That the Communication items A & B from the Township of Pelee be supported:
A) Resolution - Rural and Small urban Municipalities, Affordability of Water and Wastewater Systems
Whereas the Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) (Section 1.6.6.2) states that municipal
sewage services and municipal water services are the preferred form of servicing for
settlement areas to support protection of the environment and minimize potential risks to
human health and safety and that intensification and redevelopment within these settlement
areas should be promoted; and
Whereas the PPS (Section 2.2.1 (f)) states that planning authorities shall protect,
improve, or restore the quality and quantity of water by implementing the necessary
restrictions on development and site alternation to protect all drinking supplies and
designated vulnerable areas, and protect, improve, or restore vulnerable surface and ground
water, sensitive surface water features and sensitive groundwater features, and their
hydrologic functions; and
Whereas the PPS (Sections 2.2.l(h) and (i)) states that there is consideration of
environmental lake capacity as well as stormwater management practices; and
Whereas the Ministry of the Environment, Protection and Conservation (MECP)
Procedural Guideline B-1-5 Policy 2 provision states that water quality which presently
does not meet the Provincial Water Quality Objectives shall not be further degraded and
all practical measures shall be undertaken to upgrade the water quality to the Objectives;
Whereas in 2014 the Township of Whitewater Region authorized Jp2gConsultants Inc. to undertake a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment (EA) for the purpose of evaluating viable options to upgrade the 1979 Cobden Wastewater Treatment Plant. This plant did not meet guidelines for effluent flow into Muskrat Lake and Cobden Wetland being highly sensitive, at capacity, inland lake, and Provincial Significant Wetland (PSW) and acknowledged as one of the most eutrophic in the province. The plant had ongoing seasonal overflow events, and was operating at maximum capacity; and
Whereas in 2018 the Council of the Township of Whitewater Region approved the construction of a new parallel mechanical system that would meet all provincial environmental and regulatory requirements including accommodating future growth. Federal and provincial contributions only covered 50% of the final construction costs, as there was no ability to renegotiate with federal and provincial partners once real costs were known. As a result, the balance of costs ($6M) was debentured over 30 years at interest rates that are slightly punitive to rural and small urban municipalities; and
Whereas in 2019 the Council of the Township of Whitewater Region conducted a Water and Wastewater Rate Study that demonstrated the need for rate increases of over 100% to fund the new wastewater treatment plant construction debenture and the significantly increased operating costs for a parallel mechanical system. Rural and small urban municipalities experience very limited growth as federal and provincial policies heavily support growth in urban centers. As there are no other sources of available operational funding, rural and small urban municipalities are expected to fund the construction and operation of these state-of-the-art systems from existing property owners and nominal forecasted growth;
Whereas in 2023 the Township of Whitewater Region combined water and wastewater rates have risen to almost $3,000/year for its five hundred and eleven (511) users and are among the highest in the County of Renfrew and across the Province of Ontario. There are similarly high user rates in the Township of Madawaska Valley as a result of Provincial regulations and a small number of users. Other examples of rapidly increasing rates include the Towns of Deep River, Renfrew, Arnprior, Laurentian Hills, and Petawawa, and the Townships of Bonnechere Valley, Laurentian Valley and Killaloe, Hagarty and Richards, where significant upgrades in short periods of time are making rates unaffordable even with an increased number of users.
Now therefore be it resolved that the Council of the Town of Tecumseh supports the County of Renfrew and the Township of Pelee's resolution to:
Advocate to the provincial and federal levels of government to make them aware that rural and small urban water and wastewater systems are financially unsustainable; and Advocate to the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO), the Rural Ontario Municipalities Association (ROMA) and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) to examine if the unaffordability of water and wastewater system operational costs is systemic provincially and nationally;
And that a copy of this resolution be circulated to The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario; the Honourable K inga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure (Ontario); the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities (Canada); the Honourable Paul Calandra, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Honourable Andrea Khanjin, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (Ontario), Dave Epp, MP, Chatham-Kent-Leamington; Trevor Jones, MPP, Chatham Kent-Leamington; Irek Kusmierczk, MP, Windsor-Tecumseh, Andrew Dowie, MPP, Windsor-Tecumseh, AMO; ROMA; FCM; and all Municipalities in Ontario.
B.) Resolution - Sustainable Infrastructure Funding for Small Rural Municipalities
Whereas Ontario’s small rural municipalities face insurmountable challenges to fund both
upfront investments and ongoing maintenance of their capital assets including roads and bridges and
water wastewater and municipally owned buildings including recreational facilities and libraries;
And Whereas in 2018, the Ontario government mandated all Ontario municipalities to develop
capital asset management plans with the stipulation that they be considered in the development of the
annual budget;
And Whereas small rural municipalities (of 10,000 people or less) are facing monumental
infrastructure deficits that cannot be adequately addressed through property tax revenue alone;
And Whereas the only application approved through the recently awarded Housing Accelerator
Fund to a small rural municipality was to Marathon Ontario, who received an allocation of $1.9
million dollars while over $1.369 billion going to Ontario’s large urban centres, resulting in a 0.2%
investment in rural Ontario;
And Whereas the Ontario Government has committed $9.1 billion to Toronto alone to assist with
operating deficits and the repatriation of the Don Valley and Gardner Expressway;
And Whereas small rural Ontario cannot keep pace with the capital investments required over
the next 20 years unless both the Provincial and Federal Governments come forward with new
sustainable infrastructure funding;
And Whereas it is apparent that both the Federal and Ontario Governments have neglected to
recognize the needs of small rural Ontario;
Now therefore be it resolved:
That the Council of the Town of Tecumseh hereby support the Township of Pelee and Georgian Bay’s resolution calling on the Ontario and Federal Government to implement sustainable infrastructure funding for small rural municipalities;
And that small rural municipalities are not overlooked and disregarded on future applications
for funding;
And that both the Federal and Ontario Governments begin by acknowledging that there is an
insurmountable debt facing small rural municipalities;
And that both the Federal and Ontario Governments immediately commission a Working Group to
develop a plan on how to deal with the impending debt dilemma;
And that this resolution be forwarded to The Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime
Minister of Canada; The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and
Communities of Canada; Michel Tremblay Acting President and CEO, Canada Mortgage and
Housing Corporation; The Honourable Doug Ford, Premier of Ontario; The Honourable Kinga
Surma, Ontario Minister of Infrastructure; The Honourable Paul Calandra, Ontario Minister of
Municipal Affairs and Housing; MP Dave Epp, Chatham-Kent-Leamington; MPP Trevor Jones,
Chatham-Kent-Leamington; Irek Kusmierczk, MP, Windsor-Tecumseh, Andrew Dowie, MPP, Windsor-Tecumseh, AMO, ROMA, FCM, and all Municipalities in Ontario.