A new home on reserve is only as ready as the lot under it. Before any house arrives, the community needs to know where its water will come from, where its wastewater will go, and who will run that system for the next 20 years. ISC's own rules rank the servicing options, require a feasibility study and life-cycle costing, and expect the band to own and operate what gets built, so servicing decisions belong at the start of a housing project, not the end.
This guide covers the servicing options ISC recognises, how ISC decides what to fund, the wastewater rules, where federal water legislation stands, and a checklist for getting lots ready. It is general information, not legal or engineering advice: confirm details with your ISC regional office, your engineer and your lands and public works staff.
Why do lots need to be serviced before homes arrive?
Because a finished house with no water or sewer connection cannot be lived in. ISC's Evaluation of the On-Reserve Housing Program heard this directly: almost all First Nation community respondents reported challenges providing serviced lots, and a few noted that "they have built homes only to have them sit empty until the services can be added." The same evaluation describes one ISC region that decided to "systematically prioritize lot servicing over construction and renovations" so that communities are ready to build when construction money comes through.
Servicing also takes longer than housing. ISC's life-cycle page for community infrastructure notes that a house could be built in one construction season, "while a wastewater treatment plant may take several years to build." ISC's page on ending long-term drinking water advisories says a new water treatment system "can take up to 3 to 4 years to complete." If your plant or lagoon needs an upgrade to take on new connections, that project sets the pace, not the homes.
The scale of the work is visible in ISC's own reporting. Its overview of Indigenous community infrastructure investments reports that, as of March 31, 2026, ISC housing funding had supported "643 projects resulting in the servicing or acquisition of 5,486 housing lots" since April 2016.
What servicing options does ISC recognise?
ISC's Water and Wastewater Policy and Level of Service Standards (written in 2010 and still published by ISC) lists the systems it may fund. For water, there are four levels, ranked by level of service to the user:
- W1, centrally managed on-site systems: wells, water storage tanks (cisterns) and treatment units at each building, all run and monitored by the First Nation.
- W2, communal watering points: residents collect water from a central point. ISC treats these as interim only and expects a plan for piped or trucked service before they are installed.
- W3, trucked water delivery: treated water is delivered to a cistern at each home. The standard says the cistern must be sized to the household and the delivery schedule and installed so it can be cleaned and kept free of contamination.
- W4, piped water: a treatment plant, reservoir and distribution mains to each building, with or without fire hydrants (W4A and W4B).
For wastewater, the standard lists:
- S1, centrally managed on-site systems: septic tanks and disposal fields operated and maintained by the First Nation.
- S2, truck-hauled sewage: a holding tank at each home, pumped out regularly and hauled to treatment. The tank must be sized to the pump-out frequency and designed and installed to prevent leaks.
- S3, communal systems: either a shared septic tank and field serving several homes (S3A) or a fully piped sewer to a central treatment plant (S3B).
A community can mix these. The standard says a community "may require a composite system", and that the policy does not rule out more than one level of service in a community. Connecting to a neighbouring municipality under a municipal type agreement "should always be examined where available."
How does ISC decide which option it will fund?
The Level of Service Standards do not let a community simply choose the highest level. Key rules from the policy:
- Ranked order and life-cycle cost. Options "must be considered in ranked order", and the choice is based on life-cycle costing "for normally a 20 year period", together with engineering, planning, health, safety and environmental factors.
- Density matters for piped systems. To qualify for conventional high-pressure piped water or sewer, "lot frontages shall average no more than 30 metres." Where homes are spread out, alternatives such as low-pressure pipe, trucked water and holding tanks or centrally managed on-site systems must be considered first.
- A feasibility study comes first. "A feasibility study is required before any project receives approval." It must cover options, operating and maintenance costs including the need for a certified operator, life-cycle costs, environmental scoping, permits and land needs for future expansion.
- A plan must exist. Funding "is contingent on the existence of a First Nation's Chief and Council approved community physical development plan", on its own or as part of a Comprehensive Community Plan.
- Water and wastewater go together. Proposals for new or upgraded water systems "must satisfactorily address the disposal of the wastewater generated by such systems."
- Extensions depend on your lot inventory. ISC will not fund an extension of a piped system until unused serviced lots are "equal to or less than a two (2) year supply" based on housing forecasts, and after an extension unused lots should not exceed an eight-year projection.
- Above-standard service is the community's cost. A higher level than the standard can be built with the community's own or other funds, but ISC will not fund its capital or operating costs.
Two practical consequences follow. First, an up-to-date housing forecast is not just a housing document; it is what ISC uses to judge whether a subdivision extension is justified. Second, on-site systems have limits: the standard says only new construction of centrally managed on-site systems serving buildings owned by First Nations is eligible, and privately owned homes are not eligible for on-site water and wastewater support under this policy. Funding sources and deadlines are covered in our guide to funding modular buildings for First Nations.
What do wells, septic fields, cisterns and holding tanks require?
If your lots will rely on on-site systems, ISC's Protocol for Decentralised Water and Wastewater Systems applies to systems funded in whole or in part by ISC. It also dates from 2010 and is still published. Some requirements worth planning for early:
- The location and layout of wells, and of septic systems and leaching fields, must be based on "a site assessment by a licensed installer or a professional engineer." Lot layout and home placement should wait for that assessment.
- Wells, septic tanks and fields must be built by a certified installer, with testing and inspection during construction and commissioning.
