Pickering wastewater plant experiences explosion

Investigations are being carried out in order to find a cause of the explosion that destroyed a building at a wastewater treatment plant in the city of Pickering, Canada on Tuesday (January 21th). 

The Duffin Creek Water Pollution Control Plant, run by two regional municipalities, York and Durham, experienced an explosion on Tuesday morning, which resulted in the building catching fire. As the plant is quite close to Pickering's nuclear power plant, emergency crews responded quickly to control the blaze. The fire was brought under control and no injuries were reported.

The explosion occurred in the plant's odour control building, which is where emissions undergo treatment before being released into the atmosphere. The building was empty of any staff at the time of the incident. It caused a large plume of black smoke to be created as the building burned. Luckily, the fire did not affect any other buildings on the plant's premises.

Investigators are looking into whether the explosion could have been caused by a build-up of methane gas within the treatment building. The plant uses a small biofilter to control the odour of emissions that are created by the treatment of wastewater, which could have become backed up with the methane, triggering the explosion. Investigations into the cause of the explosion are still ongoing.

Although the explosion created a hole in the roof of the building and caused a fire, it did not affect the overall running of the plant and has not caused any issues with the treatment and release of wastewater. The plant continued to operate following the incident and officials have said that the water supply was not affected. 

While the explosion was loud and left many households and businesses in the area shaken - especially due to the plant's close proximity to the city's nuclear power station - no one had to be evacuated while the fire was dealt with.