The Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) has approved updated source protection plans and assessment reports for the Ausable Bayfield and Maitland Valley source protection areas.

The plans, updated with approved new amendments, took effect on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 when they were posted on the Environmental Registry of Ontario.
 

Download the Notice of Amendments (March 26, 2024) from the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley Source Protection Region – 300 KB (medium-sized) PDF file.

To read or download the updated source protection plans or assessment reports please visit the source protection plan web page.

The locally developed, provincially approved source protection plans were first approved in 2015 and were later amended in 2019 and now 2024.

The Honourable Andrea Khanjin is Ontario’s Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. In a March 2024 letter to the source protection region and source protection authorities, she said “I appreciate the dedication of the local municipalities, source protection authorities and committees, and all our partners and stakeholders for their work and contributions to these updates.”

The Minister said that, “Our strong protection framework will continue to help ensure Ontario’s drinking water is held to high safety standards and that sources of drinking water in the province are protected for future generations.”

Matt Pearson, Chair of the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley (ABMV) Source Protection Committee (SPC), commented that “ … the Committee continues to provide oversight on source water protection for municipal drinking water supplies – their input is locally based and this helps keep the plans relevant and up-to-date.”

The updates were completed under Section 36 of Ontario Regulation 287/07 under the Ontario Clean Water Act, 2006.

Key changes include the following:

Eighty-nine local people brought 111 well water samples to a Water Wise well water sampling event hosted by Kirkton-Woodham Optimist Club.

The Water Wise event was held on February 27, 2024 at Kirkton-Woodham Community Centre. The Optimists hosted the event in partnership with Huron Perth Public Health and Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley and Thames-Sydenham source protection regions.

Event organizers made it easier for well owners to get their well water tested by providing bottles ahead of time and delivering the collected samples for testing. 

The Kirkton-Woodham Optimists distributed 370 sample bottle kits to local well owners, with the help of Kirkton Market, Kirkton Library, Woodham Post Office, and Exeter Library. They also distributed the sample bottles at the recent Family Day breakfast and with delivery to rural mailboxes. Well and septic experts were available, at the Water Wise event, to answer questions and provide information on maintaining well and septic systems. 

The Optimists hosted the event to make it easier for local people to get their well water tested. Water sampling and testing is a key step in ensuring water is safe for you, your family, guests, your neighbours, and your community, according to source protection region staff. Anyone who picked up a bottle or had one delivered but missed the event can still take it to one of several public health locations for testing.

The source protection regions initiated these events because only a small percentage of people with residential private wells in this area test their wells. The idea behind these events is that people know water testing is important but they might find it inconvenient. Region staff say that, if water sampling of private wells is made easier, more people will do it.

The local Water Wise events began in August of 2023, partnering with lakeshore residents and resident associations and Lions clubs in Dublin, Monkton, Goderich, and Londesborough and now partnering with Kirkton-Woodham Optimists. The six Water Wise events have been attended by almost 300 people with more than 870 water sampling bottles distributed and 325 water sampling bottles returned to Huron Perth Public Health for testing.

To learn more, visit the local drinking water source protection best practices web page. 

You may also watch the Your Well, Your Responsibility video featuring Doug Hocking, Source Protection Committee member, with tips on protecting the water in your well. 

The region is sharing information about the Water Wise events on social media with #BestPractices and #WellWise and #WaterWise and #TestProtectMaintain hashtags.

The Chair of the Ausable Bayfield Maitland Valley (ABMV) Drinking Water Source Protection Committee (SPC), Matt Pearson, expressed his condolences, and condolences on behalf of the entire committee, on the passing of committee member and agricultural representative Bert Dykstra.

“I am deeply saddened to inform you of the passing of our friend and committee member Bert Dykstra on Tuesday, March 12, 2024,” Matt said.

Matt remembered Bert as ” … a loving family man, a successful farmer, and a community champion.”

Bert leaves behind his wife Nellie and a large family including 15 grandchildren.

He ran a cash crop and a chicken broiler operation near Clinton for most of his life. He believed in good agricultural practices and protecting the environment.

“Many of us have had the pleasure of working with Bert on various committees and through local politics,” Chair Matt said. “He was a past member of the Central Huron Council for two decades and a past Warden of Huron County. As the Chair of the Huron County Water Protection Steering Committee for three years he was quite proud of their achievements.”

Chair Matt remembered Bert as a friendly and helpful person. “Bert’s smile walked into the room before he did,” Matt said.

The SPC Chair said Bert represented the agriculture sector on the source protection committee and was a source of considerable knowledge in the committee’s deliberations.

Bert’s contribution to the source protection region’s public education video series is captured in the following segment:

Chair Matt said ” … I was lucky enough to have known Bert personally for many years,” and “He will be missed.”

For those who knew Bert, and for those who did not have the honour of meeting him or knowing him, here is the memorial notice:

 The Municipality of Central Huron also paid tribute to this community leader:

We will miss you, Bert. Your legacy of family and community service will live on.