O. Reg. 417/09: Schools, Private Schools and Day Nurseries
filed October 30, 2009 under Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002, S.O. 2002, c. 32
Skip to contentontario regulation 417/09
made under the
safe drinking water act, 2002
Made: October 22, 2009
Filed: October 30, 2009
Published on e-Laws: November 3, 2009
Printed in The Ontario Gazette: November 14, 2009
Amending O. Reg. 243/07
(Schools, Private Schools and Day Nurseries)
1. (1) Subsection 1 (1) of Ontario Regulation 243/07 is amended by adding the following definition:
“standard prescribed for lead” means the standard prescribed for lead in Schedule 2 to Ontario Regulation 169/03 (Ontario Drinking Water Quality Standards) made under the Act. (“norme prescrite à l’égard du plomb”)
(2) Subsection 1 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “programs are held or services are provided” and substituting “the school’s or the private school’s programs are held or the school’s or the private school’s services are provided”.
2. (1) Subsection 3 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “if no part of the plumbing that serves the building that houses the school, private school or day nursery was installed before January 1, 1990” and substituting “to which section 4 does not apply”.
(2) Subsection 3 (2.1) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(2.1) The flushing requirement in subsection (2) does not apply in respect of plumbing that serves one of the following:
1. A part of a building that is not open during the entire week in question.
2. A part of a building that is used for student accommodation and that is not used communally.
3. A tap or drinking water fountain that is primarily intended for use by the general public.
(3) Subsection 3 (2.2) of the Regulation is amended by,
(a) striking out “and is open” and substituting “that is open”; and
(b) striking out “and preferably before 6 a.m” at the end.
(4) Subsection 3 (4) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(4) The operator of a school, private school or day nursery shall ensure that a record is made of the date and time of every flushing required by subsection (2) and the name of the person who performed the flushing.
(5) Subsection (4) does not apply in respect of a part of plumbing that is flushed by an automatic device if,
(a) the operator of the school, private school or day nursery ensures that the operability of the device is verified,
(i) at a minimum, at the frequency set out in the instructions provided by the manufacturer of the device, or
(ii) if no instructions mentioned in subclause (i) are available, at least once in each month; and
(b) the operator of the school, private school or day nursery ensures that a record is made of the date of each verification mentioned in clause (a) and the name of the person who made the verification.
3. (1) Subsection 4 (1) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
Daily flushing
(1) This section applies to a school, private school or day nursery if,
(a) all or part of the plumbing that serves the building that houses the school, private school or day nursery was installed before January 1, 1990 and test results from drinking water samples taken in respect of the plumbing in accordance with this Regulation have not been obtained for a period of at least 24 consecutive months; or
(b) for a period of at least 24 consecutive months, test results in respect of the plumbing in the building that houses the school, private school or day nursery have been obtained, and at least one of the test results from the most recent 24 consecutive month period has exceeded the standard prescribed for lead.
(2) Subsection 4 (2.1) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(2.1) The flushing requirement in subsection (2) does not apply in respect of plumbing that serves one of the following:
1. A part of a building that is not open during the entire day in question.
2. A part of a building that is used for student accommodation and that is not used communally.
3. A tap or drinking water fountain that is primarily intended for use by the general public.
(3) Subsection 4 (2.2) of the Regulation is amended by,
(a) striking out “and is open” and substituting “that is open”; and
(b) striking out “and preferably before 6 a.m” at the end.
(4) Subsection 4 (4) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(4) The operator of a school, private school or day nursery shall ensure that a record is made of the date and time of every flushing required by subsection (2) and the name of the person who performed the flushing.
(5) Subsection (4) does not apply in respect of a part of plumbing that is flushed by an automatic device if,
(a) the operator of the school, private school or day nursery ensures that the operability of the device is verified,
(i) at a minimum, at the frequency set out in the instructions provided by the manufacturer of the device, or
(ii) if no instructions mentioned in subclause (i) are available, at least once in each month; and
(b) the operator of the school, private school or day nursery ensures that a record is made of the date of each verification mentioned in clause (a) and the name of the person who made the verification.
4. The Regulation is amended by adding the following section:
Director’s direction, alternate flushing
4.1 (1) Despite section 3 and subsection 4 (1) and, subject to subsection (6), if the Director gives a direction in writing under this section to the operator of a school, private school or day nursery,
(a) section 3 ceases to apply in respect of the school, private school or day nursery;
(b) section 4 applies in respect of the school, private school or day nursery; and
(c) the operator of the school, private school or day nursery shall comply with the direction.
(2) The Director may give a direction mentioned in subsection (1) to the operator of a school, private school or day nursery if,
(a) the Director has knowledge of water chemistry changes in the drinking water supplied to the school, private school or day nursery; and
(b) the Director is of the opinion that the changes mentioned in clause (a) may result in levels of lead in the drinking water at the school, private school or day nursery that exceed the standard prescribed for lead.
