DRINKING WATER SOURCE PROTECTION

It's pooched. Salt, sewage, nitrates, nitrites, industrial contamination, TCE, other DNAPLs, chlorides & sodium from salt, bacteria (E.Coli, coliforms), petroleum chemicals including LNAPLs, benzene, toluene you name it and we've got it. Maybe it all boils down to costs. We have some of the most expensive water coming from the Grand River and the Middleton St. wellfield. This is because they are two of the most heavily contaminated sources and require so much more treatment prior to entering the distribution systems.

Boiled down the biggest threats to our drinking water are agriculture (bacteria & nitrates/nitrites from manure), industry (solvents & petroleums) and automobiles (road salt & gas & oil spillage). Up here in Woolwich so far we've lost the West Montrose wellfield (bacteria from sewage & river water) and the Elmira wellfields (industrial contamination from multiple sources). The threats as listed by the Region of Waterloo are at all our wellfields.

My opinion is that when treated lake water is cheaper than heavily treated groundwater then we will make the switch by building a pipeline. In the meantime the puffery and bull.... will continue regarding our so called high quality, world class tap water. What it is, is heavily chlorinated (& other treatments) contaminated ground and surface water (Grand River) that is becoming more contaminated and more expensive to treat year after year. Welcome to mankind's domination of nature with the totally expected accompanying adverse results.

P.S. Expect the appropriate authorities to continue talking up a storm and also writing up a storm. The Waterloo Region chapter in the Drinking Water Source Protection Plans has a lot of good information. For example the Elmira north and south wellfields are completely written out of these plans. It's an admission that they are likely gone forever. The "Policies" and "Risk Management Plans" are well written and thought out. Meanwhile our provincial politicians, both Liberal and Conservative, continue to financially squeeze Conservation Authorities and the Ministry of Environment. They are sending a clear message namely ignore what we do and don't do and please focus on our spoken and written words because talk is far cheaper than action and we want everybodys' votes whether polluters or victims.