Liquid Waste Management Plan

The City of Castlegar is developing a Liquid Waste Management Plan to guide the City’s management of liquid waste over the next 20 years.

What is a Liquid Waste Management Plan?

A Liquid Waste Management Plan (LWMP) is a legal document approved by the Minister of Environment and Parks. A LWMP enables municipalities to develop holistic plans for liquid waste management that consider the unique needs of the community, businesses, and geography, while meeting environmental regulations.

A LWMP requires community engagement and feedback and occurs over three distinct phases set out by the Ministry of Environment and Parks:

Open All Close All

Once the Stage 3 report is adopted by Council and approved by the Minister of Environment and Parks, the City may begin enacting the plan.

Community Engagement & Consultation

A LWMP may have large, long-reaching impacts to the community. It requires significant community engagement to ensure that the plan to addresses community concerns and suits the priorities of the public, businesses, and Indigenous governing bodies.

Indigenous Consultation

The City is reaching out to Indigenous governing bodies separately through a government-to-government process. All Indigenous governing bodies and organizations will be invited to participate in meetings, online surveys, and all other public processes.

Committees

An Advisory Committee made up of members of the public is being formed for the LWMP. This committee will be made up of members of the public who will be able to speak to a broad range of interests, including community groups, business interests, technical experts, and more. The Advisory Committee will help plan other consultation with the broader public and will be asked to speak to their expertise when evaluating options brought forward by the consultants hired by the City to develop options. The feedback from the Advisory Committee will be used by the Steering Committee and Council to determine best options and make decisions.

Surveys & Open Houses

Over the course of the project, the City will be reaching out to the public with surveys and open houses. The feedback from these will be used to inform the options presented to the Advisory and Steering Committees and Council.

Why Develop an LWMP Now?

The City has completed several studies on wastewater treatment in recent years which have outlined various challenges to liquid waste management in the City, including:

• Should the two wastewater treatment plants be combined into one plant? Where should that plant be situated?
• How should the City manage, mitigate, and/or eliminate the odour issues at the South Sewage Treatment Plant?
• The North Sewage Treatment plant may need upgrades in the near future. What considerations should be included in the design?
• How should the City manage unsewered areas like Blueberry? Or future unsewered areas not yet within City limits?

Rather than look at each challenge and solution individually, a LWMP looks at the entire City to create a single plan to address community challenges, as well as any others that come up during consultation and investigation.

Get Involved!

A key component across all stages of a LWMP is engagement with the public and consultation with Indigenous governing bodies. Get involved by sharing your input.

1. Get Informed

Continue to check back on the project web page for additional project information and upcoming engagement opportunities.

2. Ask Questions

Want more details on the project process? Please contact Ryan Niddery at rniddery@castlegar.ca.

Project Timeline

• Submit Stage 1 Report to Ministry of Environment: 2025
• Next Stage initiation: 2026
• LWMP Completion Target: 2028

How Are Decisions Being Made?

As part of the LWMP process, there are two committees that will receive reports and options from the consultant team and use public feedback to provide comment and direction to the plan. It is the responsibility of council to approve the direction established at the end of each phase of the process.

Advisory Committee

• assist in developing guiding principles for the LWMP
• read background reports and contribute perspectives and general guidance
• assist in identifying and connecting the City with key interest groups
• provide input on the public participation and communications processes

Steering Committee

• read background reports and provide perspectives and guidance
• provide overall direction to the LWMP process
• represent the process to Council

Castlegar City Council

• receive reports for information from the Steering Committee
• review final reports and provide feedback or endorsement
• adopt the final report and empower staff to initiate the plan

LWMP Stage 1 Report Submission

The City of Castlegar has completed Stage 1 of the Liquid Waste Management Plan (LWMP) and received Council’s approval on December 17, 2025 to submit the final Stage 1 Report to the Ministry of Environment and Parks for review.

Stage 1 focused on understanding the City’s current liquid waste systems and identifying key challenges and opportunities related to wastewater collection, treatment, effluent management, biosolids and septage handling, and stormwater quality. Through technical analysis, engineering review, and extensive engagement with the community, Indigenous Governing Bodies, and the LWMP Advisory and Steering Committees, Stage 1 established a clear direction for the City’s long-term wastewater strategy.

A key outcome of Stage 1 is the recommendation to transition from the City’s two existing wastewater treatment facilities to a single, consolidated system at the North Sewage Treatment Plant (NSTP). This direction was supported by community feedback and technical evidence, and reflects priorities related to environmental protection, long-term cost-effectiveness, operational reliability, and minimizing local impacts such as odour and noise. Consolidation will require new conveyance infrastructure, plant upgrades, and a new outfall. Drawing from comparable communities that have undertaken similar construction and treatment upgrades, the anticipated capital investment is currently in the range of $76–82 million. Although this represents one of the City’s largest future infrastructure commitments, consolidating treatment into a single facility will ultimately improve operational efficiency, reduce long-term maintenance costs, simplify regulatory oversight, and support more sustainable and resilient wastewater management over the next 20 years and beyond.

Next Steps

Once the Stage 1 Report is under provincial review, the Ministry may request additional clarification or refinements before granting approval to move into Stage 2. The initial review period typically takes 4–6 months before feedback is provided. Once the Stage 1 Report is accepted by the Province, the LWMP process will advance into Stage 2 – with more detailed planning and technical assessment, including:

• Evaluating and selecting appropriate wastewater treatment technologies
• Identifying and comparing possible outfall locations and their environmental impacts
• Planning new infrastructure for system consolidation
• Developing a business case for biosolids and septage management
• Identifying opportunities to improve stormwater quality and source control

Stages 2 and 3 are expected to take approximately 1.5 years each, not including time required for provincial review and refinement. It is therefore anticipated that it will take 3-4 more years to see through all 3 Stages of the LWMP. Following provincial approval of the full LWMP, the implementation and construction phase will be guided by community priorities, funding strategy, and Council direction. Depending on Council and the community’s eagerness and ability to implement the final plan, execution of the LWMP could be in the range of 5 to 15 years.

Updates will continue to be posted on this page as the LWMP progresses.

• Read the What We Learned Report
• Read the Stage 1 Report