The Township of Whitewater Region, in partnership with the Ontario Clean Water Agency (OCWA), is committed to providing clean, safe drinking water to all residents, businesses and institutions of Beachburg, Cobden and Haley Town Site who are serviced by drinking water systems.
The Ontario Clean Water Agency operates the Townships drinking water systems in accordance with system classification and legislative requirements. Treatment plant and distribution network operation, monitoring, sampling and analytical testing is carried out by licensed operators as well as accredited laboratories.
Cobden, Beachburg and Haley Town Site systems operate under Drinking Water System Licenses, Permits to Take Water, Drinking Water Works Permits and the same standard of care under the Drinking Water Quality Management System.
The Financial Plan is a key component under the Municipal Drinking Water Licensing Program.
The Municipal Drinking Water Licensing Program requires drinking water system owners to prepare a Financial Plan in accordance with the requirements of Ontario Regulation 453/07. The main objective of this regulation is for municipal government to develop a long term strategy to promote financial sustainability of drinking water systems.
The Financial Plan details the system’s projected financial positions, statement of operations and state of cash flow. The Financial Plan forecasts a period of at least six years, and at a minimum, must be updated and approved by Council Resolution prior to submitting a municipal drinking water licence renewal application (i.e. every five years).
Financial Plan
Water and Wastewater Rate Study
Located at 31 Robertson Drive, the Beachburg Drinking Water System utilizes conventional treatment to treat groundwater through coagulation using alum and the precipitation of iron through pre-chlorination, sedimentation and filtration. Pre-chlorination provides primary disinfection and distribution system chlorine residual.
A large dug well serves as the primary water source and a drilled well is utilized for a back-up water source. The Village of Beachburg is serviced by roughly 10 km of distribution line. Treated water is stored in an underground clear well.
The Beachburg Drinking Water System is permitted to treat 973 cubic metres per day and services a population of approximately 900 residents.
Inspection Summary Rating Report
The Cobden Drinking Water System is located at 28 Bonnechere Street. The System treats surface water though conventional treatment consisting of coagulation, flocculation using alum as well as a polymer, sedimentation and filtration through a sand anthracite media. Disinfection is achieved by post and post trim chlorination using sodium hypochlorite.
The raw water intake is located in Muskrat Lake where potassium permanganate is used to control both Zebra Mussels as well as Manganese. The Village of Cobden is serviced by roughly 6 km of distribution line. Treated water is stored in an elevated tank located at 44 Gould Street.
The Cobden Drinking Water System is permitted to treat 1,364 cubic metres per day and services a population of approximately 965 residents.
Inspection Summary Rating Report
Located at 565 Heather Place, the Haley Drinking Water System treats groundwater sourced from 2 drilled wells. The treatment process relies on chlorination utilizing sodium hypochlorite within an underground chlorine contact chamber.
Haley Town Site is serviced by roughly 2 km of water main.
The Haley Drinking Water System is permitted to treat 165 cubic metres per day and services a population of approximately 92 residents.
Inspection Summary Rating Report
Cyanobacteria, commonly called blue-green algae is a bacteria occurring naturally in a wide variety of environments including ponds, rivers, lakes and streams. Blooms of blue-green algae have been reported in various locations throughout Ontario typically during the warmer weather of late summer and fall.
Dense blue-green algal blooms may make the water look like bluish-green or green pea soup or turquoise paint. When the blooms are very dense, they may form solid-looking clumps. Fresh blooms often smell like newly mown grass; older blooms may smell like rotting garbage.
These blooms can irritate skin, cause diarrhea and vomiting if swallowed.
Please note that although blue-green algae has been detected in the Muskrat Lake, the municipal drinking water is treated and still safe to drink. Thorough water sampling has been – and continues to be – conducted on drinking water within the municipal system, and all samples have come back within the normal parameters. There is no public health risk for residents of Cobden who are on the municipal drinking water system.
The following information is available for more details about blue-green algae: FACT SHEET ON BLUE-GREEN ALGAE
Township of Whitewater Region, 44 Main Street, P.O. Box 40, Cobden On K0J 1K0
P: 613-646-2282 - E: info@whitewaterregion.ca
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