Procedure for Disinfection of
Drinking Water in Ontario

Part of the mandate of the Advisory Council on Drinking Water Quality and Testing Standards is to provide advice and make recommendations on matters related the review and development of standards, guidelines, and procedures for drinking water quality and testing in Ontario.

Specifically, the Council, in establishing its own process, chose to review the “Procedure for Disinfection of Drinking Water in Ontario” (Disinfection Procedure) with a view towards providing broad advice on improvements that could be made to enhance and clarify its content and intention. The Disinfection Procedure was posted on the Environmental Registry, for public consultation from April 5, 2005 to June 13, 2005.  See the Posting here.

As well, the Disinfection Procedure, by design, also encompasses three Walkerton Recommendations:

• Recommendation #28: Protozoa Treatment Standard
• Recommendation #29: Recommending a Lower Turbidity Limit
• Recommendation #31: Disinfection By-Products Review

In recommending the creation of this Council, Justice O’Connor also envisioned that the Council be responsible for providing advice on these three matters.  As such, it was decided that a holistic review of the Disinfection Procedure would serve our mandate well.  In fact, all three of the Walkerton recommendations are inter-related and should be considered in the Disinfection Procedure.

The Council’s final Advice Letter on the “Procedure for Disinfection of Drinking Water in Ontario” was transmitted to the Minister of the Environment on September 20, 2005.

The Ministry of the Environment revised the Procedure and posted an updated version in June, 2006, on their website at: http://www.ene.gov.on.ca/envision/gp/4448e01.pdf