(3) A direction mentioned in subsection (1) shall direct the operator of the school, private school or day nursery to ensure that flushing is carried out in accordance with section 4 and may direct the operator to take other steps that, in the opinion of the Director, will lower the risk of lead exposure to children at the school, private school or day nursery.
(4) The Director may amend a direction mentioned in subsection (1) by giving written notice of the amendment to the operator of the school, private school or day nursery.
(5) The Director may revoke a direction mentioned in subsection (1) by giving written notice of the revocation to the operator of the school, private school or day nursery if the Director is of the opinion that,
(a) the water chemistry in the drinking water supplied to the school, private school or day nursery is no longer likely to result in levels of lead in the drinking water that exceed the standard prescribed for lead; or
(b) steps have been taken to adequately lower the risk of lead exposure to children at the school, private school or day nursery.
(6) If the Director revokes a direction mentioned in subsection (1), subsection (1) ceases to apply in respect of the operator of the school, private school or day nursery.
5. (1) Subsection 5 (1) of the Regulation is revoked.
(2) Subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out the portion before paragraph 1 and substituting the following:
(2) The operator of a school, private school or day nursery shall ensure that samples of water are taken in accordance with the following rules:
. . . . .
(3) Paragraphs 1 and 2 of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation are revoked and the following substituted:
1. Except in a year in which paragraph 2 applies to a school, private school or day nursery, the samples must be taken at least once in each calendar year, during the period beginning on May 1 and ending on October 31.
2. If the school, private school or day nursery commences operation on or after December 14, 2009, the samples must be taken at least once within 30 days after the first day of operation and, if operation commences during a period beginning on January 1 and ending on March 31, at least once during the period beginning on May 1 and ending on October 31 in the same calendar year during which operation commences.
2.1 The samples must consist of two one-litre samples of cold water taken from the same tap or fountain.
(4) Paragraph 3 of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “If the tap” at the beginning and substituting “If the tap or fountain”.
(5) Paragraph 4 of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “on or near the tap” and substituting “on or near the tap or fountain”.
(6) Paragraph 5 of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
5. The samples must be taken from,
i. any tap that is used in the preparation of food or drink for consumption by children under 18 years of age,
ii. any tap that is commonly used to provide water for consumption by children under 18 years of age, or
iii. if it is practicable to collect a sample from a drinking water fountain in accordance with this section, any drinking water fountain.
5.1 If the samples are taken from a day nursery, the samples must be taken from every tap that meets the description set out in subparagraph 5 i before samples are taken from any other tap or a fountain.
5.2 If the school, private school or day nursery consists of multiple buildings or sites that are served by separate plumbing and all of the plumbing is connected to the same drinking water system, including buildings used for student accommodation that are operated by a school or private school, the samples must be taken on a rotational basis so that no sample is taken from a tap or fountain served by the same plumbing until samples have been taken from at least one tap or fountain served by the other plumbing wherever there is a tap or fountain served by the other plumbing that meets a description set out in subparagraph 5 i, ii or iii.
5.3 If more than one school, private school or day nursery is served by the same plumbing, a single set of two one-litre samples may be taken for the purposes of paragraph 2.1 for all of the schools, private schools and day nurseries if,
i. taps that meet the description set out in subparagraph 5 i and that are located within a day nursery are sampled before other taps or fountains served by the same plumbing,
ii. subject to subparagraph i, samples are taken on a rotational basis so that no sample is taken from a tap or fountain within the same school, private school or day nursery until samples have been taken from at least one tap or fountain within all other schools, private schools or day nurseries that are relying on the same single set of samples, if any such taps or fountains have not yet been sampled,
iii. the operator of the school, private school or day nursery who receives a report under subsection 6 (1) gives a report within 24 hours after the report is received to every other school, private school or day nursery that is relying on the same single set of samples, setting out the result that requires the report and the standard prescribed by Schedule 2 to Ontario Regulation 169/03 (Ontario Drinking Water Quality Standards) made under the Act that the result exceeds,
iv. the operator of a school who receives a copy of a report under subparagraph iii gives a copy of the report, within 24 hours after the report is received, to the Ministry of Education, or any successor of that ministry, and
v. the operator of a day nursery who receives a copy of a report under subparagraph iii gives a copy of the report, within 24 hours after the report is received, to the Ministry of Children and Youth Services, or any successor of that ministry.
(7) Paragraph 6 of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
6. If there is more than one tap or fountain that meets a description set out in subparagraph 5 i, ii or iii and one of those taps or fountains is more likely than the others to be served by lead plumbing or plumbing that contains lead solder, the samples must be taken from the tap or fountain that is most likely to be served by lead plumbing or plumbing that contains lead solder.
