Through the SSSF committees, City administration stewards the long-term system plan ensuring it adheres to the vision for growth set out in The City Plan.
As of December 2025, approximately 43 km of trunks have been built.
Funding Off-site Sanitary Trunk Projects
The Sanitary Servicing Strategy Fund (SSSF) was developed as a way to combine the resources of developers, new home builders, the City and EPCOR to build the largest deep sanitary sewer trunk lines. These trunk lines will serve residential and non-residential growth in Edmonton’s new development areas. The SSSF is used to build sewers larger than 1.05 meters in diameter and serve areas larger than 1,400 hectares.
The SSSF trunk lines are depicted as part of the major sanitary trunk map, showing both existing and proposed future SSSF trunk lines. The map depicts two potential sewer trunk alignments for the South Edmonton Sanitary Sewer (SESS) trunk flows terminating at either Gold Bar Wastewater Treatment Plant or the Alberta Capital Region Water Commission Plant.
This dual routing responds to Executive Committee’s direction of May 2021 to show the two possible routes until a decision on the SESS trunk routing is needed. EPCOR anticipates that a decision on routing is not needed before 2030, at which time City administration will advance a routing recommendation to Utility Committee for deliberation that reflects public engagement and regional input.
On February 22, 2023, a report (UPE01567) to amend the ultimate servicing plan for the Riverview area as recommended by EPCOR was approved by City Council. An additional SSSF network review was undertaken by EPCOR in 2025. Major changes were made to the SSSF network that included the elimination of trunks no longer required and resulted in significant cost savings and environmental benefits. The subsequent updated SSSF network was approved by the Utility Committee on June 23, 2025 (UPE03010).
On October 5, 2026 a report (UPE03639) proposing updates to the eligibility criteria for infrastructure to be included in the SSSF System Plan and changes to SSSF network plan will be presented to Utility Committee. Details of these changes are available below under Recommended Changes.
The Details
System Planning
Recommended Changes
EPCOR is recommending the removal of certain trunk segments in the NEST and SESS catchment areas from the SSSF System Plan. While these segments may still need to be constructed, growth is not the primary driver of their construction.
EPCOR has recommended the following changes to the SSSF System Plan:
- NEST Catchment:
- Elimination of the Fraser trunk
- SESS Catchment:
- Removal of the 99 Street Bypass Trunk
- Removal of the unbuilt South Edmonton Sanitary Sewer (SESS) segments (SA10b, SA11, SA12a, SA12b, SA13a, SA13b, SA14a, SA14b and SA15 and alternative alignment SA16)
In addition, the SSSF Transformation project has identified the need for the updates to the SSSF program eligibility criteria. These updates also require Council approval, as they may impact development charges. The recommended updated criteria are:
- Pipe diameter of 900 mm or larger (previous criteria: greater than 1050 mm)
- Catchment area of 1,000 hectares or larger (previous criteria: 1,400 hectares or larger)
- Designed to EWSI’s 2024 Design Guidelines – Sanitary Flow Generation for Neighborhood Design Report, Water Consumption and Fire Flow for Hydraulic Network Analysis or later
These updates to the criteria will allow the Southeast Trunk to be added to the SSSF System Plan. The report recommends adding this trunk to the SSSF system plan, as its construction will support development of the Decoteau Area in southeast Edmonton area according to approved statutory plans. The trunk will also serve the portion of the future growth area south of 41 Avenue SW and east of Highway 2 in the future.
These aforementioned changes are shown on the Proposed Changes to SSSF System Plan map.
The Utility Committee will review these proposed changes to the SSSF Servicing Plan on October 5, 2026.
Governance
The SSSF is governed by the SSSF Oversight Committee composed of representatives from the City, EPCOR and the development industry.
City Administration
- Review projects and budget details and discharge the funds for construction
- Manage fund's cash flow model
- Day-to-day program
- Organize and facilitate committee meetings
EPCOR
- System planning, analysis and segment prioritization
- Construct sanitary trunk projects
- Conduct public engagement at construction stage
- Operate and maintain assets
Development Industry
- Represent strategic interests
- Highlight sanitary servicing needs
- Provide input on growth forecasts
Oversight Committee
Council has authority over the SSSF with City administration responsible for authorizing funds to construct the approved trunk network.
The Oversight Committee oversees the management of the fund and approves project schedules and budgets. The Planning and Management Committee offers technical advice and recommendations to the Oversight Committee. The Finance and Audit Committee monitors the financial health of the fund and recommends changes to the rates paid by builders and developers.
