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To protect the Bay of Quinte and eastern Lake Ontario, the Ontario Government is investing $1,698,792 million across three communities in Hastings-Lennox and Addington to build, upgrade and rehabilitate storm and wastewater infrastructure. 

Loyalist Township is receiving $506,497 in provincial funding to help improve existing storm and wastewater systems infrastructure in order to make them more efficient. Surrounding communities including The Town of Greater Napanee, the City of Belleville and the City of Kingston are also receiving support funding.  

“We are very grateful to receive funding from the Ontario Government to aid us in the protection of the Great Lakes, local waterways, and improving our wastewater infrastructure to ensure our community has continual access to clean water,” said Ric Bresee, Mayor of Loyalist Township. “The funding aids the Township in our mission to provide and maintain environmental sustainability for future generations, while supporting our vision to continually improve infrastructure.”  

The funding comes from the Ontario government’s recent announcement about investing $15 million over two years to help 18 municipalities improve aging and outdated storm and wastewater infrastructure to ensure Ontarians can continue to access safe and clean water.  

Stormwater and wastewater from urban areas can add pollutants to lakes and rivers, like phosphorus, resulting in water quality issues and harmful algal blooms. In 2020, 597 tonnes of phosphorus were discharged into Lake Ontario by sewage treatment plants, with over 80 per cent of this discharge in the western part of Lake Ontario.  

Local municipalities, including Loyalist, are eligible to use the funds for minor sewage treatment plant improvements such as optimization, local sewer system upgrades, cleaning out sediment and debris from stormwater management ponds, and implementing green stormwater infrastructure.  

This announcement also came out with the news that the province is providing an additional $10 million to help 20 municipalities upgrade sewage monitoring and public reporting capacity, as well as launching a public consultation and releasing a draft guidance document to improve wastewater and stormwater management and water conservation in Ontario.  

Additionally, the province is seeking input on a proposed guide to assist municipalities and other planning authorities with land use and infrastructure planning. 

For a full list of 18 municipalities that received funding, visit the Ontario Newsroom website.