(8) Paragraph 6.1 of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “on or near the tap that has been selected for sampling in accordance with paragraphs 5 and 6” in the portion before subparagraph i and substituting “on or near the tap or fountain that has been selected for sampling in accordance with paragraphs 5, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3 and 6”.
(9) Subparagraph 6.1 ii of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “the tap” and substituting “the tap or fountain”.
(10) Subparagraph 7 iii of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “under section 3 or 4” at the end and substituting “section 3, 4, 4.1 or 5.1”.
(11) Subparagraph 8 ii of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “the tap” and substituting “the tap or fountain”.
(12) Paragraph 9 of subsection 5 (2) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “when the tap is turned on” and substituting “when the tap or fountain is turned on”.
(13) Section 5 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following subsections:
(2.1) Despite paragraph 1 of subsection (2) and subject to subsection (2.2), samples may be taken only once in every third calendar year, during the period beginning on May 1 and ending on October 31 if,
(a) for a period of at least 24 consecutive months, test results in respect of the plumbing in the buildings that house the school, private school or day nursery have been obtained, and none of the test results from the most recent 24 consecutive months has exceeded the standard prescribed for lead;
(b) every tap in the school, private school or day nursery that is used in the preparation of food or drink for consumption by children under 18 years of age has been sampled at least once;
(c) at least one tap from every washroom or change room where children under 18 years of age are allowed to fill drinking water bottles or containers has been sampled at least once; and
(d) a notice has been submitted to the Director stating that the conditions described in clauses (a), (b) and (c) have been met.
(2.2) Subject to subsection (2.7), if the Director gives a direction in writing to the operator of a school, private school or day nursery in respect of which subsection (2.1) applies,
(a) subsection (2.1) ceases to apply in respect of the school, private school or day nursery; and
(b) the operator of the school, private school or day nursery shall comply with the direction.
(2.3) The Director may give a direction mentioned in subsection (2.2) to the operator of a school, private school or day nursery if,
(a) the Director has knowledge of water chemistry changes in the drinking water supplied to the school, private school or day nursery; and
(b) the Director is of the opinion that the changes mentioned in clause (a) may result in levels of lead in the drinking water at the school, private school or day nursery that exceed the standard prescribed for lead.
(2.4) A direction mentioned in subsection (2.2) shall direct the operator of the school, private school or day nursery to comply with paragraph 1 of subsection 5 (2) and may direct the operator to take other steps, including additional sampling and testing, that, in the opinion of the Director, will lower the risk of lead exposure to children at the school, private school or day nursery.
(2.5) The Director may amend a direction mentioned in subsection (2.2) by giving written notice of the amendment to the operator of the school, private school or day nursery.
(2.6) The Director may revoke a direction mentioned in subsection (2.2) by giving written notice of the revocation to the operator of the school, private school or day nursery if the Director is of the opinion that,
(a) the water chemistry in the drinking water supplied to the school, private school or day nursery is no longer likely to result in levels of lead in the drinking water that exceed the standard prescribed for lead; or
(b) steps have been taken to adequately lower the risk of lead exposure to children at the school, private school or day nursery.
(2.7) If the Director revokes a direction mentioned in subsection (2.2), subsection (2.2) ceases to apply in respect of the operator of the school, private school or day nursery.
(14) Subsection 5 (3) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “under subsection (2)” and substituting “under this section”.
(15) Subsection 5 (4) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “under subsection (2)” in the portion before clause (a) and substituting “under this section”.
(16) Subsection 5 (5) of the Regulation is amended by,
(a) striking out “under subsection (2)” and substituting “under this section”; and
(b) striking out “in a form provided by or approved by the Director”.
(17) Subsection 5 (6) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(6) If the information in the written notice given to the Director under subsection (5) changes, the operator of the school, private school or day nursery shall give to the Director written notice of the change within 10 days of the change.
6. The Regulation is amended by adding the following section:
Director’s direction, alternate flushing or sampling plan
5.1 (1) Despite sections 3, 4 and 5, if the Director gives a direction in writing under this section to the operator of a school, private school or day nursery,
(a) the operator of the school, private school or day nursery shall comply with the direction; and
(b) if the Director specifies in the direction that all or part of section 3, 4 or 5 do not apply in respect of the school, private school or day nursery, the specified provisions cease to apply in respect of the school, private school or day nursery.
(2) Before a direction mentioned in subsection (1) may be given in respect of a school, private school or day nursery,
(a) the owner or operator must submit a proposed alternate flushing plan, a proposed alternate sampling plan or both to the Director; and
(b) the Director must consult with the medical officer of health in respect of the proposed plan or plans submitted under clause (a).
(3) A direction mentioned in subsection (1) shall direct the operator of the school, private school or day nursery to comply with the plan or plans submitted under clause (2) (a), subject to any amendments made by the Director, and with any additional requirements specified by the Director in the direction.
