Established in 1995, this project was a joint venture between the Municipality of Annapolis County, the Government of Canada, and the Province of Nova Scotia.   The plant is the first "Solar Aquatic Wastewater Treatment Facility" in the country and the first full-scale plant in North America.  This project had attracted interest from both the scientific and environmental communities with the facility being the recipient of the "1995 Sustainable Communities Award".

The Bear River Solar Aquatics Wastewater Treatment Facility was a wastewater treatment system that functioned in a greenhouse.  The facility at Bear River was 2400 square feet and contained a dozen solar tanks as well as a solar pond.  The solar tanks were home to a variety of plant life as well as bacteria, snails, and fish.  The purification of the waste water started with what is called the blending tank.  Here the solids in the waste water were broken up and bacteria was added.  As you may have guessed, this facility is no longer in use due to operating costs.