My submission comes in two…

My submission comes in two parts. The first (1) is about amending the Region of Waterloo Official Plan (ROP). The second (2) is about preserving our water supply.

(1) Region of Waterloo Official Plan (ROP)
The ROP came about after wide community consultation and input. It was subsequently approved by all lower and upper tier municipalities working together under the leadership of the Region of Waterloo. This visionary plan went a long way toward preserving precious farmland and precious water supply both of which are absolutely vital to the well-being of all who live, work and play within the Region of Waterloo.

Therefore, I ask that the original visionary ROP approved in August of 2022 be restored as the working plan for our Region.

If development does occur, it is absolutely crucial that Region of Waterloo Recharge Areas remain intact and functioning and that development there not be allowed.

(2) Preserving our Water Supply
The Region of Waterloo receives approximately 80% of its drinking water from underground aquifers. Therefore, it is extremely important that our water recharge areas be protected. They must not be paved over with development of any kind. Development on recharge areas would have dire, expensive and long-lasting negative consequences for our Region.

Region of Waterloo Engineering and Environmental staff presented an excellent report to Regional Council on March 20, 2024 explaining why the Regional Recharge Area must be protected from urban development. The following is a summary of the staff report:

a) Because of its sand and gravel composition, the Regional Recharge Area allows huge amounts of snowmelt and rainfall to infiltrate deep into the ground and replenish the aquifers that supply our drinking water;

b) Development reduces the amount of water reaching the aquifers by 50-80% (depending whether it's residential or commercial/industrial development);

c) Thus developing (paving over) the Regional Recharge Area threatens the quantity of our water supply;

d) Development in this area will put more road salt into our water supply. This threatens the quality of our water supply;

e) Reduced water supply will limit the number of new homes that can be built throughout the Region;

f) So, ironically, building more new homes in the Regional Recharge Area could mean fewer new homes that can be built elsewhere in the Region!

g) Or, it could mean we will need to build $2 billion pipeline to Lake Erie!

In addition

h)The Regional Recharge Area sustains a wide range of aquatic habitats and ecosystems;

i) The Regional Recharge Area contributes a high percentage of baseflow to the Grand River, its tributary rivers and cold water streams. This maintains the health of the Grand River;

j) This base flow dilutes wastes and pollution flowing into the Region's wastewater treatment plants and ensures our public health safety. If development on the Regional Recharge Area decreases the amount of base flow, we may need expensive new wastewater treatment plants that can function with smaller base flow.

Our visionary Regional Official Plan (ROP) approved in August 2022 had only minimal farmland loss and showed there were lots of opportunities within our current urban boundaries to meet all our housing needs.

We don't need and we absolutely must not develop land in the Regional Recharge Area.