The Rural Voice, 2004-05, Page 42News in Agriculture
Water safety tied to sustainability
By Ralph Pearce
The most -pressing issue on the
afternoon schedule at the Perth
County Federation of Agriculture's
spring briefing of their MP and MPP
dealt with source water protection
and the Drinking Water Systems
Regulation (Reg. 170-03) and their
combined impact on farming and
rural communities.
OFA South Perth director Bert
Vorstenbosch addressed this two-
pronged issue, which has quickly
become a flashpoint among
producers in rural Ontario.
Vorstenbosch expressed his concerns
on farm representation on the Source
Protection Planning Committees, the
duplication of bureaucracy and the
need to examine all potential
contaminant sources.
"There is currently no basis for
dialogue between the rural
community that will be largely
responsible for the protection of
source water, and the urban
community that is the predominant
user of water," said Vorstenbosch.
Equally distressing is the potential
impact of the Drinking Water
Systems Regulation, which
according to the Perth County
Federation brief, comes from the
Ontario government's "arrogant
attitude that all water in rural areas is
not good enough for the general
public". Rural halls, churches, parks,
arenas and other facilities will be
targeted by this legislation, and the
fear is it will have a devastating
effect on rural sustainability.
"This puts an (unmanageable) cost
on these facilities and they will no
longer be able to remain open," said
Vorstenbosch. "This legislation will
be the death of our rural
communities that do not have access
to urban water systems."
The meeting brief also outlined
the process by which many
communities will fade and die.
"Once you eliminate our
swimming pools, parks, churches
(and) meeting halls, and no longer
allow us to provide home baked pies
and home style meals but force us to
urban centres, we have lost our rural
identity."
38 THE RURAL VOICE
John Wilkinson, MPP for Perth -
Middlesex who missed the morning
portion of the meeting while he was
in Hamilton attending the funeral of
fellow MPP Dominic Agostino,
responded: first about Bill 81, then
source water protection, and finally
about what he called, "these crazy
rules that they're imposing on
testing everything, everyday."
On Bill 81, Wilkinson said all
parties had agreed that since society
benefits from the legislation, society
should have to bear its fair share of
the costs. In spite of that pledge,
however, Wilkinson deferred any
comment on specifics on funding for
implementation until after the
provincial budget is brought down,
either late in April or early in May.
He acknowledged the uncertainty on
costs and the time -line involved.
"I don't want anyone to get the
impression that somehow, we are
going soft on Bill 81 — we are not,"
said Wilkinson. "As far as I'm
concerned, the real issue is more of
money."
On Source Water Protection,
Wilkinson suggested only that
farmers go to the Environmental Bill
of Rights website to read the
document and comment on it.
As for the Drinking Water
Systems Regulation, he noted that
Environment Minister Leona
Dombrowsky understands how
ridiculous the legislation is, being a
member from a rural riding. But
there is a bigger picture involved, he
added.
"There are things that we can do
as a government to make sure the
water is safe. If someone gets
infected because of tainted water, it
doesn't matter where you are in
Ontario," said Wilkinson, adding that
someone could be infected in one
location and drive to another,
carrying the condition with them and
infecting others. "That's why we
have to have source protection."
He also cited more cost-efficient
methods of testing, including ultra-
violet technology.
But he assured those at the
meeting, the government„ is
committed to being practical as to
how this regulation is implemented.
And, if a community in the riding is
having problems with certification,
they need to contact him, directly.
"The key thing here is that we all
have to sing from the same hymn
sheet, in Ontario, particularly in
urban Ontario," said Wilkinson,
acknowledging the need for fair
implementation and compensation.
"We don't want to be perceived in
the other parts of Ontario as
somehow being soft about safe
water."
Perth Federation Secretary Agnes
Denham noted community centres
and church halls can by-pass the
regulations by posting a sign that the
water in the facility is not potable.
"My problem with that is, that the
water is safe, yet unless we want to
spend the dollars, or can afford to
spend the dollars, we're having to put
a sign up on our church or hall, and
who's going to walk into that
building with that sign on it?" posed
Denham. "We need the funds to
come up to regulations or those
places are going to close."
From a federal perspective,
Schellenberger, a resident of
Sebringville, noted the hamlet's
Community Centre, where the
meeting was held, would be one of
those affected by the proposed
legislation. And over the years, he
charged, the government has
continued to cut funding for such
safekeeping issues. Despite the fact
that twice -annual tests on water
quality show a record of safety, the
provincial government now wants
daily testing on businesses and
facilities like the Sebringville
Community Centre. And that, he
said, was not feasible.0
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