ASL Monitoring for Vancouver

ASL Environmental Sciences has formally handed over to the Port of Vancouver a real-time monitoring system for currents and water levels at the Second Narrows Bridge in the harbour. This project has been in collaboration between the Canadian Hydrographic Service, Vancouver Port Authority, CN Rail and Sultran Ltd, with ASL acting as prime contractor to provide the instruments and system integration. This system, using proprietary Acoustic Scintillation Flow Meter (ASFM) technology along with other off-the-shelf components has completed an extensive, two-year long field trial to confirm its operational reliability. The ASFM technology was selected because it has no moving parts and requires no cabling or instrumentation in the shipping channel, a strict requirement in this heavily used channel. The system provides real-time data on current (at two levels) and water depth under the bridge at 5-minute intervals. The data is transmitted to Port of Vancouver offices, where it is incorporated into a Web page available to authorised users. This has allowed for increased usage of both the shipping lane and the rail-bridge.