Grand River Source Protection Plan Updates Approved

Updates to the plan that protects the sources of municipal drinking water in the Grand River watershed have been approved by the Ontario Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks, the Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) announced on Friday.

The updated Grand River Source Protection Plan was approved by Minister Jeff Yurek on August 16, 2019 and took effect that day. The plan and its associated documents are available online at www.sourcewater.ca. The Grand River Source Protection Plan was first approved in November 2015 and came into effect July 1, 2016.

The source protection planning process began in 2006, when the Ontario government passed the Clean Water Act to protect the sources of municipal drinking water throughout the province. The process is based on technical studies, collaborative policy development, and extensive public consultation.

The process to update the plan was guided by the Lake Erie Region Source Protection Committee, which is made up of representatives from municipalities, business, industry, farmers, landowners, and other stakeholders. The committee is also responsible for updating plans for the Catfish Creek, Kettle Creek and Long Point Region watersheds.

Amendments to the Grand River Source Protection Plan include new and updated wellhead protection areas due to new wells for the Dundalk drinking water system (Grey County, Township of Southgate), Lynden Communal Well Supply (City of Hamilton), and the Airport and St. George drinking water systems (County of Brant). Wellhead protection areas were revised and protection zones removed in the County of Brant for the Mount Pleasant drinking water system where chloride is no longer elevated, and for the Paris (Bethel Road) system where nitrates are no longer elevated.

“It is important to keep source protection plans up-to-date to reflect changes in infrastructure and where new information becomes available, so that communities can rest assured that their sources of drinking water are protected,” says Martin Keller, Source Protection Program Manager. “We are already working on further plan updates. These will be brought forward once studies are completed.”

Only minor administrative changes were made to the policies to improve clarity. These changes will apply in the revised and expanded protection areas.

Implementation of the plan policies is primarily a responsibility of municipalities and provincial ministries. Source protection plans are local science-based plans designed to protect the water quality of the lakes, rivers and sources of underground water that supply municipal drinking water systems. The plans set out actions to eliminate, manage or reduce potential risks to drinking water sources.

Policies in the Source Protection Plans include a variety of approaches to manage and prevent risks to municipal drinking water. These approaches include education and outreach, the development of risk management plans, land use planning, and monitoring. The policies are designed to keep contaminants out of rivers, lakes and groundwater aquifers that are sources of municipal drinking water.

The source protection planning process is directed and funded by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks in conjunction with municipalities. Local conservation authorities provide additional technical, communications and administrative support for the source protection planning process.