Zulfiqar Khowaja, Senior Project Engineer, The City of Calgary - Utilities Delivery - Infrastructure Services
On June 6, 2024, over 1.5 million residents of Calgary faced Stage 4 water restrictions due to a critical failure in the Bearspaw South Feedermain (BSFM), a vital water transmission line. The break, detected on June 5, 2024, caused significant pressure drops and surface water leakage. Immediate response efforts led to the replacement of the damaged section by June 16. Electromagnetic inspections by Pure Technologies identified five distressed sections requiring urgent repairs, while a forensic investigation by Associated Engineering provided insights into the failure.
The repair process was divided into phases: Phase A, completed between June 14 and June 27, addressed five segments of the prestressed concrete cylinder pipe (PCCP), leading to the lifting of indoor water restrictions on July 2 and a reduction of outdoor restrictions on July 6. Phase B, conducted from August 26 to September 22, and additional repairs from October 16 to November 26, targeted further distressed sections.
Comprehensive inspections revealed 239 distressed pipes, necessitating a proactive repair approach to prevent future failures. This presentation discusses the City of Calgary’s methodology for repairing the distressed pipes, the unique challenges encountered, the high-level forensic results, and the strategies for rehabilitating this critical infrastructure.
Zulfiqar Ali Khowaja, M.Eng., P.Eng. is a Senior Project Engineer at The City of Calgary – Infrastructure Services – Utilities Delivery. With over 24 years of experience, he specializes in civil design, project management, planning and scheduling, cost control, project execution, site supervision, material testing, construction management, rehabilitation, and procurement. His expertise includes managing deep utility infrastructure projects using both traditional open-cut installation and trenchless technologies like micro tunneling, HDD, and pilot auger boring.
Since joining The City of Calgary in May 2014, Zulfiqar has managed complex capital infrastructure initiatives, including underground utilities, flood mitigation, and sanitary system upgrades. His recent projects include the Nose Creek Sanitary Sewer Trunk and Bearspaw South Feedermain Repair. Additionally, he has served as a Director at the North American Society for Trenchless Technologies NW Chapter and Chair at the Calgary Section.