Canada Water Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-11)

Marginal note:Remuneration of members

• 16 (1) The members of an agency who are appointed by the Minister or by the Governor in Council and who are not employees in the federal public administration shall be paid by the agency such remuneration as is authorized by the Governor in Council.

• Marginal note:Staff and professional or technical assistance

  (2) The Minister may provide any agency with such officers and employees as may be necessary for the proper functioning of the agency, and may provide it with such professional or technical assistance for temporary periods or for specific work as the agency may request.

• Marginal note:Employment and remuneration of staff and consultants

  (3) Subject to the agreement under which the incorporation of an agency was authorized to be procured or to any direction of the Minister under subsection 13(4) in respect of a federal agency, the agency may employ such officers and employees and such consultants and advisers as it considers necessary to enable it to carry out its objects and may fix the terms and conditions of their employment and their remuneration, which shall be paid by the agency.

Marginal note:Operating account

• 17 (1) Each agency shall maintain, in a bank, an account under the name of the agency.

• Marginal note:Credits

  (2) There shall be deposited to the account referred to in subsection (1)

  • (a) all amounts collected by the agency as or on account of charges levied for treatment of waste, for the analysis of samples of waste or for the deposit of waste in the waters composing the water quality management area for which the agency is incorporated or named;

  • (b) contributions paid or loans made to the agency by the Government of Canada or the government of a province in respect of the cost of incorporation of the agency, in respect of its operating expenses or in respect of capital costs incurred by it; and

  • (c) interest received by the agency on securities purchased, acquired and held by it pursuant to subsection (4).

• Marginal note:Debits

  (3) All expenditures incurred by the agency in its operations and all repayments of loans made to the agency and payments of interest thereon shall be paid out of the account referred to in subsection (1).

• Marginal note:Investment of surplus funds

  (4) An agency may from time to time, out of any surplus funds standing to its credit in an account maintained pursuant to subsection (1), purchase, acquire and hold

  • (a) in the case of a federal agency, any securities of or guaranteed by the Government of Canada; and

  • (b) in the case of any other agency, any securities of or guaranteed by the Government of Canada, or of or guaranteed by the government of any province that is a party to the agreement pursuant to which the agency was authorized to be incorporated or was named.

• Marginal note:Sale of investments

  (5) An agency may sell any securities purchased, acquired and held pursuant to subsection (4) and the proceeds of sale shall be deposited to the credit of the agency in the account maintained in respect of the agency under subsection (1).

Regulations

Marginal note:General

• 18 (1) The Governor in Council may make regulations

  • (a) prescribing

    • (i) substances and classes of substances,

    • (ii) quantities or concentrations of substances and classes of substances in water, and

    • (iii) treatments, processes and changes of water

    for the purpose of subsection 2(2);

  • (b) prescribing the procedure to be followed by each agency in determining its recommendations with respect to charges that may be levied by it for treatment of waste at any waste treatment facility that is operated and maintained by the agency;

  • (c) prescribing the procedure to be followed by each agency in determining its recommendations with respect to water quality standards for waters composing the water quality management area for which it is incorporated or named;

  • (d) prescribing the criteria, which shall be related to estimates of the cost of appropriate treatment of waste expected to be deposited, to be used by each agency in determining its recommendations with respect to effluent discharge fees to be paid by persons for the deposit of waste in waters composing the water quality management area for which it is incorporated or named and the time or times at which and the manner in which those fees should be paid;

  • (e) requiring persons who deposit waste in any waters composing a water quality management area to maintain books and records necessary for the proper enforcement of this Act and the regulations;

  • (f) requiring persons who have deposited waste in contravention of section 9 to report the deposit to the agency incorporated or named for the water quality management area in which the deposit is made and providing for the manner in which and the time within which the report is to be made;

  • (g) requiring persons who deposit waste in any waters composing a water quality management area to submit test portions of that waste to the agency incorporated or named in respect of the area;

  • (h) respecting the method of analysis by each agency of test portions of waste submitted to it;

  • (i) respecting the powers and duties of inspectors and analysts, the taking of samples and the making of analyses for the purposes of this Act; and

  • (j) generally, for carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act.

• Marginal note:For water quality management areas

  (2) Subject to subsection (3), the Governor in Council may make regulations prescribing, with respect to each water quality management area,

  • (a) the quantities, if any, of waste of any type that, for the purpose of section 9, may be deposited in the waters composing that area and the conditions under which any such waste may be deposited;

  • (b) the charges to be paid by any person to the agency incorporated or named in respect thereof

    • (i) for treatment of waste by the agency at a waste treatment facility that is operated and maintained by it, and

    • (ii) for analysis of waste samples by the agency,

    and the persons by whom those charges are payable and the time or times at which and the manner in which those charges shall be paid;

  • (c) water quality standards for the waters composing that area; and

  • (d) the effluent discharge fees, if any, to be paid by any person to the agency incorporated or named in respect thereof for the deposit of waste in the waters composing that area and the persons by whom those fees are payable and the time or times at which and the manner in which those fees shall be paid.

