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Provincial Departments and Municipal Agencies

The provincial governments and the Yukon have the primary jurisdiction over most areas of water management and protection. The federal government has responsibilites for managing water in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.

In many cases provincial authority for certain aspects of water regulation have been delegated to municipalities, especially the drinking water treatment and distribution and wastewater treatment operations of urban areas. Some water resource management functions may also be delegated to local authorities that may be responsible for a particular area or river basin.

Major uses of water in Canada are generally permitted or licensed under provincial water management authorities. Licensing of the water withdrawal from a source that originates and stays within a province falls under the constitutional authority of that province. Licensing requirements for a water withdrawal vary from province to province and the provincial agencies responsible for licensing should be contacted.

Approval under various federal and provincial regulatory acts is required prior to undertaking construction activities in any water body or diverting surface or groundwater for use.

All provinces also have acts and regulations that address water quality issues. The regulations relate to water and sewage treatment, well construction and testing, protection of watersheds, alteration to water courses, wetland protection and drainage activities. There are also regulations on other activities that, although not directly connected to water, can have an impact on water quality (e.g. storage of pesticides, fuels, manure etc).

The following menu links to information on the typical responsibilities of key provincial government departments and to provincial information on legislation, and the licensing and approval process.

Typical Responsibilities of Key Provincial Departments
Provincial Links

Typical Responsibilities of Key Provincial Departments

Similar to the federal government, there are many provincial departments and agencies that have some vested interest or are involved in water management activities. As well, the primary responsibilities for water resource management typically rest within key provincial departments: environment, health, natural resources, agriculture, and water/watershed agencies.

Provincial Environment Ministries

In the early 1970's the provinces responded to increased public concern for the environment and the creation of the federal Environment Canada in 1971, by creating their own ministries of the environment.

Today the provincial environment departments play a critical role in protection of water resources and granting water licenses in some provinces. The provision of safe drinking water supplies is delegated to local municipal governments but provincial Environment departments retain the legislative responsibility to ensure that local municipalities (including towns and cities) deliver safe drinking water to citizens.

Provincial Health Ministries

"Provincial Health departments are responsible for health programming and safeguarding the health of provincial citizens, including the prevention of waterborne diseases. In the event of municipal water quality problems that threaten the safety of drinking water, provincial health departments take actions to safeguard public health of the affected communities." ¹

Provincial Natural Resources Ministries

Provincial natural resources departments are generally involved in the development of the natural resources (e.g. minerals, pertroleum, forestry, fisheries) and their commercial use.

Provincial Agriculture Ministries

Provincial agricultural departments are involved in providing assistance and programming to help the agricultural sector and rural economies maintain profitability and sustainability.

Provincial Water/Watershed Agencies

"Provincial Watershed Authorities, Offices of Drinking Water, Water Services Boards or Corporations, Clean Water Agencies (names and functions vary) are generally unique to each province. Many of these provincial departments or agencies have either been created or modified to address water quality issues that were identified by two recent, and serious, waterborne disease outbreaks in Canada. Provincial watershed agencies are generally designed to facilitate watershed and integrated water resource management activities. Provincial water boards or corporations are generally designed to develop, operate and maintain water supply infrastructure, often delivering water to rural regions or smaller communities with regional distribution in mind." ¹

Municipal Government

"Other levels of local government such as municipalities also have a role in water management. Water and wastewater distribution and treatment systems are typically owned and operated by municipal or local governments (i.e. communities). Local by-laws often impact water management in areas such as water conservation, land use approvals, industrial and municipal solid and liquid waste disposal, etc. Rural municipalities are often involved in water projects. Throughout the prairies, many tank loading facilities are constructed by rural municipalities. These are untreated water supplies where clients (e.g. farmers) may collect water in large tanks, and haul water by truck for storage and use on farms." ¹