Source water is untreated water from streams, lakes, or underground aquifers that people use to supply private wells and public drinking water systems. Source water protection is about protecting both the quality and the quantity of these water sources, now and into the future.

Source water protection is the first of five barriers to protect drinking water and human health. This multi-barrier approach to prevent contamination of sources of our water also includes using adequate water treatment and distribution systems, water testing and the training of water managers and staff. While it is important to ensure we have safe water treatment and distributions systems, it is more effective and cost efficient if we take the first steps to care for our lakes, rivers, and streams and preventing their initial contamination.

The best way to protect sources of water is on a watershed basis because water flows across traditional boundaries such as towns and cities. Conservation Authorities are the only watershed management agencies in Ontario that are organized on a watershed basis.

The CTC is a source protection region as described in O. Reg. 284/07 under the Clean Water Act. The region is made up of three source protection areas: Credit Valley, Toronto and Region, and Central Lake Ontario.

Credit Valley Conservation, Toronto and Region Conservation, and Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority have been working together on drinking water source protection (DWSP) activities under memoranda of agreement since 2004 when draft legislation for source protection planning first appeared. Under the regulations of the Clean Water Act the three

conservation authorities now become source protection authorities and will continue to work collaboratively on Drinking Water Source Protection.

Copyright © 2007 Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority, All Rights Reserved.
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