Serving the mid-Island
Septic systems in the District of Lantzville
An incorporated municipality where sewer reaches some streets and not others.
Lantzville has been an incorporated district municipality since 2003, and remains the only member municipality of the Regional District of Nanaimo covered on this site. Sewer Phases I and II are complete, yet the District states plainly that many properties still use septic systems.
Lantzville is the awkward case, and the reason is history. The community incorporated partly to deal with septic failures on small lots, built sewer in phases, and stopped short of covering everything. Which side of that line a property falls on changes the question entirely.
Sewer reaches part of the community
At incorporation in 2003, residents directed Council to build a wastewater system and reduce reliance on septic fields on small lots where failures were occurring. Phases I and II are complete, and a further 307 properties could gain access if the Phase III local area service proceeds. Collected sewage goes to the Greater Nanaimo Pollution Control Centre, which also serves the City and Snuneymuxw First Nation land. Outside those phases, an onsite system is still the only option.
Water supply is its own constraint
The District draws municipal water from four groundwater wells on Harby Road East, with an extraction capacity of 2,027 m³ per day and aquifer levels that drop by up to 3 m during hot, dry summers. A 2014 agreement allows the District to buy water from the City for its upper pressure zone, capped at 50 new connections a year. Of roughly 1,330 properties in the District, about 885 were connected to District water when the master plan backgrounder was written — the rest are on private wells, where septic setbacks matter most.
What a Lantzville filing involves
Being incorporated changes the building authority, not the septic process. A new or replacement system is still designed by an Authorized Person and filed with Island Health before construction, then certified within 30 days of completion. What changes is the building permit, which comes from the District rather than the Regional District.
Whether a Lantzville property is inside a completed sewer phase or not decides what happens next, and the answer is address-specific. To confirm which applies, book a site visit.
Nearby service areas
Find out what the ground will take.
Free site assessments across Electoral Areas A, B and E and the District of Lantzville.