Province commits $25 million to stormwater and wastewater infrastructure improvements
The Ontario government has announced $25 million in funding to build, upgrade and rehabilitate storm and wastewater infrastructure.
The investment includes $15 million over two years to help 18 municipalities improve aging and outdated storm and wastewater infrastructure.
Municipalities can use this funding to build storm and wastewater infrastructure, upgrade sewers and pumping stations and clean out debris from stormwater management ponds.
Among those sharing the funding are the City of Belleville, the Town of Cobourg, the Regional Municipality of Durham, the Town of Greater Napanee, the City of Hamilton, the City of Kawartha Lakes, the City of Kingston, the Regional Municipality of Niagara, and the City of Toronto
Wastewater and stormwater from urban areas can add pollutants, such as phosphorus to lakes and rivers, harming water quality and causing algal blooms. In 2020, 597 tonnes of phosphorus were discharged into Lake Ontario by sewage treatment plants. More than 80 percent of this discharge was in the western part of Lake Ontario.
“Improving wastewater infrastructure is an essential part of maintaining healthy and safe communities," said Infrastructure Minister Kinga Surma. "Investing in these projects will help manage stormwater runoff, sewage overflows, and reduce contaminants from entering our waterways. It's one of the many ways our government is providing greater environmental protection, while building cleaner, more sustainable infrastructure."
The government has also made $10 million available to help 20 municipalities improve monitoring and public reporting capacity of sewage overflows and bypasses.
Municipalities eligible to receive funding from the program include those that have the largest average yearly volume of combined sewage overflows across the province from 2015 to 2019 as reported through the federal Wastewater System Effluent Regulation.
Among them are the Town of Amherstburg, the City of Cornwall, the City of Hamilton, the Town of Hawkesbury, the City of Kingston, the City of London, the Regional Municipality of Niagara, the City of Ottawa, the City of Thunder Bay the City of Toronto, and the City of Windsor.
The funding will also go toward launching a public consultation and releasing a draft guidance document to improve wastewater and stormwater management and water conservation in Ontario.
“I’d like to thank the provincial government for their investment today and for their ongoing commitment to clean water management that will protect our environment now and into the future,” said Hamilton Mayor Fred Eisenberger. “This investment will improve the quality of life for residents and lead to a cleaner future for all.”