Acreage tools · Site planner
Will it fit?
Lay the house, shop, water well and septic system on a true-scale parcel. Every provincial setback the planner knows is measured while you drag.
Before the architect
Water and wastewater decide the site.
On an Alberta acreage the well, the septic tank and its field or mound each carry minimum distances set by the province. On five acres they add up quickly — and an old energy well or a creek can move everything.
Setting up the plan…
- Meets the minimum
- Too close
- Setback ring
Drag anything on the plan. Or tab to an item and use the arrow keys — 1 m a step, 5 m with Shift. R turns a building 90°.
Setback checks
Not checked here: building setbacks from property lines and roads, and every other development rule set by the county. Those vary by county and land use district, so confirm them with the development authority before you draw a building site.
The interactive planner needs JavaScript. Every distance it checks is listed in the table below.
The rules it checks
Every distance, and where it comes from.
These minimums — and nothing else — come from three provincial documents: the private sewage Standard of Practice, the water well directive and the AER's abandoned-well directive, checked September 28, 2026.
| Minimum distance to | Minimum | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Water well | ||
| Any building | 3.25 m10.7 ft | Water Well Directive 2018 |
| Septic tank | 10 m32.8 ft | Water Well Directive 2018 · Sewage SOP 2021, 4.2.2.1 |
| Treatment field | 15 m49.2 ft | Water Well Directive 2018 · Sewage SOP 2021, 8.2.2.1 |
| Treatment moundMeasured from the toe of the berm. | 15 m49.2 ft | Water Well Directive 2018 · Sewage SOP 2021, 8.4.2.1 |
| Open discharge point | 50 m164 ft | Water Well Directive 2018 · Sewage SOP 2021, 8.7.2.1 |
| Above-ground fuel tank | 50 m164 ft | Water Well Directive 2018 |
| A water well may not be completed in a pit. | — | Water Well Directive 2018 |
| Septic tank | ||
| Water course | 10 m32.8 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 4.2.2.1 |
| Property line | 1 m3.3 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 4.2.2.1 |
| Any building | 1 m3.3 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 4.2.2.1 |
| Treatment field | ||
| Water course | 15 m49.2 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.2.2.1 |
| Property line | 1.5 m4.9 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.2.2.1 |
| Building with a basement, cellar or crawl space | 10 m32.8 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.2.2.1 |
| Building with a foundation but no basementThe planner treats the shop as a building with a foundation and no basement unless you tick its basement box. | 5 m16.4 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.2.2.1 |
| Septic tank | 5 m16.4 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.2.2.1 |
| Treatment mound, measured from the toe of the berm | ||
| Water course | 15 m49.2 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.4.2.1 |
| Property line | 3 m9.8 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.4.2.1 |
| Septic tank | 3 m9.8 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.4.2.1 |
| Any building | 10 m32.8 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.4.2.1 |
| Open discharge point | ||
| Property line | 90 m295.3 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.7.2.1 |
| Any building | 45 m147.6 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.7.2.1 |
| Water course | 45 m147.6 ft | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.7.2.1 |
| A new open discharge system is not allowed where more than four parcels have been subdivided out of the quarter section. | — | Sewage SOP 2021, 8.7.2.2 |
| Abandoned energy well | ||
| Any structure (house, shop, tanks, treatment field or mound)No structure may sit on top of an abandoned well. The municipality may require a larger setback; wells abandoned shallower than 150 m are exempt. | 5 m16.4 ft | AER Directive 079 |
Private consultation
Plan your acreage with Dusko.
Share the parcel you own or the one you are considering. Dusko will help you gather the well record, septic permit history and county rules that decide what can go where.