About drinking water systems

Non-municipal drinking water systems provide water to people’s homes, such as privately-owned systems that serve apartment buildings, private subdivisions and mobile home parks. They can also provide water to a facility with a susceptible population, such as a day nursery, school or hospital.

The provincial government, through the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, regulates these systems to ensure water safety.

Types of water systems

There are two main types of non-municipal drinking water systems:

Non-municipal year-round residential

These systems supply water on a year-round basis to 6 or more private residences (e.g. apartments, condominium units, townhouses) or trailer parks with 6 or more sites with a water service connection.

Download the guide for non-municipal year-round residential drinking water system

Designated facilities

Facilities that provide drinking water to people who may be more at risk to illness must follow special requirements. Designated facilities include:

  • day nurseries
  • schools or private schools
  • health care facilities
  • children and youth care facilities
  • children’s camps
  • delivery agent care facilities such as emergency shelters
  • senior’s facilities
  • social care facilities
  • universities and colleges

Download the guide for designated facilities.

Visit our resources page to search for more information on non-municipal drinking water systems.

The law

Every owner and operator of a drinking water system must ensure that:

Read the source law below for more drinking water system owner and operator responsibilities.

Source law

Key laws and regulations that apply to non-municipal drinking water system owners and operators are set out in:

How to register a drinking water system and update information

Owners and operators must register drinking water systems and keep information up to date.

For all registrations submit this form:

Drinking Water System Profile Information

Unless you are receiving transported water (since the water has already been treated), you must also submit:

Declaration of Licensed Engineering Practitioner and Notice of Completion

After you submit your registration forms, the ministry will send you an orientation letter with your drinking water system number. Once you have this number, submit this form to inform the ministry about the licensed laboratory you are using for testing:

Laboratory Services Notification

Update your drinking water system information

Any changes to a drinking water system must be submitted within 10 days of the change.

For all updates submit this form:

Drinking Water System Profile Information

If you are making changes to a drinking water system, you must also submit:

Declaration of Licensed Engineering Practitioner and Notice of Completion

If you are adding or changing laboratories, you must also submit:

Laboratory Services Notification

Regulatory relief or permission to split up/fragment your system

To request permission to split up/fragment your system or to obtain relief from regulatory requirements, first read the guides below and then complete and submit the application form.

Read: Guide for Applying for Fragmentation and Relief from Regulatory Requirements

Download: Application Form for Fragmentation or Relief from Regulatory Requirements

Testing for lead

Non-municipal year-round residential systems

If you own or operate a non-municipal year-round residential drinking water system, you must test for lead twice a year.

Testing frequency can drop to 2 times a year every 3 years with consistent good results.

Sample collection for lead testing must be done by a qualified person who, when collecting the sample, must:

  • conduct a pH test
  • for distribution samples: collect a sample for alkalinity test

The sample for alkalinity testing may be sent to the lab with the sample for lead testing or tested separately by a qualified person. Depending on the specific qualifications of the person collecting the samples and conducting the pH tests, this person may or may not be qualified to conduct the alkalinity tests.

Read: Required Qualifications to Operate, Test or Sample Drinking Water Systems under the Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002

Read the guide for non-municipal year-round residential drinking water systems

Designated facilities

If you own or operate a system that supplies drinking water to designated facilities you must test for lead at least once every 12 months.

The frequency for testing can reduce to once every 36 months if in the most recent 24 months no lead test results exceeded the standard. Lead must be sampled from a location that is most likely to have higher lead levels (e.g. the oldest pipes).

Download the guide for designated facilities

Systems serving only a school, private school or day nursery must follow different rules for lead testing

Read: Flushing and testing for lead in drinking water guide for schools, private schools and child care centres.

Lead testing exemptions

Under certain conditions, systems may qualify for an exemption from lead sampling in plumbing.

Read: Community Sampling and Testing for Lead - Standard and Reduced Sampling and Eligibility for Exemption

Download: Request for regulatory relief from lead sampling requirements

Find: Labs licensed to test for lead

Drinking water help line

For questions about:

  • registering a drinking water system
  • drinking water system owner and operator responsibilities

Call: 1-866-793-2588
Monday to Friday: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

You may also contact your local ministry office.