Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act, 2010, S.O. 2010, c. 19 - Bill 72

JurisdictionOntario
Date29 November 2010
Bill Number72

EXPLANATORY NOTE

This Explanatory Note was written as a reader’s aid to Bill 72 and does not form part of the law. Bill 72 has been enacted as Chapter 19 of the Statutes of Ontario, 2010.

The Bill enacts the Water Opportunities Act, 2010 and amends other Acts in respect of water conservation and other matters.

Schedule 1 to the Bill enacts the Water Opportunities Act, 2010. Its principal features include the following:

1. Part I of the Act provides that the purposes of the Act are to foster innovative water, wastewater and stormwater technologies, services and practices in the private and public sectors, to create opportunities for economic development and clean-technology jobs in Ontario, and to conserve and sustain water resources for present and future generations. To further the purposes of the Act, the Minister of the Environment may establish aspirational targets in respect of the conservation of water and other matters.

2. Part II of the Act establishes a corporation without share capital named the Water Technology Acceleration Project. The objects of the corporation include:

i. assisting in promoting the development of Ontario’s water and wastewater sectors,

ii. assisting Ontario’s water and wastewater sectors by increasing their capacity to develop, test, demonstrate and commercialize innovative technologies and services for the treatment and management of water and wastewater,

iii. assisting Ontario’s water and wastewater sectors by increasing their capacity to expand their business opportunities nationally and internationally,

iv. providing a forum for governments, the private sector and academic institutions to exchange information and ideas on how to make Ontario a leading jurisdiction in the development and commercialization of innovative technologies and services for the treatment and management of water and wastewater,

v. encouraging collaboration and co-operation in Ontario’s water and wastewater sectors, and

vi. if requested by the Minister of Research and Innovation, assisting in the development of certification, labelling and verification programs for water and wastewater technologies and services.

3. Part III of the Act requires certain municipalities, persons and entities to prepare, approve and submit to the Minister of the Environment municipal water sustainability plans for municipal water services, municipal wastewater services and municipal stormwater services under their jurisdiction. The Minister may establish performance indicators and targets for those services. The performance indicators and targets may vary for different municipal service providers and areas of the Province. The Minister may require a regulated entity to review and evaluate the performance of a municipal service under its jurisdiction with reference to applicable performance indicators and targets. If a regulated entity does not achieve an applicable performance target, the Minister may invite the regulated entity to provide information on the strategies and steps to be taken by the regulated entity to achieve the target and may direct the regulated entity to amend its municipal water sustainability plan to incorporate strategies and steps to assist the regulated entity in achieving the target.

4. Part IV of the Act authorizes the making of regulations requiring public agencies (including municipalities and ministries of the Government of Ontario),

i. to prepare water conservation plans,

ii. to achieve water conservation targets established by the regulations, and

iii. when acquiring goods and services or making capital investments, to consider technologies, services and practices that promote the efficient use of water and reduce negative impacts on Ontario’s water resources.

5. Part V of the Act authorizes the making of regulations prescribing information that must or may be included on or with a municipal water bill.

6. Part VI of the Act requires the Minister of the Environment, at least once every three years, to prepare a report on various matters related to the Bill.

7. Part VII of the Act contains general regulation-making powers.

8. Part VIII of the Act contains amendments relating to Bill 65 (Not-for-Profit Corporations Act, 2010).

9. Part IX of the Act provides for its commencement and short title.

Schedule 2 to the Bill amends the Building Code Act, 1992. New subsection 34 (7) of the Act requires the Minister to initiate reviews of the building code with reference to standards for water conservation, at five-year intervals. Section 34.1 of the Act is amended to continue the Building Code Energy Advisory Council as the Building Code Conservation Advisory Council and to expand the scope of its mandate to include advising the Minister on the building code with reference to standards for water conservation.

Schedule 3 to the Bill amends the Capital Investment Plan Act, 1993. The amendments include revising the objects of the Ontario Clean Water Agency to include,

1. assisting municipalities, the Government of Ontario and other persons or bodies to provide water and sewage works and other related services by financing, planning, developing, building and operating those works and providing those services,

2. financing and promoting the development, testing, demonstration and commercialization of technologies and services for the treatment and management of water, wastewater and stormwater,

3. carrying out the activities described above in Ontario and elsewhere in a manner that protects human health and the environment and encourages the conservation of water resources, and

4. with respect to activities described above that are carried out in Ontario, carrying them out in a manner that supports provincial policies for land use and settlement.

Schedule 4 to the Bill amends the Green Energy Act, 2009 to add principles relating to water and water use to the principles that guide the Government of Ontario in constructing, acquiring, operating and managing government facilities. The power to issue directives is also expanded to include directives related to water use, water conservation and the adoption of technologies and services that promote the efficient use of water and reduce negative impacts on Ontario’s water resources.

Schedule 5 to the Bill amends the Ontario Water Resources Act to prohibit the sale or lease of appliances and products prescribed by regulation unless they meet efficiency standards or requirements prescribed by regulation and are labelled to confirm compliance with those standards or requirements. These amendments to the Ontario Water Resources Act essentially re-enact provisions that Schedule 4 removes from the Green Energy Act, 2009.

chapter 19

An Act to enact the Water Opportunities Act, 2010 and to amend other Acts in respect of water conservation and other matters

Assented to November 29, 2010

Preamble

Water sustains life. Wise stewardship and conservation of water, for both the present generation and for future generations, are of great importance to all Ontarians. The name of Ontario has its roots in the words of a number of aboriginal languages that describe a “beautiful lake”.

Ontario has already shown leadership by banning bulk transfers of water out of Ontario’s water basins and in safeguarding public water supplies from source to tap. A new way of thinking about conserving our water resources is needed in Ontario, one that builds on the critical linkages between economic prosperity and long-term environmental sustainability.

The creation of a new organization for water excellence will be a catalyst for the development and sale of innovative water technologies and services for domestic and international markets. Through this initiative and a strengthened focus on water conservation, Ontario has the opportunity to become a North American leader in driving innovation and creating new economic opportunities in the water and wastewater sectors.

All sectors of Ontario have a role to play in creating this opportunity. Individuals can change their behaviour by using less water and can choose water conserving technologies when they consider the purchase of new appliances and products. Industry, governments and academia can work together to develop innovative water solutions. Municipalities are responsible for providing municipal water, wastewater and stormwater services and can benefit from the use of innovative technologies, services and practices.

Therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:

Contents of Act

1. This Act consists of this section, sections 2 and 3 and the Schedules to this Act.

Commencement

2. (1) Subject to subsection (2), this Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Schedules

(2) The Schedules to this Act come into force as provided in each Schedule.

Different dates for same Schedule

(3) If a Schedule to this Act or any portion of a Schedule to this Act provides that it is to come into force on a day to be named by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor, the proclamation may apply to the whole or any portion of the Schedule, and proclamations may be issued at different times as to any portion of the Schedule.

Short title

3. The short title of this Act is the Water Opportunities and Water Conservation Act, 2010.

Schedule 1
waTer Opportunities act, 2010

______________

part i
purposes and targets

Purposes

1. (1) The purposes of this Act are,

(a) to foster innovative water, wastewater and stormwater technologies, services and practices in the private and public sectors;

(b) to create opportunities for economic development and clean-technology jobs in Ontario; and

(c) to conserve and sustain water resources for present and future generations.

Same

(2) For greater certainty, the purposes of this Act do not include the privatization...

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