Environmental Services

What we do?

Most of the services provided by the Department typically fall under the category of “essential services.” The Department administers outside consultants and contractors who are hired by the City relating to capital construction projects such as water and wastewater treatment plants, garbage collection, recycling, large scale composting and landfill. These areas are broken down in more detail below.

Water Treatment
The City of Yorkton is the largest urban centre in Saskatchewan that relies solely on ground water.  It obtains this through 5 aquifers and 14 wells surrounding the City.   Raw water is pumped to 3 Water Treatment Plants which consist of aeration, pressure filtration followed by chlorination.

Water Pollution Control
The City of Yorkton owns and operates the H. M. Bailey Water Pollution Control Plant, a modern, semi-automated secondary wastewater treatment facility. The plant receives domestic and industrial wastewater and provides a level of treatment to meet Saskatchewan Environment water quality standards. The facilities, treatment processes, technology and operational controls rank among the best in Saskatchewan.

The main goal of any sewage treatment plant is to remove solid matter from the wastewater, purify the existing water, and reduce the oxygen demand on the receiving waters, in this case, Yorkton Creek. The danger of untreated wastewater is not only a health concern, but also a concern due to the high oxygen demand it places on the environment. As solid matter in wastewater breaks down it uses large amounts of oxygen dissolved in the water. In an environment such as a lake or stream this large oxygen demand destroys the natural balance, and aquatic life suffers. The entire process is monitored, and testing is done on a regular basis.

In brief, the entire treatment process can be described as the transformation of wastewater into treated effluent, energy, and an agricultural supplement, resulting in the protection of public health and water quality. The City of Yorkton H. M. Bailey Water Pollution Control Plant mimics mother nature, except that it reduces the natural process by the amount of time it takes to process the sewage, and by the amount of space required to do it.

Solid Waste Management
In accordance with Municipal Waste Regulations defined by Saskatchewan Environment, this Department manages the collection and disposal of solid wastes and recycling programs for the City of Yorkton.  Many recycling programs have been developed in co-ordination with Sarcan and other provincial and local organizations. These activities are coordinated with a commercial and residential waste collection contractor, a local organization and the landfill operations contractor.

Solid waste collection services are provided on a weekly basis with all waste transported to our Municipal Landfill located approximately two miles northeast of the city near the Water Pollution Control Plant.  Landfill operations include site access and fee collection, developing waste cells, compacting waste and finally covering the waste to protect the environment. The landfill is operated six days per week with a seasonal schedule to facilitate operations and for safety reasons.

View our Organizational Chart