Ontario Approves Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Plan and Assessment Report Amendments

MISSISSIPPI AND RIDEAU WATERSHEDS, June 30, 2020 — Amendments to the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Plan and the Rideau Valley Assessment Report to further protect municipal drinking water systems have been approved by the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP). The amendments, which took effect on May 21, 2020, include:

• revised vulnerable areas for the new and existing municipal wells in Kemptville (owned and operated by the Municipality of North Grenville) and for the neighbouring Merrickville drinking water system
• updated policies for the storage of chemicals known as dense non-aqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) e.g. chemicals used for the repair of motor vehicles, dry cleaning, etc.
• updated Source Protection Plan and Assessment Report mapping

“These amendments ensure local, municipal drinking water systems continue to be protected through the drinking water source protection program” said Kestrel Wraggett, Project Manager for the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Region. “The Kemptville municipal drinking water system serves approximately 5,000 people and relies on the safe management of a well protection area of 75 km2. Having clean, safe water is essential to the health of our watershed community and safeguarding our water resources is crucial.”

Drinking water sources in the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Region include groundwater, drawn from aquifers underground, and water drawn from rivers. The Source Protection Plan sets out policies that use a variety of tools to protect municipal drinking water sources from contamination. These tools include education, risk management planning, prohibition, and land use planning. Policies in the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Plan first came into effect on January 1, 2015. Visit the Region’s local website at https://www.mrsourcewater.ca to find out more.

An amendment to the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Plan and Rideau Valley Assessment Report is necessary to meet the requirements of the Clean Water Act.

The Notice of Approval of the amended Assessment Report and Source Protection Plan for the Mississippi-Rideau Source Protection Region is also posted on Ontario’s Environmental Registry at https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-1343.

If you have questions about the approved changes, please contact Kestrel Wraggett at .