The City of North Bay is moving ahead with a monitoring phase for its PFAS remediation at Jack Garland Airport. Colloidal activated carbon has been injected underground into a bedrock valley to create a treatment zone designed to capture PFAS as groundwater flows through it.
Approximately 26,000 tonnes of contaminated soil had already been removed from the site in August, when the City of North Bay increased the engineering consulting contract with Jacobs Consultancy Canada Inc. to $19 million, extending Jacobs’ involvement in the project through March 31, 2028.
The contamination is linked to the historical use of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) at the former 22 Wing Air Force Base. The airport lands were owned by Transport Canada from 1939 until the city acquired them in 1998. During the site’s operation as an air force base, the Department of National Defence (DND) used and released AFFF containing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).
In 2021, North Bay entered into a $20-million contribution agreement with DND to fund remediation at the airport. That agreement was expanded in 2025 to approximately $122.7 million over a 16-year period ending in 2037.
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Under the agreement, DND covers 97% of remediation costs while the city is responsible for the remaining 3%. Funding supports PFAS investigation, monitoring and remediation at the airport.
Jacobs and North Bay have been conducting sampling, analysis, studies and modelling to determine the extent of PFAS contamination, assess its migration and develop remediation strategies.
According to a council report, the next project phase would include the design and installation of a 250-metre underground adsorptive barrier to treat groundwater and prevent PFAS from migrating off the airport property.
Jacobs would also design and implement additional soil and surface water remediation measures and conduct further studies, sampling and testing. The company would continue acting as North Bay’s technical representative in its work with DND, Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks and the local health unit.
Jacobs has served as the city’s technical lead on the PFAS remediation work plan for the past four years. Its work has included developing remediation approaches, conducting surface water and groundwater treatability studies, and undertaking a PFAS removal pilot study and design work for North Bay’s drinking water treatment plant.
The original engineering contract, awarded in 2021 following a competitive procurement process, was valued at approximately $4.9 million. Council approved a $3.1-million increase in 2024 to accommodate additional sampling and reporting requirements under a provincially approved field program.
A further $6.6-million increase was approved in 2026 for PFAS pilot testing and design consulting related to the city’s drinking water treatment plant.
The latest $4.3-million increase is eligible for reimbursement through the agreement with DND, leaving the city responsible for 3% of the costs. The city’s airport lands remediation capital project has sufficient funding available for the contract.
In December 2025, the city reached an agreement with DND that saw $8.2 million for the design of treatment upgrades and a six-month pilot program to test PFAS treatment options at the North Bay Drinking Water Treatment Plant over a two-year term.
