Drinking Water Investigations

September 17, 2025

In the coming weeks, the City of Fernie will have a contractor installing test groundwater wells nearby the Fernie Secondary School, along Fairway Dr and near the 2nd Avenue parking lot.

 The City’s primary drinking water source is the Fairy Creek Source. Our secondary source, the James White Wells, are used when Fairy Creek is unavailable due to increased turbidity. Testing by the City and Elk Valley Resources (EVR) has found that the James White Wells are influenced by the nearby Elk River and can experience increased selenium concentrations due to seasonal fluctuations. Testing has shown no selenium concentrations of concern in the Fairy Creek water source.

In addition to regular testing and monitoring of selenium levels in the James White Wells, City staff and EVR have scheduled field investigations of an alternative secondary drinking water supply beginning next week. The City will have a contractor installing test groundwater wells around the Fernie Secondary School. The field program will include borehole drilling and installation of up to three test wells. To maintain a safe working environment, pumping tests will occur later in the fall at this location.

Contractors will be on site starting September 10th, with groundwater drilling operations planned to begin September 17th and be completed September 30th.  To complete the work in the short time window, and limit disruption to the school, the groundwater drilling operations are scheduled without weekend breaks.

The public is asked to avoid the area while work is underway, and respect all posted signage. There will be some noise associated with the drilling, but we anticipate minimal impact to nearby homes.

In addition to exploring alternative secondary drinking water sources, the City of Fernie and EVR are investigating turbidity treatment and improvements for our primary source, Fairy Creek.

If you have questions on this project please contact operations@fernie.ca. For additional information on Fernie’s Water and Sewage System, click here.