Freshwater: Appearance before the Standing Committee – March 24, 2022
Canada Water Agency
Q1. What will be the mandate of the Canada Water Agency? Where will the Canada Water Agency be located?
Protecting and conserving Canada’s freshwater resources is a key priority for the Government of Canada.
Our government is committed to implementing a strengthened Freshwater Action Plan, including a historic investment to provide funding to further protect and restore large lakes and river systems.
Canadians value fresh water and want to be actively engaged in protecting and managing this vital resource. Canadians are also concerned about the increasing frequency and magnitude of freshwater challenges due to the climate crisis.
To date, no decisions have been taken on the role of the future Canada Water Agency in delivering on this commitment or on its eventual mandate, structure and location.
However deliberations on both the Freshwater Action Plan and the future Canada Water Agency are being informed by extensive feedback from provinces and territories, Indigenous peoples, and stakeholders. Our goal is to support Canada’s interest in advancing collaboration and adding value to existing freshwater management activities, while not encroaching on provincial and territorial jurisdictions.
More details on what we heard through our public consultation process include: Federal policies must promote effective management and protection of freshwater resources and ecosystems in Canada for 21st century challenges and beyond – including adapting to climate change.
Enhanced availability of data and information to support informed decision-making at all levels is critical.
Further including Canadians in managing and protecting fresh water will support better outcomes and an increased partnership role for Indigenous peoples in the management of Canada’s fresh water.
Applying cutting edge science to tackle the freshwater challenges of the next century, including climate change is foundational
Q2. What is the Freshwater Action Plan and will the Canada Water Agency be responsible for delivering it?
The 2021 Speech from the Throne and Ministerial mandate letters reconfirmed the Government of Canada’s commitment to the creation of a new Canada Water Agency, as well as a strengthened Freshwater Action Plan, to enhance freshwater protection across Canada.
The Freshwater Action Plan is the flagship program of Environment and Climate Change Canada to advance restoration and protection of freshwater resources. It currently provides funding for the Lake Winnipeg Basin and the Great Lakes.
My mandate letter also directed me to bring forward a strengthened Freshwater Action Plan, including a historic investment to provide funding to protect and restore large lakes and river systems, starting with the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River System, Lake Simcoe, the Lake Winnipeg Basin, the Fraser River Basin and the Mackenzie River Basin.
While no decision has been made yet regarding the precise mandate of the Canada Water Agency, it is expected that the Canada Water Agency would deliver key elements of the Freshwater Action Plan.
Q3. How will the Canada Water Agency work with provinces and territories, Indigenous peoples, and stakeholders?
Freshwater management in a country as vast as Canada is complex. Challenges vary by region and addressing them can involve multiple jurisdictions.
The Canada Water Agency is a unique opportunity for the Government of Canada to work with provinces, territories, Indigenous peoples, local authorities, scientists and others to strengthen collaboration with partners.
The Canada Water Agency will respect the jurisdictions of other governments and not duplicate existing efforts.
Recognizing the significance of fresh water to Indigenous peoples and the Government of Canada’s commitment to reconciliation, the Government is engaging First Nations, Métis, and Inuit directly on the development of the Canada Water Agency. The Canada Water Agency is an opportunity for constructive dialogue between the federal government and Indigenous peoples on freshwater issues. Engagement with Indigenous peoples is ongoing.
Once we have approval and authorities in place, establishment of the Canada Water Agency will take place incrementally. The Government of Canada will continue to engage with partners as the Agency becomes fully operational.
Q4. How will the Canada Water Agency work to modernize the CanadaWaterAct?
I am committed to working with Indigenous peoples and provinces and territories as it explores modernization of the Canada Water Act.
To support the process, initial analysis will need to be undertaken to determine which policy objectives are not achievable through the existing Act such as those identified in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.
Engagement with provinces and territories and with Indigenous peoples will be undertaken to identify the need for and scope of possible modernization required. Included in the considerations are how a modernized Act can more effectively address Indigenous rights and current freshwater realities in a changing climate.
Q5. Will the Canada Water Agency be responsible for addressing drinking water on Reserve?
The Government of Canada is committed to ensuring that First Nations have access to safe, clean drinking water.
The creation of the Canada Water Agency is distinct from initiatives related to safe drinking water led by Indigenous Services Canada. The Canada Water Agency Transition Office is working closely with Indigenous Services Canada to identify ways to support such initiatives.
Lake Winnipeg
Q1. What is the Government of Canada doing to protect and restore Lake Winnipeg?
