Infiltration Galleries at BCIT - News Story
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Infiltration galleries a cost-effective and efficient way to improve water quality at BCIT’s Guichon Creek Alexandra Lamb October 20, 2015 10:45 AM PT BCIT instructor Ken Ashley believes that introducing more infiltration galleries will be the most effective and cost-efficient way to improve the water quality of Guichon Creek. The creek, which runs across the campus, has been heavily polluted by campus activity; in particular, its position next to a parking lot. On rainy days, the gasoline and fluids on the lot are washed into the stream. Now that the institute has taken on a project to daylight and restore Guichon Creek so that it may become a location for salmon spawning once again, rearrangements will need to be made to the parking lot. The project would be engineered and operated by BCIT’s environmental engineering students, under Ashley’s lead. Infiltration galleries would run between the current parking lot and the creek under this proposed plan. Essentially they are grass-lined ditches, which soak up the excess chemicals so that they don’t wash into the stream. Parking would need to be redirected slightly, and pushed back so that there would be more room between the gallery and the river. One infiltration gallery only costs about $50 000 to construct, and Ashley estimates that seven would be sufficient to protect the creek. The total bill, including the cost of parking arrangements, has not been projected yet.
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This is an original news story I wrote at the BCIT following an outdoors conference we had with instructor Ken Ashley. Our campus is home to Guichon Creek, which once had spawning salmon swimming through it but has been ruined by the institute's activity. Ashley has been leading projects to daylight and restore the creek, and in this article, stressed the importance of infiltration galleries' role in improving the state of the river.
Transcript of Infiltration Galleries at BCIT - News Story
Infiltration galleries a cost-effective and efficient way to improve water quality at BCIT’s Guichon Creek
Alexandra Lamb October 20, 2015 10:45 AM PT
BCIT instructor Ken Ashley believes that introducing more infiltration galleries will be the most effective and cost-efficient way to improve the water quality of Guichon Creek. The creek, which runs across the campus, has been heavily polluted by campus activity; in particular, its position next to a parking lot. On rainy days, the gasoline and fluids on the lot are washed into the stream. Now that the institute has taken on a project to daylight and restore Guichon Creek so that it may become a location for salmon spawning once again, rearrangements will need to be made to the parking lot.
The project would be engineered and operated by BCIT’s environmental engineering students, under Ashley’s lead. Infiltration galleries would run between the current parking lot and the creek under this proposed plan. Essentially they are grass-lined ditches, which soak up the excess chemicals so that they don’t wash into the stream. Parking would need to be redirected slightly, and pushed back so that there would be more room between the gallery and the river. One infiltration gallery only costs about $50 000 to construct, and Ashley estimates that seven would be sufficient to protect the creek. The total bill, including the cost of parking arrangements, has not been projected yet.
