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Overview
Alberta Environment and Parks gathered feedback from waterworks operators on proposed updates to modernize the Potable Water Regulation under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act and ensure all Albertans have continued access to clean, safe drinking water.
Stakeholder feedback helped inform 2 areas of proposed changes:
- Standards for Micro Waterworks Systems – an online survey and 2 webinars provided opportunities for operators/owners of very small waterworks systems to share feedback on a new approach to regulating small non-municipal waterworks systems that would offer size and risk-appropriate regulations.
- The Maximum Acceptable Concentration for naturally occurring fluoride in groundwater – drinking water operators/owners expected to be affected by proposed changes met with government one-on-one to discuss aligning this standard with other regulated waterworks systems in Alberta and current Health Canada guidelines.
The Alberta government regulates approximately 700 water treatment and distribution systems that provide drinking for water for more than 85% of Albertans.
Timeline
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Open
Survey closed February 11, 2022
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Results under review
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Completed
Who is listening
Ministry of Environment and Parks
Input received
Online survey
Operators and owners of very small waterworks systems were invited to provide feedback on the proposed Standards for Micro Waterworks Systems through an online survey from January 11 to February 11 2022.
One-on-one meetings
Drinking water operators and owners expected to be affected by proposed changes to the Maximum Acceptable Concentration for naturally-occurring fluoride in groundwater were invited to schedule one-on-one meetings with government.
Resources
Learn more about the Potable Water Regulation engagement:
- Watch: Recorded webinar on the proposed Standards for Micro Waterworks Systems
- Water Regulatory System Overview Fact Sheet
- Updates to the Potable Water Regulation: Regulatory Approach for Micro Waterworks Fact Sheet
- Updates to the Potable Water Regulation: High Quality Groundwater (HQGW) and Fluoride Fact Sheet
Next steps
A code of practice is currently being developed to accompany the standards. An opportunity to review the draft code of practice and provide feedback will be made available in Summer 2022. Stakeholders will be notified of this opportunity via email. Stakeholder feedback on the draft code of practice will help inform and clarify the operational requirements for micro waterworks systems, and inform implementation planning.
Outcomes
Feedback collected informed the Potable Water Regulation and Standards for Micro Waterworks Systems, which will support very small systems in providing high quality potable water. The updated standards are available online as of June 2022, and print copies of the updated standards are available upon request.
Feedback was also received on the implementation of changes to the maximum acceptable concentration of fluoride in systems using high quality groundwater. This feedback was key to ensuring that the implementation process and timelines for this change were reasonable.