Summary
Take the issue of "grey water" and the Manitoba cottager. Grey water is the relatively benign water from showers and sinks as opposed to the more problematic "black water," which is basically raw sewage.
In 2005 officialdom effectively decreed that new cottages could not use grey water septic fields to treat domestic grey water. Properly designed and maintained, grey water septic fields are economic and efficient treatment systems. "Black water" must be trucked to water treatment facilities, mostly open air lagoons where after "primary treatment" the residue is released into natural water systems. On the surface, discouraging grey water leakage into natural water systems seems reasonable. Soapy grey water can contain phosphates -- a prime culprit behind Lake Winnipeg's algae problems. Now there is chatter about banning existing grey water fields used by thousands of cottagers. If only it was that simple. The grey water ban has produced unintended consequences with worse environmental outcomes.See the full content of this document
Extract
Lessons From Cottage Country
How to rescue Lake Winnipeg with better public policy
Peter HolleLAKE Winnipeg is in trouble due to record algae blooms caused by an excess of nutrients, primarily phosphorus, entering the lake. The province has reacted with new rules and regulations and has forced the city of Winnipeg to make costly waste water treatment system imp...See the full content of this document
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