Protecting and conserving Canada’s freshwater resources is a key priority for the Government of Canada.
Our government is committed to implementing a strengthened Freshwater Action Plan, including a historic investment to provide funding to further protect and restore large lakes and river systems.
Canadians value fresh water and want to be actively engaged in protecting and managing this vital resource. Canadians are also concerned about the increasing frequency and magnitude of freshwater challenges due to the climate crisis.
We are investing $25.7 million over five years in protecting Lake Winnipeg and, as my mandate letter clearly states, we are committed to enhancing the level of protection in both Lake Winnipeg and other major water bodies across the country.
As part of the Freshwater Action Plan, our investments in Lake Winnipeg are focussed on: science; implementing actions to reduce nutrient loading to the lake, and strengthening collaboration throughout the basin, including engaging Indigenous partners on freshwater issues.
As well, the new Canada-Manitoba Memorandum of Understanding Respecting Lake Winnipeg and the Lake Winnipeg Basin (2021-26) signed in August 2021, will continue to facilitate a collaborative and coordinated approach.
Our focus on Indigenous engagement has supported Indigenous-led initiatives such as water quality monitoring and knowledge gathering, and fostered new partnerships in support of collaborative actions to improve the health of Lake Winnipeg.
Great Lakes
Q1. What is the Government of Canada doing to protect and restore the Great Lakes?
Protecting and conserving Canada’s freshwater resources is a key priority for the Government of Canada.
Our government is committed to implementing a strengthened Freshwater Action Plan, including a historic investment to provide funding to further protect and restore large lakes and river systems.
Canadians value fresh water and want to be actively engaged in protecting and managing this vital resource. Canadians are also concerned about the increasing frequency and magnitude of freshwater challenges due to the climate crisis.
We have invested $45 million over five years in the Great Lakes Protection Initiative and, as my mandate letter clearly states, we are committed to enhancing the level of protection in both the Great Lakes and other major water bodies across the country.
With respect to the Great Lakes—they are ecologically rich, an important economic driver for the nation, and the source of drinking water for tens of millions.
As such, we are committed to continuing to work with others to restore and protect them through both the Canada–U.S. Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement and the Canada–Ontario Agreement on Great Lakes Water Quality and Ecosystem Health.
Details on how we are protecting the Great Lakes include:
investing in science and action to address priority challenges including reducing phosphorus pollution to Lake Erie, restoring contaminated and degraded Great Lakes Areas of Concern, improving the health of coastal wetlands, identifying at-risk nearshore waters, and reducing harmful chemicals in the environment;
tackling degraded areas, cleaning up and officially delisting three Canadian Great Lakes Areas of Concern, and completing remedial actions in a further two. We have also finished cleaning up contaminated sediment in Randle Reef in Hamilton Harbor, which is the largest and most severely contaminated sediment site in Canada;
through national chemicals management programs, we have achieved dramatic reductions in many toxic chemicals that are harmful to fish and wildlife. Some have been reduced by more than 90%. Bald Eagles, lake trout and other threatened native species have returned to the Lakes, thanks to reductions in pollution and focused species and habitat rehabilitation.
Looking forward, working collaboratively with Ontario, we have committed to completing all actions required to complete the restoration of water quality and aquatic ecosystem health in six additional Canadian Areas of Concern by 2026 and significantly reduce in nutrient pollution to Lake Erie.
Water quality monitoring
Q1. Who is responsible for water quality monitoring in Canada?
The protection and stewardship of water is a joint federal provincial/territorial responsibility, which we all take very seriously.
The Government of Canada works in partnership with the Provinces and Territories to protect our freshwater resources for present and future generations through collaboration such as sharing knowledge, information and data on water quality, which we have done for decades.
In nearshore coastal waters, Environment and Climate Change Canada is responsible for monitoring molluscan shellfish harvest areas to support federal food safety objectives under the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program.
Q2. How did the COVID-19 pandemic impact water quality monitoring activities?
With the shifting public health measures following the fifth wave of the pandemic, ECCC has resumed most of its field activities related to freshwater quality monitoring across Canada and is rapidly returning to pre-pandemic levels.
Water quality monitoring activities related to marine molluscan shellfish harvest areas were maintained throughout the COVID-19 pandemic as part of Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Business Continuity Management Plan.
In March 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Environment and Climate Change Canada enacted its Business Continuity Management Plan in an effort to prioritize the health and safety of the Department’s workforce.
