WC142 MayJune 2025 - Magazine - Page 23
WASTEWATER
Learning As It Happens
Getting the chance to prove ourselves in the 昀椀eld
BY SARAH RIES AND BAYLEE TALAN
Sarah (left) and Baylee on the
job at the To昀椀no Wastewater
Treatment Plant.
T’S TOUGH TO APPRECIATE how much
real hands-on experience you’re going to get
when you’re just starting out in your career in this
industry. You know that once you get hired, there’s
going to be a lot to learn. You’ll need training, job
shadowing, and insights from your peers.
When the opportunity arose to play key roles in
WSP’s part of the delivery of Tofino, B.C.'s first wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), we both jumped at
the chance. For me (Sarah), it was my first construc-
WSP
I
Sarah Ries is an Engineer-in-Training
and a Designer, Water & Wastewater,
for WSP in Canada.
Baylee Talan is an
Engineer-in-Training and Designer,
Water Treatment & Facilities,
for WSP in Canada.
tion job ever. And for me (Baylee), I was immediately
assigned to support the completion of the design when I
arrived in early 2022.
We both had lots of questions. What would the
environment be like? How would the team support us?
Would we face additional challenges as young, female
engineers-in-training? It made us nervous, yet excited.
But we both realized that this was an experience we
wanted to be part of.
The project
Prior to the construction of the WWTP, Tofino
discharged untreated sewage into the Pacific Ocean at
Duffin Passage. The new plant was developed to meet
the community’s obligations under the federal government’s Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations, while
also creating a significant positive impact on Clayoquot
Sound from cultural, recreational, and environmental
perspectives.
WATER C AN ADA • M AY/JUNE 2025
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