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Background
Following the Walkerton tragedy in 2000, and in response to recommendations made in Commissioner Dennis O’Connor’s Report of the Walkerton Inquiry, the Ontario Government introduced the Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002. This Act and its subsequent regulations set out strict requirements for the treatment and testing of all sources of drinking water. A regulated drinking water system may be anything from a large municipal water treatment plant to a single water well servicing a campground.

Regulation 170/03 set out stringent requirements, of interest to the hospitality industry, for operators of small and large non-municipal, non-residential water systems. While safe drinking water is of paramount concern, the ORHMA raised concerns with the Ministry of Environment (MOE), on behalf of many small hospitality and tourism businesses, regarding the financial and technical burden the regulations placed on businesses.

In spring 2004, the Minister of Environment established the Advisory Council on Drinking Water Quality and Testing Standards, to review the requirements of the regulations. The Advisory Council heard clear concerns across the province about the technical and financial burden Regulation 170/03 placed on operators.

Update
In May 2005, in response to the recommendations of the Advisory Council, MOE indicated its intention to transfer authority for drinking water testing back to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, Public Health Units. In the interim, MOE has developed a new regulation, that took effect on June 1, 2005, to eliminate several of the costly testing requirements for operators that were contained in Regulation 170/03. The Ministry is now focusing on a risk-based framework.

Specifically, the new regulation eliminates the requirement of raw water microbiological testing requirements, the elimination of heterotrophic plate count (HPC) testing and corresponding corrective action requirements, the elimination of chemical testing requirements, and the elimination of requirements related to treatment equipment, the elimination of the requirement for annual reports. The regulation also clarifies definitions of terms related to frequency of testing, and corrective actions required by owners in response to adverse test results. Requirements related to record keeping and public access to information remain unchanged.

The ORHMA, acting on behalf of the hospitality industry, had expressed serious concerns to the Ministry of Environment over the years concerning the financial and administrative burden the original regulations placed on small hospitality operators.

The ORHMA reiterated these concerns to the Minister’s Advisory Council on Drinking Water Quality and Testing Standards. The ORHMA will continue to work with the Ministry of Environment to represent the concerns of our members and to recommend modifications to the program requirements that will make compliance attainable, while ensuring that the shared goal of water safety is protected.

Regulation 252./05:
Safe Drinking Water for Non-Residential,Non-Municipal Systems

Overview of the Regulation

ORHMA responds to MOE proposal to amend Regulation 170/03
(May 27, 2005)

If you have any questions or concerns with the information above please do not hesitate to contact the Government Relations Department at 905-361-0268

For more detailed information on drinking water regulations in Ontario please visit www.ene.gov.on.ca/water.htm

(Updated June, 2005)

Waste Diversion
The Government of Ontario has established a provincial goal of diverting 60% of all waste from landfill by 2008. An audit in 2002 indicated that at that time only 28% of waste was being diverted from landfill.

One of the strategies in place to assist the Government in meeting its goal is the municipal blue box program. The Waste Diversion Act, 2002, mandates that industry pay for 50% of the costs associated with the operation of municipalities’ residential blue box recycling programs. As the program continues to grow costs continue to rise, and obligated parties have seen rates increase exponentially since the program began. Original estimates for the first year of the program were $60 million per year, and this estimate quickly rose to $82 million. Program costs for 2005 have been set at more than $117 million.

(Updated May, 2005)

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