Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment

What will the CCME strategy address?

The federal/provincial/territorial governments will work in partnership to ensure that municipal wastewater effluents do not pose unacceptable risks to citizens and their environment, through a harmonized approach to the management of municipal wastewater effluents. As a result, Canadian municipalities will be leaders in municipal wastewater management.

The strategy, which will be developed within three years, will also take into account the significant costs that Canadian municipalities will face to implement it. The implementation of the strategy will be phased to suit appropriate financial planning.

What is municipal wastewater?

Municipal wastewater refers to the contents of sewer systems. It can be made up of both sanitary sewage and stormwater, and can contain suspended solids, disease-causing pathogens, decaying organic wastes, nutrients and over 200 identified chemicals from industries, institutions, households and other sources.

Municipal wastewater is released to lakes, rivers and oceans, usually after some level of treatment to remove pollutants. Across the country, a high proportion of the population is served by wastewater sewer collection and treatment systems.

Wastewater systems are designed to collect and treat wastes, however, treatment before release ranges considerably. Furthermore, some sewer collection systems and treatment systems can be overloaded during heavy rainfalls, resulting in the release of partially treated effluent.

Most wastewater systems in Canada are owned and operated by municipalities but some are owned or operated by provinces, territories, federal departments and agencies.

Why are wastewater effluents harmful to the environment?

Scientists have documented a number of environmental and health impacts from wastewater effluents. These impacts include negative effects on fish and wildlife populations, oxygen depletion, beach closures and other restrictions on recreational water use, restrictions on fish and shellfish harvesting and consumption, and restrictions on drinking water consumption.

Emerging science indicates that other substances such as some pharmaceutical and personal care products, primarily entering the environment in wastewater effluents, may also pose threats to human health, aquatic life and wildlife. A number of scientific studies are currently being conducted on the emerging issue of non-traditional contaminants in water, such as pharmaceuticals.

Who is responsible for taking action on wastewater effluents?

All orders of government are concerned about the environmental and health impacts of wastewater. The existing regimes for the management of wastewater effluents vary across the country.

Provinces and territories are responsible for the management of wastewater systems, and have made considerable investments to address municipal wastewater in recent years and have achieved significant progress in reducing pollution from wastewaters. Legislation relating to municipal/industrial wastewater is in place in all jurisdictions, and operators of wastewater systems in all jurisdictions are required to seek approval from their governments for licensing/permitting of operational discharge limits.

The federal government’s roles and responsibilities include its obligations under the Fisheries Act, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act 1999, and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. The federal government is also responsible for the management of wastewater systems on federal lands and Aboriginal lands. In addition, certain municipalities administer sewer use by-laws that control the disposal of specific substances into the wastewater collection system. This situation can be confusing and difficult to manage for those who own or operate municipal treatment facilities.

The CCME provides a good forum for the various jurisdictions to work together to develop a harmonized approach for the management of municipal wastewater effluents that will address both governance and technical issues.