Municipality
The Town of Minto provides clean, safe drinking water to more than 2,108 people in the Harriston area. Your positive actions can help to keep that water safe and clean.
Impacts of Plans
Your local source protection committee, for the Maitland Valley and Ausable Bayfield areas, has prepared drinking water source protection plans. The Province of Ontario has approved these plans which took effect in April of 2015.
These plans help to keep your drinking water safe. Plan policies may require action from you if you are located in municipal wellhead protection area (WHPA) zone A, B or C. Please click on the map link for wellhead protection areas. Please visit our Plans page for information on policies and their impacts.
Information
Current information is available by visiting the Assessment Reports section of this website. The following is for local information purposes and may be subject to change.
Your Community Well System
The following is a description of the Harriston well system:
Well Description
- There are three municipal wells located in Harriston.
- Well Number One is located at 117-131 King Street
- Well Number Two is located at 124 John Street
- Well Number Three is located at 107 King Street
- The three municipal wells and the wellhead protection areas are located in the Maitland Valley Source Protection Area.
- Harriston Well Number One was constructed in the early 1930s.
- Harriston Well Number Two was built in 1961.
- Harriston Well Number Three was built in 1998.
- Well One Depth: 61 metres
- Well Two Depth: 59 metres
- Well Two Depth: 56.6 metres
Where Does the Water Come From?
The three municipal wells draw groundwater from an aquifer. Aquifers collect water underground much like a sponge collects water. The municipality draws that water from underground through the municipal wells.
How is the Water Treated and Distributed?
The Town of Minto uses chlorination and iron sequestration to treat the water. Operators must adhere to strict requirements for the treatment, testing and distribution of drinking water specified in the Safe Drinking Water Act. Ontario Drinking Water Quality Standards require compliance.
How is the Drinking Water Source Protected?
Ontario’s Clean Water Act, 2006 was created to protect drinking water at the source as the first of several barriers of protection. Other barriers of defence include monitoring, distribution, and the three Ts (testing; treatment; and training of water operators).
The Harriston wells are designed to the following capacity:
Design Capacity
- Well Number One design capacity is 11.3 litres per second
- Well Number Two design capacity is 23.9 litres per second
- Well Number Three design capacity is 18.9 litres per second
- Well Number One design capacity is 976 cubic metres per day
- Well Number Two design capacity is 2,065 cubic metres per day
- Well Number Three design capacity is 1,633 cubic metres per day
Use
- Well Number One average use is 5.5 litres per second
- Well Number Two average use is 5.6 litres per second
- Well Number Three average use is 5.96 litres per second
- Well Number One average use is 475 cubic metres per day
- Well Number Two average use is 485.3 cubic metres per day
- Well Number Three average use is 514.9 cubic metres per day
Ontario Drinking Water Standards (ODWS): Ontario Drinking Water Standards were met in 100 per cent of the tests from April 1, 2011 to March 31, 2012.
If there is a discrepancy between the information included here and the Approved Amended Assessment Reports, the information in the Assessment Reports usually prevails.
Contact us with your questions, by phone or email, or click on your community link to find maps and information on policy impacts, and how you can help to keep your community’s drinking water safe and clean. Thank you.
