FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Ontario gets an ‘A’ for drinking water protection

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VANCOUVER — More than a decade after deadly gaps in drinking water management killed seven people in Walkerton, Ont., the province continues to lead Canadian drinking water protection efforts, according to a new report from Ecojustice.

Waterproof 3, the environmental organization’s third drinking water report card, gives Ontario an ‘A’ for being home to some of Canada’s strongest water treatment and testing requirements. Ontario also has the most ambitious and well-funded source water protection program in the country, according to the report card.

“Ontario has certainly learned from the tragedy in Walkerton,” said Randy Christensen, Ecojustice staff lawyer and author of the report. “It is heads-and-shoulders above every other jurisdiction in the country when it comes to protecting drinking water.”

Waterproof 3 evaluates water policies, programs and legislation across the country and assigns the provincial, territorial and federal governments, a grade based on how well they’re protecting drinking water. Released every five years, the report also shows how each jurisdiction has performed over time on critical measures like treatment and testing requirements, drinking water quality standards, source water protection and transparency and accountability.  

Ontario, like Nova Scotia (A-), is identified as a leader when it comes to drinking water protection — thanks in large part to its strong water standards and source water protection planning. In contrast, Alberta (C-) slipped in the rankings because of static treatment standards and poor source water protection efforts.

“The recommendations from the Walkerton Inquiry gave us a very clear framework for evaluating each jurisdiction’s efforts to provide safe drinking water,” Christensen said. “Those recommendations spell out exactly what it takes to properly monitor and protect drinking water, and yet some regional governments, as well as the federal government, still haven’t put them in place.”

The federal government is the only jurisdiction to fail outright in Ecojustice’s report card for lagging on almost every aspect of water protection for which it is responsible. Of greatest concern is the government’s reluctance to create rigorous national drinking water standards that protect peoples’ health and safety.

“The federal government has completely failed in its responsibilities to ensure all Canadians have access to clean, safe water,” Christensen said. “Despite the lessons learned from the tragedy in Walkerton, the federal government has failed to pass drinking water legislation for First Nations and lead the development of national water standards.”

Other key findings in Waterproof 3 include:

• In some jurisdictions, improvements to water treatment, standards and testing have stalled and lost some of the momentum that came in the wake of the Walkerton tragedy
  
• Full-fledged source water protection — a crucial first step in achieving safe drinking water systems — is lacking in industry-heavy areas where the risk of contamination is high
  
• New technology has yet to translate into comprehensive, centralized and easily-accessible water advisories, particularly in remote rural areas
• Climate change, unprotected source water and government cuts are emerging as new barriers to clean, safe drinking water systems
  

Ecojustice is the country’s leading charitable organization dedicated to using the law to defend Canadians’ right to a healthy environment.

To see the full list of grades and Ecojustice’s recommendations, or to read the full report, please visit ecojustice.ca/waterproof-3.

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For more information, please contact:
Kimberly Shearon, communications coordinator | Ecojustice
604.685.5618 x 242 | 778.988.1530
kshearon@ecojustice.ca

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