Municipal Drinking Water: Roles and Responsibilities
The following is based on a memo circulated by City staff dated October 25th discussing well water concerns in Richmond and some general information on the various roles and responsibilities of the City and other levels of government with respect to municipal drinking water:
Municipal Drinking Water: Roles and Responsibilities
Infrastructure and Water Services Department
The Infrastructure and Water Services Department (IWSD) is responsible for the City’s municipal drinking water systems. The central system, which provides water to approximately 950,000 people, is supplied from the two drinking water treatment plants at Lemieux Island and Britannia. There are also six communal groundwater well systems in the communities of Carp, Munster Hamlet, Richmond (Kings Park), Richmond West, Greely (Shadow Ridge) and Vars.
In Ontario, municipal drinking water is governed by the Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002, and the Ontario Water Resources Act, 1990, which are both regulated by the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP).
The Ontario Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002, has five elements working together to provide a consistent approach for all drinking water treatment systems across the province, namely:
Robustly designed and well-maintained water treatment and water distribution infrastructure. The Drinking Water Quality Management System, providing the essential framework to ensure transparency and oversight of our drinking water system.
Water systems and teams who work within it must be licensed and permitted.
Careful monitoring and testing to ensure quality and compliance.
Annual Reporting to the MECP and to City Council, to demonstrate full accountability.
Ottawa Public Health
Under the Health Protection and Promotion Act, Ottawa Public Health (OPH) is mandated to investigate health hazard complaints, which can include complaints regarding contamination of groundwater feeding private wells. OPH also has a responsibility to:
Work with the City and other partners to develop plans for responding to water quality emergencies or infrastructure failures.
Educate the public about safe drinking water practices and encourage private well users to sample their drinking water.
Issue advisories or warnings to the public in cases of waterborne disease outbreaks or other health concerns related to drinking water.
OPH and IWSD are closely integrated and collaborate to achieve these objectives.
Ministry of Environment, Parks and Conservation: Private Wells
The Ministry of Environment, Parks and Conservation (MECP) has legislative and regulatory authority over private well water in Ontario. There are over 50,000 private wells in the Ottawa area. Well owners are responsible for ensuring water from their wells is safe to drink, and their wells are not contaminating the groundwater. Wells must be properly designed and maintained to ensure drinking water is safe.
Infrastructure and Water Services Department: Wastewater
Ottawa's wastewater collection system gathers wastewater from homes, businesses, and industrial sites, transporting it to trunk sewers through a network of sewers, pumping stations and forcemains. The wastewater then flows to the Robert O. Pickard Environmental Centre for treatment. In Ontario, municipal wastewater is governed by the Environmental Protection Act, 1990 and the Ontario Water Resources Act, 1990, which are both regulated by the MECP. The City also adheres to the Canada Fisheries Act, 1985 requirements.
Sewer maintenance activities include inspections and monitoring to ensure that municipal infrastructure is in a state of good repair and that the environment is protected.
In the rural areas, a variety of collection methods are used:
Richmond, Munster Hamlet, and Carp are connected to the municipal trunk system.
Elsewhere, individual septic systems, which are the responsibility of the property owner, are used and the contents are transported to the Robert O. Pickard Centre for treatment.
Update on Private Well Water Quality in Richmond
Following up on concerns from residents in the Richmond area regarding water quality in private wells, Ottawa Public Health (OPH), Infrastructure and Water Services Department (IWSD), and the Ministry of Environment, Parks and Conservation (MECP) undertook an investigation. As part of this investigation, OPH reviewed over 2000 private well water results from Public Health Ontario Laboratory test results from the Richmond area dating back to August 2017. OPH found that the current results from Richmond are typical of what one would expect from private well systems elsewhere in the broader area. Put another way, the Richmond private well test results are not triggering any alerts that there may be private well problems that are linked (share a common cause).
Results with total coliform or E. coli findings showed no geographic clustering. Specifically, any sampling results showing E. coli were sporadic and transient, which would not be consistent with sewage contamination of ground water. OPH has reviewed reports of laboratory-confirmed enteric diseases of public health significance across Ottawa and found no evidence of higher-than-expected rates or clustering in Richmond.
Regular closed-circuit television (CCTV) inspections by IWSD are conducted on sanitary pipes to ensure there are no leaks or exfiltration. Additional inspections were carried out in response to residents’ concerns and no issues were found.
At a drop-in information session for the community in August 2023, IWSD and OPH provided information and answered questions about well water testing processes and results. OPH also hosted an information booth at the Richmond Fair in September 2023 to further provide residents an opportunity to ask questions and learn about well water sampling.
The MECP recently assessed several private wells in the vicinity of the Richmond Pump Station and found some homes were not in conformance with the Ministry’s well maintenance requirements. As a result, the MECP followed up with property owners, who are responsible for ensuring their wells are properly maintained at all times to ensure a safe and reliable source of drinking water.
Moreover, the MECP’s assessment of analytical results from drinking water well sampling in the area showed no indication of a spill or discharge from the sewage systems related to the Richmond Pump Station.
The MECP has provided guidance to residential well owners about proper well maintenance, including instructions for well and plumbing disinfection, and general tips to protect their wells from naturally occurring sources of potential contamination.
There has been no evidence to suggest any sewage contamination has taken place. As a result, OPH’s and IWSD’s investigation of this complaint has been concluded.