(4) Before giving a direction mentioned in subsection (1), the Director must be of the opinion that the implementation of the plan or plans submitted under clause (2) (a) and compliance with any additional requirements specified in the direction would lower the risk of lead exposure to children at the school, private school or day nursery.
(5) The Director may amend or revoke a direction mentioned in subsection (1) by giving written notice of the amendment or revocation to the operator of the school, private school or day nursery.
(6) If the Director revokes a direction mentioned in subsection (1), subsection (1) ceases to apply in respect of the operator of the school, private school or day nursery.
(7) On or before the second anniversary of the giving of a direction mentioned in subsection (1), the Director shall review the direction and its implementation for the purposes of determining,
(a) whether the direction continues to adequately address the risk of lead exposure to children at the school, private school or day nursery; and
(b) whether the operator of the school, private school or day nursery is implementing and complying with the direction.
7. (1) Section 6 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following subsection:
Reporting of test results
(0.1) This section applies if a laboratory conducts a test of a water sample taken in accordance with paragraphs 2.1 to 12 of subsection 5 (2) and subsections 5 (2.1) to (4) or in accordance with section 5.1, either during a period specified in paragraph 1 or 2 of subsection 5 (2) or during any other period.
(2) Subsection 6 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out the portion before clause (a) and substituting the following:
(1) If a laboratory conducts a test of a water sample mentioned in subsection (0.1) and the result of the test exceeds any of the standards prescribed by Schedule 2 to Ontario Regulation 169/03 (Ontario Drinking Water Quality Standards) made under the Act, the laboratory shall, within 24 hours after the result is authorized pursuant to subsection 12 (1) or paragraph 4 of subsection 12.0.1 (3) of Ontario Regulation 248/03 (Drinking Water Testing Services) made under the Act, report the result in writing to,
. . . . .
(3) Subsection 6 (2) of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
(2) A report required by subsection (1) shall specify the result that requires the report and the standard referred to in subsection (1) that the result exceeds.
(4) Subsection 6 (4) of the Regulation is revoked.
(5) Subsection 6 (5) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “taken under section 5” and substituting “mentioned in subsection (0.1)”.
(6) Subsection 6 (6) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “give a copy of the report” in the portion before clause (a) and substituting “give a report setting out the result specified in subsection (2) and the standard referred to in subsection (1) that the result exceeds”.
8. Section 7 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following subsection:
(2) If a report is made under section 6 and the issue that gave rise to the report is resolved, the operator of the school, private school or day nursery shall, within seven days after the issue is resolved, give a written notice summarizing the actions taken and the results achieved to,
(a) the medical officer of health;
(b) the Ministry’s Spills Action Centre;
(c) the Ministry of Education, or any successor of that ministry, if the report relates to a school;
(d) the Ministry of Children and Youth Services, or any successor of that ministry, if the report relates to a day nursery; and
(e) if the report is in respect of a test of water samples taken under paragraph 5.3 of subsection 5 (2), the operator of every school, private school or day nursery that is relying on the same single set of samples.
9. (1) Paragraph 1 of subsection 8 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “section 3, 4 or 5” at the end and substituting “section 3, 4, 4.1, 5 or 5.1”.
(2) Paragraph 2 of subsection 8 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “section 5 or an order” at the end and substituting “section 5, 5.1 or an order”.
(3) Subsection 8 (1) of the Regulation is amended by adding the following paragraph:
3.1 A copy of every director’s direction given under section 4.1, subsection 5 (2.2) and section 5.1.
(4) Section 8 of the Regulation is amended by adding the following subsection:
(4) Paragraph 3.1 of subsection (1) does not apply to a director’s direction that is more than two years old.
10. (1) Paragraph 1 of subsection 9 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “section 3, 4 or 5” at the end and substituting “section 3, 4, 4.1, 5 or 5.1”.
(2) Paragraph 2 of subsection 9 (1) of the Regulation is amended by striking out “section 5 or an order” at the end and substituting “section 5, 5.1 or an order”.
(3) Subsection 9 (1) of the Regulation is amended by adding the following paragraphs:
4. A copy of every director’s direction given under section 4.1, subsection 5 (2.2) and section 5.1.
5. A copy of every report provided or received under subparagraphs 5.3 iii, iv and v of subsection 5 (2).
11. Section 10 of the Regulation is revoked and the following substituted:
Forms
10. (1) Where this Regulation requires or permits the giving or submission of a notice or report, other than a notice or report required to be given by the Director, the notice or report must be in a form provided by or approved by the Director.
(2) The Director may require that a document or other record that is given to the Director under this Regulation be given in an electronic format specified by the Director.
12. This Regulation comes into force on the later of December 14, 2009 and the day this Regulation is filed.