Halton has released further water system capacity for Georgetown and Acton.
The regional municipality, which operates water and sewer systems throughout Halton, has released 300 single detached equivalents (SDE) worth each to Georgetown and Acton, or the amount of water equivalent to what would be consumed by those in 600 single detached homes.
According to a staff report from Halton Hills Director of Development Review Jeff Markowiak, this was done in order to meet “anticipated near future demands” in Georgetown and “due to impending deficits” in Acton.
“The amount of new development that is anticipated in Acton has nearly used up all of the servicing capacity that had been allocated to the town by the region,” he told HaltonHillsToday.
Meanwhile, it's anticipated that the majority of future residential development projects requiring this water allocation in Georgetown will occur within the built boundary.
Georgetown and Acton are part of what's called the Credit Valley-Toronto and Region-Central Lake Ontario (CTC) Source Protection Region (SPR). It contains 25 watersheds and spans over 10,000 sq. km. Both towns currently get their water from groundwater aquifers in this region.
Georgetown South will eventually switch over to lake water piped in from Lake Ontario, which Halton Commissioner of Public Works Andrew Farr said will alleviate any contraints on the Georgetown municipal well system. The Region anticipates the transition will take place sometime in 2024. Acton will continue to be fully serviced by municipal wells.
“There will be no change to the amount of water drawn from the groundwater aquifer,” Markowiak added. “The transition has effectively occurred. We now have those SDEs and we would just start allocating that to projects as they materialize."
In 2014, Halton allocated 1,800 SDEs worth of water to Georgetown. About 1,500 SDEs have already been released, with the current 300 SDEs representing the remainder of that amount.
“The Region has suggested that the Ministry of Environment will not issue any further permits to take groundwater for Georgetown and that no additional capacity will be available for Georgetown until the lake-based transfer for South Georgetown occurs,” notes Markowiak in his report.
The 300 SDEs for Acton were made available as a result of service and infrastructure upgrades completed by the Region over the past few years, noted Markowiak.
“We continue to work to ensure all residents and businesses have reliable access to safe drinking water, including Georgetown and Acton,” Farr said. “To ensure continued supply and to best support growth and development, Halton Region continually monitors both the well systems and the water distribution system to ensure water demand is consistent with growth projections.”
