Agassiz, British Columbia — A Canadian utility company is facing a major fine due to its actions at a popular British Columbia ski resort.
The Coast Reporter shared last week that Hemlock Utility Services Ltd. was fined around C$120,000 (around $88,000) for issues with the sewage system at Sasquatch Mountain Resort. It should be noted that a third party operates the ski resort’s sewage network.
As part of their agreement with British Columbia’s Environmental Management Act, the company is allowed to deposit remnants of the sewage water into the environment. In order to do that, the company is required to have qualified staff and keep track of what’s coming out of the sewer system.
In 2023 and 2024, it’s alleged that Hemlock didn’t monitor for various contaminants, such as fecal coliform bacteria, before the water enters a creek, which then leads to a body of water that’s home to aquatic wildlife. They’ve reportedly engaged in that violation seven times. Other accusations include that they didn’t install a flow meter and that they are not recording and submitting frequent readings from their flow meter to the province.
As part of this process, staff members are required to be certified by the Environmental Operators Certification Program Society. Hemlock’s employees don’t have this certification, but their manager is planning to take the Environmental Operators Certification Program and will complete the first level of training by the end of this year. The utility company also stated that the limited amount of time and space these courses are held in leads to difficulty getting this certification. However, the province is stating that’s not enough, due to the complexity of the wastewater system.
In a statement to the Coast Reporter, Hemlock Valley Utilities attributed the violations to team certifications and stated that they were in the process of settling the matter with the province. They also stated that they are now taking daily readings and submitting to the province. The Utility company claimed that their responses to these issues were rejected by the province. Other issues have been “addressed and rectified.” Hemlock Valley Utilities does have the chance to appeal the decision.
Image Credits: Sasquatch Mountain Resort
