On December 2, 2016, the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change posted a proposal for a guidance document outlining new requirements for bottled water Permit to Take Water (PTTW) renewals. There are two types of new requirements – procedural requirements, which would increase consultation, public reporting and transparency, and technical requirements that would enhance the scientific requirements.
The guidance document is intended to provide guidance for renewal applications of existing permits that authorize the taking of groundwater for the purpose of producing bottled water from the same location, for the same purpose, and for the same or lesser amount as currently permitted, all in accordance with the requirements imposed by O. Reg. 463/16 (Taking Groundwater to Produce Bottled Water), made under the Ontario Water Resources Act.
A decision has been made to proceed with the policy proposal; the guidance document has been updated to reflect the considerations of comments received during public consultation.
Taking immediate action on existing water bottling facilities by putting in place stricter rules is the second step of three early actions in Ontario’s strategy to protect groundwater in the province. These steps will give us a window of time to better understand groundwater in Ontario, while undertaking a review of provincial water taking rules, and examining a range of tools to better protect water.
On January 18, 2017, the ministry posted a proposed new fee for water bottling facilities that take groundwater on the Environmental Registry (Registry Number 012-9574) for a public review and comment period of at least 60 days.
The guidance document will be updated to reflect findings from the broader water quantity groundwater review and ongoing consultation on water management with Indigenous communities and organizations.
Canadian Water and Wastewater Association