Funding
The SSSF is funded by fees collected by the City from builders and developers. This is done in advance of the sewer trunks being built to ensure financing for trunk construction is in place when it is needed. The 3 sources of funding include:
- Sanitary Sewer Trunk Charge (SSTC) - Builder contributions
- Expansion Assessment Charge (EA) - Developer contributions
- Sanitary Utility Contribution - EPCOR contribution
Note: effective May 13, 2024, the SSSF Oversight Committee has agreed to pause SSSF charges, including SSTC and EA charges. For details, please refer to the Sanitary Servicing Strategy Fund Transformation.
Sanitary Sewer Trunk Charge (SSTC)
The Sanitary Sewer Trunk Charge (SSTC) is one source of revenue for the Sanitary Servicing Strategy Fund (SSSF). Upon receipt of an approved development permit or building permit, the successful applicant must pay applicable charges (see the list of current rates below).
All money collected is deposited into the SSSF and used to build new major sanitary trunk sewers under the approved Sanitary Servicing Strategy. The SSTC is levied when development permits are issued for development, redevelopment or renovations on the premises abutting an EPCOR Water Service Inc. or City right-of-way in which there is a sanitary or combined sewer.
Rates
| New Development | Rates |
|---|---|
| Residential - Premises with one or two dwellings where it does not have a secondary suite or backyard housing | $1,764 / dwelling |
| Residential - Premises with two dwellings where one dwelling is a secondary suite or backyard housing | $1764 for the principal dwelling, and $781 for the secondary suite or backyard housing |
| Residential - Premises with three or more dwellings | $1,259 / dwelling |
| Commercial/Industrial/Institutional | $8,818 / hectare |
Redevelopment/Expansion (Residential, Commercial, Industrial, or Institutional)
Charges are calculated by the equation A minus B, where:
- A = The Sanitary Sewer Trunk Charge that should be paid by the new development based on the rate applicable to that particular development.
- B = Charges paid, or would have been paid had a sanitary sewer trunk charges been levied with respect to the existing development.
If A minus B results in zero or negative amount, no payment or refund is applicable.
Illustrative Example
For a new 15 suite apartment built on the sites of 3 existing single-family residential houses
- New dwelling units (15): $1,259 x 15 = $18,885 (A)
- Demolished dwelling units (3): $1,764 x 3 = $5,292 (B)
- SSTC charge = $13,593 (A-B)
Note: SSTC charges applicable to each development permit will be confirmed by the Development Officer at the time of application.
Expansion Assessment Charge (EA)
An Expansion Assessment charge is applied to an entire property located in areas planned to be serviced by the existing or future major sanitary trunks. The applicant is required to pay at the time of the Development Agreement an amount based on the current sanitary trunk rate for the specific area.
Rates
The rates are applicable to residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional developments.
| Trunk/Sewer Name | 2024 Amount/hectare |
|---|---|
| NEST (North Edmonton Sanitary Trunk) | $25,186 |
| SESS (South Edmonton Sanitary Sewer) | $25,186 |
| WESS (West Edmonton Sanitary Sewer) | $25,186 |
Charges are calculated by the equation A x B, where:
A = Area of property in hectares
B = EA rate of specific sanitary trunk
Illustrative Example:
For a property of 50 hectares that is within the SESS trunk sewer basin, the amount of Expansion Assessment charge is: 50 x $25,186 = $1,259,300
Sanitary Utility Contribution
As the owner of the sanitary utility, EPCOR contributes to the Sanitary Servicing Strategy Fund (SSSF). The contribution amount was originally set at $2.6 million per year from 1999 to 2013 when the Sanitary Servicing Strategy for the 21st Century report was approved by the City Council in 1998.
The contribution was later adjusted by the City Council to $1.3 million per year for 17 more years starting in 2007.
Since 2017 EPCOR has been making this contribution subsequent to the transfer of drainage utility from the City to EPCOR. The final utility contribution was made in 2023. No further utility contributions have been made to the SSSF.
Charges for past years are listed in the Historical Rates sheet.
2025 Highlights
As of the end of 2025, approximately $371 million has been spent on deep sanitary trunk construction through the SSSF.
Revenue and Expenditures
There was $7.5 million in revenue collected in 2025.
Breakdown
- SSTC - 1.3%
- EA - 44.7%
- Interest - 53.9%
Annual Report
A breakdown of expenditures and details of the projects is provided in the 2025 SSSF Annual Report.
Previous Annual Reports
The SSSF Annual Reports summarize the design and construction schedules, construction progress, and the financial status of the Fund.
Historical Reports
The historical reports provide the background and foundational information from the inception of the SSSF program in 1998.