that drive breaks and leaks in networks. The research will lead to the development of a new water main asset management framework that is based on rigorous laboratory investigations and advanced modelling principles. The novel framework will be used to generate new knowledge on the best economic timing for replacement and rehabilitation of deteriorated cast iron and ductile iron pipe stocks in Canadian water systems. This new knowledge will help Canadian municipalities save millions of dollars in operation (electricity) and emergency break repair costs. The research and its application will be of intense interest to international researchers in the US, UK, Australia and other countries that face similar water main infrastructure challenges.HQP TRAININGThe workforce in Canadian municipalities is aging and advances in water technologies have made the management of water systems more complex. This has created a large demand for highly trained water professionals with advanced technical and professional skills in Canadian municipalities and across the water industry. The proposed research program will benefit Canada by training 6 HQP who will acquire highly-desired technical skills in water distribution system modelling, water infrastructure asset management and planning, economic and risk analysis, optimization, and skills in professional management in engineering. HQP will be ready to assume leadership positions as water professionals in municipalities, regulatory agencies, provincial ministries and federal departments, and consulting firms. HQP will undertake leading roles in infrastructure planning and design.