Approval of the amended assessment reports and source protection plans for the Ausable Bayfield source protection area and Maitland Valley source protection area

The purpose of the Clean Water Act, 2006 is to protect existing and future sources of drinking water to help protect human health and the environment, and to ensure safe, clean drinking water for all Ontarians.

The Act ensures communities are able to protect their drinking water sources through prevention - by developing collaborative, locally driven, watershed based drinking water source protection plans founded on science. Protecting local drinking water sources is an important first step in ensuring Ontario’s communities are confident in the quality and quantity of their municipal drinking water.

Amendments to the assessment reports and source protection plans were carried out to further protect sources of drinking water in the Ausable Bayfield and Maitland Valley source protection areas. The amendments include the identification of new and updated wellhead protection areas as a result of a municipally-assumed drinking water system in Varna (Municipality of Bluewater), new and replacement wells in the Molesworth (Municipality of North Perth), Benmiller (Township of Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh) and Blyth (Municipality of North Huron) drinking water systems, one decommissioned well in the Dungannon drinking water system (Township of Ashfield-Colborne-Wawanosh), as well as the extension of Ripley wellhead protection area into the Maitland Valley source protection area (Municipality of Huron-Kinloss) from the neighbouring Saugeen Valley source protection area. The amendments also include minor changes to the risk management plan policies to align with timelines in neighbouring areas and allow flexibility for which municipal applications require approval by a risk management official.

The amendments have been completed in accordance with the legislative and regulatory requirements set out in the Clean Water Act and Ontario Regulation 287/07 (General) and have been approved. The effective date of the amendments is upon posting on the Environmental Registry

Other public consultation opportunities

During preparation of the assessment report and source protection plan amendments, the Ausable Bayfield source protection authority carried out public and stakeholder consultation on behalf of the source protection authorities in the region.

While developing the amendments, the Ausable Bayfield source protection authority invited comments on the draft amendments from the public and implementing bodies affected by the changes to the protection zones and policies, including the provincial government and local municipalities. In addition, the source protection authority held public consultation on the changes to the protection zones and policies included in the proposed amendments from January to February 2018.

Comments received on the proposed amendments were taken into consideration by the source protection authority and revisions were made where appropriate. The comments received on the proposed amendments were submitted to the Ministry and taken into consideration as part of the review process.

The approved amendments to the assessment reports and source protection plans can be viewed at the link provided in this notice and on the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley source protection region’s website.

No changes have been made to the future review cycle of the Ausable Bayfield and Maitland Valley source protection plans. This review cycle was established when the initial plan was approved in January 2015 and is described in the EBR notice posted with that decision (available at the link provided in this notice).

Other information

The Minister has concluded that the legislative requirements under the Clean Water Act have been met and that comments the source protection authority received during consultation on the assessment reports’ and source protection plans’ amendments have been adequately considered and addressed.