During the 2018 Rural Ontario Municipal Association conference on Jan. 22, Mayor Kelly Linton, councillor Mary Lloyd, CAO Andy Goldie and Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott updated Minister of Environment and Climate Change Chris Ballard on actions Centre Wellington has assumed to ensure the long-term sustainability of drinking water.
“During our meeting with Minister Chris Ballard, we shared with him our community’s growing concern that permitting commercial water bottling operations would have a negative impact on our long-term water supply,” stated Linton.
“I encouraged the minister to consider revising water-taking regulations to ensure that the water needs of municipalities take precedence over the water needs of private corporations.”
Linton also indicated his support of extending the current moratorium on water bottling operations to ensure comprehensive public engagement and policy review on water management in Ontario.
Centre Wellington will continue to work with the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) and the Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) to ensure there is no long term effect on the local water supply through a scientific analysis of water quantity.
A Scoped Tier 3 Water Budget Study is currently being completed for the Centre Wellington municipal supply system under the Clean Water Act under the direction of the GRCA.
A Community Liaison Group (CLG) was formed to provide a forum for stakeholders and residents to share their views, observations and feedback on the technical work of the study.
One of the goals of the study is the development of a refined numerical groundwater flow model to assess the sustainability of permitted water use, focusing on the Fergus-Elora municipal groundwater system and the area surrounding the capture area of the municipal system.
Centre Wellington’s goal is to ensure that this process achieves the best interest of present and future residents.