- Prefabricated septic tanks must meet CSA B66, which covers prefabricated septic tanks and sewage holding tanks.
- Each system must be operated and maintained by a fully qualified band employee under a central authority such as a band or tribal council, or by a fully certified third party under contract.
- The protocol does not apply to privately owned or individually managed systems, and to stay eligible for ongoing funding, covered systems must be designed, installed, operated, maintained and monitored as the protocol requires.
A well and septic field is not a one-time purchase: it joins a centrally managed system with records, sampling and an operator, so budget that operating cost from day one.
What rules apply to community wastewater?
Larger wastewater systems fall under the federal Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations, made under the Fisheries Act. The regulations apply to a system that deposits effluent and is designed to collect, or in a calendar year does collect, "an average daily volume of 100 m3 or more of influent." They do not apply in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, or north of the 54th parallel in Quebec or Newfoundland and Labrador.
For systems covered, the effluent standards include average carbonaceous biochemical oxygen demand and suspended solids that do not exceed 25 mg/L each, un-ionized ammonia below 1.25 mg/L, and total residual chlorine no higher than 0.02 mg/L where chlorine is used. The owner or operator must also monitor, keep records and report. Adding a subdivision adds influent, so ask your engineer whether new connections change the lagoon or plant's position under these regulations, and whether there is capacity to stay within the limits.
ISC's policy also sets out the roles. It says "First Nations are the owners and operators of community infrastructure on reserve", that band councils must make sure systems are designed, built, operated and maintained to the relevant standards with certified operators, and that First Nations "are expected to charge service fees" and contribute to operating costs. ISC provides financial support; Health Canada supports drinking water quality monitoring south of 60; and Environment Canada regulates effluent quality.
Where do drinking water advisories and the new water law stand?
According to ISC's page on ending long-term drinking water advisories, as of October 21, 2026, 39 long-term advisories were in effect on public systems on reserves, in 37 communities, and 158 had been lifted since November 2015. The page was last modified on November 2, 2026; check it for the latest figures.
On legislation: the 2013 Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act was repealed, with the repeal receiving Royal Assent on June 23, 2022, according to ISC's Bill C-37 backgrounder. Its replacement, Bill C-61, terminated when Parliament was prorogued on January 6, 2025. Bill C-37, the proposed First Nations Clean Water Act, was introduced on June 16, 2026. The backgrounder says it would establish "national principles and minimum standards on the delivery of water services on First Nation lands", enable a federal regulatory regime, and commit Canada to work toward "adequate and sustainable funding for water services on First Nation lands."
Bill C-37 is not law yet. LEGISinfo lists its status as "At consideration in committee in the House of Commons" after second reading on October 9, 2026. Until it passes and regulations follow, current ISC policies and protocols, provincial or territorial requirements where they apply, and federal rules such as the effluent regulations remain the working framework. Follow the bill's progress, because new standards could affect how future subdivisions are designed.
How should you plan servicing with ISC?
ISC's life-cycle page describes five stages for infrastructure projects funded through the First Nations Infrastructure Investment Plan: identification, planning, design, construction and completion. Servicing for a new housing area follows that path, so start it early. A working sequence:
- Confirm the plan. Check that the housing area appears in a council-approved community physical development plan or Comprehensive Community Plan.
- Count your lots. Compare unused serviced lots against your housing forecast. This tells you whether ISC will consider an extension of a piped system.
- Check capacity. Ask your engineer whether the water plant, reservoir and lagoon or treatment plant can take the new connections, and whether the effluent regulations apply.
- Commission a feasibility study. Compare the ranked options on 20-year life-cycle cost, including operator and trucking costs, and identify permits and land needs.
- Get it into the investment plan. Work with your ISC regional office to place servicing in your First Nations Infrastructure Investment Plan ahead of, or alongside, the housing request.
- Line up operations. Confirm who will operate the system and that operating funding and certified operators are in place. ISC's water operators page says it funds day-to-day operation and maintenance, operator training and certification, and ongoing operator support.
- Design the lots around the servicing. Set home placement, foundation or pad locations, cistern and holding tank access for trucks, and service connection points before homes are ordered.
For fly-in and ice-road sites, servicing equipment and materials face the same access windows as the homes; our post on modular housing for remote communities covers that side of planning.
Where does a builder fit in?
A builder does not choose your servicing level, design your water system or deal with ISC on your behalf. Herauf Modular does not administer funding, does not apply on a community's behalf and cannot promise eligibility. What a factory builder can do is fit the build around the servicing plan.
Herauf Modular builds homes and community buildings as finished sections indoors in its Saskatchewan and BC plants, then delivers and sets them on site. Most builds are manufactured and delivered in about 16 weeks, with foundations, pads and services prepared on site at the same time. That parallel schedule only works if servicing is designed and funded first, which is why the lot comes before the order. Every unit meets or exceeds CSA A277 and the National Building Code for climate zones 6 through 8. Where a foundation is the bottleneck, the Herauf rapid portable skid system used for housing at Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation stays under the home, so the build does not wait on a poured foundation and the unit can be relocated; our overview of modular Indigenous housing compares skids and foundations.
If your community is planning a housing area and wants to match a build schedule to its servicing timeline, send us an enquiry. Herauf replies within one business day.
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. Program rules change: confirm the details with the program, your Indigenous Services Canada regional office or CMHC before relying on them. Herauf does not administer any program or apply on a community's behalf.