Fact Sheet

December 18, 2003

WATERSHED-BASED SOURCE PROTECTION PLANNING

A watershed is comprised of the land and water drained by a river and its tributaries. There are interconnections and relationships between human activities and what happens to water. Changes in water quality and quantity can unfavourably affect our water resources and limit our use of these resources. The boundaries of the watershed provide the natural limits for managing these interconnections and the subsequent state of the water resources within the watershed.

Source-protection planning focuses on protecting the safety and sustainability of drinking water supplies. Source water protection means analysing the potential sources of contamination to source water, as well as analysing how much water is really available for use in a watershed. Armed with this information, positive steps can be taken to manage potential sources of contamination and help ensure sustainable quantities of water.

In Part Two of the Report of the Walkerton Inquiry, Commissioner O’Connor made 22 recommendations related to source protection, including a recommendation that source protection plans should be required for all watersheds in Ontario. Developing a strong program including legislation to protect sources of drinking water is a priority as the McGuinty government moves forward on implementing all of Commissioner O’Connor’s recommendations.

Commissioner O’Connor’s “ingredient list” for watershed-based source protection plans includes:

• developing a water budget for the watershed or a plan to develop a water budget;
• identifying all significant water withdrawals, including municipal intakes;
• identifying and mapping land use for the watershed;
• identifying wellhead areas;
• mapping areas of groundwater vulnerability;
• identifying all major sources of contamination in the watershed;
• modeling the fate of pollutants in the watershed;
• identifying areas where a significant direct threat exists to the safety of drinking water; and
• identifying significant knowledge gaps and/or research needs to help target monitoring efforts.

In February 2004, the government will release a White Paper to consult on the planning aspects of source protection legislation including the preparation, roles and responsibilities, approvals and appeals of source protection plans.

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