• Marginal note:Governor in Council to act only on recommendation

  (3) No regulation that is made by the Governor in Council under subsection (2) with respect to a water quality management area for which an agency is incorporated or named under an agreement entered into pursuant to section 11 is of any force or effect unless

  • (a) the regulation is made on the recommendation of the agency; or

  • (b) where the Minister and the appropriate minister of each provincial government that is a party to the agreement disagree with the recommendations of the agency and jointly make a different recommendation, the regulation is made on that joint recommendation.

PART III[Repealed, R.S., 1985, c. 16 (4th Supp.), s. 141]

PART IVGeneral

Inspectors and Analysts

Marginal note:Designation

• 25 (1) The Minister may designate any qualified person as an inspector or analyst for the purposes of this Act but where a qualified officer of any other department or agency of the Government of Canada carries out similar duties for the purposes of another Act the Minister shall designate that officer whenever possible.

• Marginal note:Certificate to be produced

  (2) The Minister shall furnish every inspector with a certificate of his designation as an inspector and on entering any area, place, premises, vehicle or vessel referred to in subsection 26(1) an inspector shall, if so required, produce the certificate to the person in charge thereof.

Marginal note:Powers of inspectors

• 26 (1) An inspector may, at any reasonable time,

  • (a) enter any area, place, premises, vessel or vehicle, other than a private dwelling-place or any part of any such area, place, premises, vessel or vehicle that is designed to be used and is being used as a permanent or temporary private dwelling-place, in which the inspector believes on reasonable grounds that

    • (i) there is any waste that may be or has been added to any waters that have been designated as a water quality management area pursuant to section 11 or 13, or

    • (ii) there is being or has been carried out any manufacturing or other process that may result in or has resulted in waste described in subparagraph (i);

    • (iii) and (iv) [Repealed, R.S., 1985, c. 16 (4th Supp.), s. 142]

  • (b) examine any waste found therein in bulk or open any container found therein that the inspector believes on reasonable grounds contains any waste and take samples thereof; and

  • (c) require any person in that area, place, premises, vehicle or vessel to produce for inspection or for the purpose of obtaining copies thereof or extracts therefrom any books or other documents or papers concerning any matter relevant to the administration of this Act or the regulations.

• Marginal note:Search

  (2) An inspector with a warrant issued under subsection (3) may at any reasonable time enter any area, place, premises, vessel or vehicle in which the inspector believes on reasonable grounds there is any cleaning agent or water conditioner that has been manufactured in Canada or imported into Canada in contravention of section 20 and search the area, place, premises, vessel or vehicle for evidence of the contravention.

• Marginal note:Authority to issue warrant

  (3) Where on ex parte application a justice of the peace is satisfied by information on oath that there are reasonable grounds to believe that there is in any area, place, premises, vessel or vehicle referred to in subsection (2)

  • (a) anything on or in respect of which any contravention of section 20 has been or is suspected to have been committed, or

  • (b) anything that there are reasonable grounds to believe will afford evidence with respect to the commission of any contravention of section 20,

  the justice of the peace may issue a warrant under his hand authorizing the inspector named therein to enter and search that area, place, premises, vessel or vehicle subject to such conditions as may be specified in the warrant.

• Marginal note:Use of force

  (4) In executing a warrant issued under subsection (3), the inspector named therein shall not use force unless the inspector is accompanied by a peace officer and the use of force has been specifically authorized in the warrant.

• Marginal note:Where warrant not necessary

  (5) An inspector may exercise any of the powers referred to in subsection (2) without a warrant issued under subsection (3) if the conditions for obtaining the warrant exist but by reason of exigent circumstances it would not be practical to obtain the warrant.

• Marginal note:Exigent circumstances

  (6) For the purposes of subsection (5), exigent circumstances include circumstances in which the delay necessary to obtain a warrant under subsection (3) would result in danger to human life or safety or the loss or destruction of evidence.

• Marginal note:Assistance to inspectors

  (7) The owner or person in charge of any area, place, premises, vehicle or vessel referred to in this section and every person found therein shall give an inspector all reasonable assistance to enable the inspector to carry out his duties and functions under this Act and the regulations and shall furnish the inspector with such information with respect to the administration of this Act and the regulations as the inspector may reasonably require.

Marginal note:Obstruction of inspector

• 27 (1) No person shall obstruct or hinder an inspector in the carrying out of his duties or functions under this Act or the regulations.

• Marginal note:False statements

  (2) No person shall knowingly make a false or misleading statement, either orally or in writing, to an inspector or other person engaged in carrying out his duties or functions under this Act or the regulations.

Advisory Committees

Marginal note:Establishment and constitution of advisory committees

• 28 (1) The Minister may establish and appoint the members of such advisory committees as the Minister considers desirable for the purpose of advising and assisting him in carrying out the purposes and provisions of this Act.

• Marginal note:Expenses and allowances

  (2) Each member of an advisory committee is entitled to be paid reasonable travel and other expenses while absent from his ordinary place of residence in the course of his duties as a member and may, with the approval of the Minister, be paid such amount as is fixed by the Governor in Council for each day the member attends any meeting of the committee or for each day during which he performs, with the approval of the committee, any duties on behalf of the committee in addition to his ordinary duties.