In late October of 2002, the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) commissioned Cultural Resource Management (CRM) Group Limited to undertake a comprehensive program of archaeological mitigation on the site of the proposed Halifax wastewater treatment plant (WTP). The field strategy was designed to identify, document and interpret significant archaeological resources within the proposed WTP site as identified during the course of the archaeological assessment undertaken by CRM Group in the summer of 2002. Throughout the month of November, CRM Group’s archaeological team conducted an intensive program of archaeological mitigation which included mechanical stripping of overburden from the site, followed by the manual excavation of various masonry structures, outbuildings and other features. Of particular interest among the features found were a series of privies which ranged in date from the early 19th to early 20th centuries.

Mitigation of the Halifax Wastewater Treatment Plant site was conducted within the theoretical framework of urban archaeology - that is archaeology of the city not simply archaeology in the city. As such, CRM Group’s team of archaeologists and historians examined the historical development of Halifax as reflected in the structures, features and archival documents relating to the proposed development property.