This meant a focus on critical services such as meteorological forecasting and response to environmental emergencies. Consequently, some field and laboratory work related to non-critical services were temporarily suspended, including routine freshwater quality monitoring.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic the resumption of activities was responsive to local and regional COVID-19 epidemiology and public health guidelines and directives.
Q3. What has been the impact of the suspension of the Government’s water quality monitoring activities?
The Government of Canada works closely with provinces and territories with respect to water quality monitoring. By leveraging these partnerships, the Government of Canada has continued to update agreements with provincial and territorial partners to minimize the impact of the temporary suspension of field and laboratory activities.
In light of local and regional COVID-19 epidemiology and the readiness of provincial and territorial partners, the Government of Canada increased funding transfers through agreements to allow ongoing sampling where possible and the use of private laboratories where appropriate.
Q4. What is the Government of Canada doing to protect Canada’s freshwater resources?
The protection and stewardship of water is a joint federal provincial/territorial responsibility, which we all take very seriously.
Our government is committed to implementing a strengthened the Freshwater Action Plan, including a historic investment to provide funding to further protect and restore large lakes and river systems.
Canadians value fresh water and want to be actively engaged in protecting and managing this vital resource. Canadians are also concerned about the increasing frequency and magnitude of freshwater challenges due to the climate crisis.
Annually, the Government of Canada collects fresh water samples from transboundary waters and waters on federal lands at over 640 sites.
The Government of Canada works closely with provinces and territories with respect to water quality monitoring. This includes coordination and agreement through annual planning for sampling at federal, provincial, territorial sites. Similarly, there are routine agreements in place for the use of federal, provincial, territorial and private labs for sample analysis based on the specialization required for the sample analysis.
Wastewater
Q1. What is the federal government doing to control the amount of industrial wastewater in Canadian waters?
The pollution prevention provisions in the Fisheries Act are some of the federal government’s strongest tools for reducing pollution to water.
The Fisheries Act prohibits the deposit of deleterious substances to water frequented by fish unless there are regulations that put in place controls on those releases.
The federal government manages these responsibilities both by developing regulations that set mandatory national effluent quality standards for any releases to water and by applying this prohibition where there are no regulations.
The federal government has put in place regulations for several sectors including metal and diamond mining as well as the pulp and paper sectors. Effluent regulations are also being developed for both the coal mining and oil sands mining sectors.
Q2. What is the federal government doing to address the amount of untreated or undertreated wastewater effluent released in the environment?
Approximately seventy-seven per cent (77%) of wastewater in Canada is treated to a minimum level of secondary treatment.
Twenty-three per cent (23%) of wastewater systems are releasing undertreated or untreated effluent. In terms of volume, untreated wastewater (raw sewage) represents approximately four (4%) of effluent released in Canada.
To address releases of untreated and undertreated effluent the Government of Canada:
Has put in place the Wastewater Systems Effluent Regulations, with effluent quality standards which came into effect in 2015. The standards are achievable through secondary treatment. This level of treatment allows the removal of up to 95% of conventional pollutants and up to 90% of other contaminants.
Has made significant investments in infrastructure. Since 2015, the Government of Canada has contributed $2.3 billion to 1,871 wastewater projects. This includes $1.8 billion from new investment programs (Investing in Canada Plan and the Clean Water and Wastewater Fund).
Some communities needed to conduct major construction or upgrades to their existing infrastructure to meet these limits. These major infrastructure projects take significant time to plan, finance, and build. Given this, the Regulations allowed for extensions beyond 2015 (transitional authorization) to comply with the limits.
Communities had until June 2014 to apply for this extension, which could be issued for the end of 2020, 2030, or 2040. These timelines considered effluent quality and quantity and the receiving environment. Higher risk systems were given a shorter period of time to comply.
More than one hundred mostly smaller, lower risk communities did not apply for transitional authorizations even though they would likely have been eligible.
Environment and Climate Change Canada is proposing to amend the Regulations so that these communities have another opportunity to apply. The proposed changes to the Regulations will not lower requirements; they simply provide another opportunity for wastewater system owners to receive a transitional authorization for the same extended timeline as originally intended in the Regulations.
Communities also need to maintain, repair and upgrade their sewer systems, which can also sometimes result in unavoidable releases of undertreated wastewater from overflow points. The regulations currently do not address this issue.
Environment and Climate Change Canada is proposing to amend the Regulations to establish clear conditions for these planned releases, taking into account environmental protection goals to reduce volume, frequency, and duration in order to minimize any potential impacts of releases.
