Septic Permits and Island Health Filing in Port Alberni

Why every septic system needs a provincial filing

If your property isn't on the municipal sewer, you need a safe way to treat and get rid of sewage. The Sewerage System Regulation covers residential systems treating under 22,700 litres a day. You follow the exact same provincial rules whether you live in town or in a rural neighbourhood.

You can request existing septic records directly from Island Health. Island Health charges $50 per property. There should be records on file for all systems from 2005 on, and for most installations from 1990 to 2005.

Who's allowed to do the work

You need an authorized person for any construction, alteration or repair — a Registered Onsite Wastewater Practitioner or a professional. As a ROWP, we design and install Type 1 and Type 2 systems under 9,100 litres a day ourselves. A professional — usually an engineer or a geoscientist — covers Type 1, 2 and 3 systems up to 22,699 litres a day. Our ROWP registration comes from the Applied Science Technologists and Technicians Association of BC.

Before we start: the filing

Before construction, we submit everything Island Health asks for on your job — a completed filing form, a site plan, plans and specifications, and any covenants, easements or hydrogeological reports your property carries.

After we finish: the certification

You can't use the system until Island Health has the signed certification. We send it within 30 days of finishing the work, along with an as-built diagram and a maintenance plan. Island Health does not review filings or approve the design. We take full responsibility for designing your system properly.

Building permits — separate from the Island Health filing

A building permit is a different process from the Island Health filing, and depending on the work, you might need one too. In the city, that's the City of Port Alberni, under Building Bylaw No. 5077, for a $100 application fee. Out in the Regional District's electoral areas, it's the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District, same $100 fee. We handle whichever one your job needs.

How permits and filing work with us

1. 1

   On-site visit — we look at your lot and the system you need, and tell you what filing applies.

2. 2

   We file with Island Health — the filing form, site plan and design go in before any work starts.

3. 3

   We do the work — we do the installation or repair, with a ROWP supervising throughout.

4. 4

   We send the certification — a signed letter reaches Island Health within 30 days of finishing, so you can use your system.

Repairs: what needs a new filing and what doesn't

Island Health lists a broken lid on the distribution box, a broken effluent pump, replacing a float switch, installing an effluent filter, and replacing a short section — 10 feet — of crushed distribution line as repairs that need no new filing. If you replace your drain field, swap your tank, or change how wastewater pumps out, we must file new paperwork first. Either way, it's work we do, or supervise, as an authorized person.