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The City of Fernie is working toward renewing our wastewater treatment system. Over the past year, staff have focused on stabilizing system operations and preparing for long-term regulatory compliance. Critical maintenance such as desludging lagoons, replacing aeration diffusers, and repairing equipment has helped restore treatment performance.
In October 2025, the City submitted a full-time river discharge Application under the Municipal Wastewater Regulation. The submission includes a five-step upgrade plan, paving the way for compliance with provincial and federal standards.
5-step upgrade plan:
Replace and upgrade the aeration system and fix the alum dosing issues.
Convert two lagoons to partially aerated cells to address phosphorus re-release and enhance treatment capacity for future carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand (CBOD5) reduction.
Install four submerged attached growth reactor (SAGR) cells for total ammonia nitrogen reduction.
Replace the Riverside lift station to eliminate overflow bypasses.
Install an effluent pump station and relocate the outfall to a full-flow river section upstream of the plant.
These upgrades, estimated at $40M, are anticipated for completion by 2029.
This project has a multi-year history; detailed project updates are available under Background Reports.
What's Next?
We will continue to meet with the Ministry of Environment to review our application and provide additional documentation by end of January 2026, prior to moving to the detailed review stage. Following this submission, the engineering team will work on detailed design drawings and associated detailed cost estimates and developing a schedule for improvements and accompanying funding strategy.
We will continue to provide bi-annual updates as the project moves forward.
The City of Fernie is working toward renewing our wastewater treatment system. Over the past year, staff have focused on stabilizing system operations and preparing for long-term regulatory compliance. Critical maintenance such as desludging lagoons, replacing aeration diffusers, and repairing equipment has helped restore treatment performance.
In October 2025, the City submitted a full-time river discharge Application under the Municipal Wastewater Regulation. The submission includes a five-step upgrade plan, paving the way for compliance with provincial and federal standards.
5-step upgrade plan:
Replace and upgrade the aeration system and fix the alum dosing issues.
Convert two lagoons to partially aerated cells to address phosphorus re-release and enhance treatment capacity for future carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand (CBOD5) reduction.
Install four submerged attached growth reactor (SAGR) cells for total ammonia nitrogen reduction.
Replace the Riverside lift station to eliminate overflow bypasses.
Install an effluent pump station and relocate the outfall to a full-flow river section upstream of the plant.
These upgrades, estimated at $40M, are anticipated for completion by 2029.
This project has a multi-year history; detailed project updates are available under Background Reports.
What's Next?
We will continue to meet with the Ministry of Environment to review our application and provide additional documentation by end of January 2026, prior to moving to the detailed review stage. Following this submission, the engineering team will work on detailed design drawings and associated detailed cost estimates and developing a schedule for improvements and accompanying funding strategy.
We will continue to provide bi-annual updates as the project moves forward.
