Waterloo Region council votes to rescind water taking policy with Wilmot

CTV’s Heather Senoran breaks down the decision from the Region of Waterloo to rescind an agreement with Wilmot that has been in place for more than 40 years.

Region of Waterloo councillors have voted to scrap a policy from 1980 that limits how much water can be drawn from Wilmot Township.

The motion passed by a vote of eight to five as the region continues to face a potential water supply shortage that is currently putting a damper on development.

“I think we’re maintaining a policy that is completely outdated,” regional councillor Colleen James said ahead of the vote.

Wilmot Mayor Natasha Salonen disagreed.

“I, personally, do not agree with the interpretation that the 1980 council policy needs to be rescinded or removed in any capacity to allow for this flow of 30 litres per second,” Salonen said.

• TIMELINE: Water capacity concerns in Waterloo Region

The decision to rescind the policy was previously deferred twice as councillors considered options to boost the region’s water supply. In the meantime, development has ground to a halt until a long-term solution is found.

Meanwhile, officials and residents in Wilmot urged council to consider the local implications.

“What I was looking for is a balanced approach to enabling development right away,” Salonen said during an interview with CTV News on Wednesday after the meeting. “Build a bridge, essentially a solution, while we further investigate the very legitimate concerns that people have raised in the community and then reassess all of this with the new water supply strategy that is supposed to be a strategy for the entire integrated system.”

The Region of Waterloo said protecting the drinking water supply in a safe and sustainable way is a top priority.

“Regional Council supported a staff recommendation to rescind the 1980 Wilmot Policy to allow the transfer of about 30 litres/second of water to be permanently allocated to the [Mannheim Service Area]. Even after this allocation, enough capacity remains in Wilmot for current and future growth,” a regional spokesperson told CTV News.

Going forward, regional staff will be providing updates to the public about the water capacity shortage during special council meetings each month.

A larger strategy to deal with the water capacity problem is expected to be ready in 2027.