Lack of funding putting Ontario's water at risk

TORONTO — Ontario risks compromising the safety of its tap water because many small towns and cities lack the resources to meet proposed stringent new standards for operating drinking water systems, says the head of a task force that two years ago called for a sweeping overhaul of the province's water systems.

“I'm suggesting specifically they're running higher risks on public health than we should be willing to tolerate,” Harry Swain, chairman of the Water Strategy Expert Panel, said in an interview.

Seven years after the Walkerton tainted-water tragedy claimed seven lives and left thousands ill, many Ontario residents have something new to worry about – lead in their tap water.

Last week, the province's Environment Ministry ordered 36 cities and towns to test older homes – typically those built before 1955 – for possible lead contamination in their drinking water. The order went out after high levels of lead were found in one in four homes tested in London.

The lead levels were detected even after flushing, which typically replaces water that has come in contact with lead pipes. Lead poses a health risk for pregnant women and young children. The order says excessive corrosion of pipes may be causing lead to leach into the water in other municipalities, including Toronto.

Opposition members have criticized the government's response as woefully inadequate because the testing is confined to 20 single-family homes in each municipality. Progressive Conservative MPP Laurie Scott asked in Question Period this week why the government was not testing the water in more homes and also in schools and hospitals.

“It's as if the Keystone Cops are running the Ministry of the Environment,” Ms. Scott said.

Environment Minister Laurel Broten said she wasn't going to accept advice from the Tories, which left the province with the Walkerton legacy.

New Democrat MPP Peter Tabuns criticized the government for not moving faster.

“You've got a big problem with lead and you've got a bigger looming problem with water quality because the infrastructure is not getting funding that's needed,” he said.

The problem has hit close to home. This week, politicians and staff in the Ontario legislature were told not to drink the water because lead has been detected in the 114-year-old building's tap water.

Worried homeowners in Toronto have inundated city hall with calls. Lou Di Gironimo, general manager of Toronto Water, said 500 homeowners have requested water tests since the order went out, up from 50 in the first four months of this year. The city plans to meet every one of those requests, he said.

About nine per cent of the 500,000 houses in Toronto have water pipes made of lead, according to an internal briefing prepared by Mr. Di Gironimo's office. Six of 86 homes tested this year had elevated lead levels in their tap water.

Mr. Swain said he is troubled the Ontario government has not acted on a key recommendation of the panel that water utilities be consolidated. A water utility ideally should have at least 30,000 customers to give it the economies of scale to provide safe and affordable water. However, Ontario had about 640 water utilities serving fewer than 10,000 customers, according to a 2002 tally done by the Environment Ministry.

Under the government's proposal to ensure that drinking water is safe, municipal drinking water systems will need to meet quality management standards, including enhanced training for operators, before they can obtain an operating licence.

Pat Vanini, executive director of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, said it does not make sense to amalgamate water utilities that are geographically isolated. Many municipalities are strapped for funding because the previous Progressive Conservative government shifted responsibility for many services to them, she said.

“If we could resolve the $3-billion-plus in downloading, that would add some financial capacity for municipalities to invest in services,” she said.

Amy Tang, a spokeswoman for Infrastructure Renewal Minister David Caplan, said the government needs to be flexible in implementing the panel's recommendations. “Some municipalities have been very good at investing in their water systems, others have not,” she said.
Source :http://www.theglobeandmail.com