Michipicoten First Nation Water Treatment Plan Upgrades

November 6, 2026 – Indigenous Services Canada must determine whether the proposed construction of Michipicoten First Nation Water Treatment Plan Upgrades is likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects.

To help inform this determination, Indigenous Services Canada is inviting comments from the public respecting that determination. All comments received will be considered public. For more information, individuals should consult the Privacy Notice on the Registry website.

Written comments must be submitted by December 7, 2026 to:

MaryJane Moses, Environment Officer 
100 Anemki Place, Suite 101
Fort William First Nation, Ontario P7J 1A5
maryjane.moses@sac-isc.gc.ca 

The Proposed Project

Michipicoten First Nation's goal is to update their water treatment infrastructure to ensure sustainable and reliable water supply for the growing community, as referenced in the completed Registry project review #90200 with support from Infrastructure Canada.

Indigenous Services Canada is now being requested to support additional costs to complete the project based on Class 'A' cost estimates. 

The existing water treatment plant was constructed in 1997 using Lake Superior as the raw water source. The treatment system consists of a single-train conventional treatment unit with coagulation, flocculation, and sedimentation, and the plant uses chlorine for disinfection. Water is stored in a below-ground concrete reservoir which has one reservoir chamber and two pump chambers for the distribution pumps. 

Critical upgrades include expansion of the existing building and below-ground reservoir, providing a two-treatment train system with primary UV disinfection, new chemical feed system, new electrical service and panels, new HVAC system, new generator and new distribution pumping system capable of achieving fire flow demands, plus installing a new intake screen that complies with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans requirements.

The successful completion of this project will expand and upgrade the existing water treatment plant to ensure treatment redundancy requirements are met. The design and construction will provide potable water for the projected Year 20 Community population and the upgraded system will comply with all current Federal and Provincial drinking water regulations.