Vancouver Island village faces hefty fine for ongoing wastewater issues

The Vancouver Island Village of Cumberland has made B.C. history after over twenty years of failing to manage its wastewater in line with provincial standards.

In a letter sent last week, the B.C. Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy said it would impose fines of over $85,000 to the village for failing to comply with five sections of their wastewater treatment permit. 

Cumberland is now the first municipality in B.C. to be given a monetary penalty under the Environmental Management Act, according to a Ministry statement.

"I like to be first in things, but not this one," said Cumberland Mayor Leslie Baird, who added that the village of around 3,700 people is too small to afford paying the penalty.

"I find it really interesting that the government implements all these rules, [but] they should be the ones coming up with some funding." 

A council report from 2018 says the village has generally been out of compliance with the permit's water quantity and quality requirements since 1999, and that it has annually exceeded the average daily water flow limit of 910 cubic meters by up to 2,300 extra cubic meters.

A statement from the Ministry of Environment says it's working with the village to ensure compliance with wastewater treatment standards in the province.

Strict freshwater regulations

Mayor Baird says part of the issue is that the village is inland and its outflow goes through a river system. 

Given the importance of freshwater, discharge regulations for these environments are more severe than for ocean water.

Michelle Mason, the acting chief administrative officer, says the village has been working toward compliance "for many, many years."  

Since 1998, the village has been developing a liquid waste management plan, now in its second phase, which would take measures such as to seek alternative discharge locations and implement an environmental impact study for the area. 

But the project has been set back because it was denied necessary funding.

Mason says the village is expecting an announcement on whether it will receive $9.7 million from the federal government's Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program for a new wastewater treatment plant.

"We've got our fingers crossed," Mason said. "If we can get that, that will put us a long way to a solution."

Since 2016, the village has been issued four non-compliance warnings. The last one, issued in January, led to a threat of nearly $185,000 in administrative penalties if the village were to continue to not comply.

Baird says the village appealed the consideration and the new determination, dated July 17, has placed a definitive fine of $85,800. 

The village has thirty days to appeal the decision, and is seeking legal advice on how to move forward.