CCME members are working with federal, provincial and territorial colleagues and counterparts responsible for drinking water protection to ensure an integrated source to tap approach. CCME's main role in this comprehensive approach focuses on source water quality protection.

CCME Ministers are committed to working collaboratively to protect water from the source to the tap as reflected in these communiqués. Excerpts relevant to water quality are noted below.

Safe Water: Top priority for Environment Ministers

The Pas, Manitoba - The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) wrapped up a two-day meeting by reaffirming its commitment to clean, safe and secure water for all Canadians and agreeing that each jurisdiction must continue to maintain and improve high standards for water quality to protect the health and safety of all citizens.

"As Environment Ministers we are taking comprehensive action to protect the quality of our drinking water from the source to the tap," said CCME President Oscar Lathlin, Manitoba Minister of Conservation. "This includes ensuring the safety of water coming from the tap by protecting lakes, rivers and underground water sources, as well as appropriate treatment, monitoring and operation of systems," he said.

Ministers emphasized the importance of strong drinking water standards based on the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality developed collaboratively by Health and Environment Ministries.

To further work in this area, Ministers initiated a series of collaborative actions to complement their individual initiatives:

• reviewing existing guidelines and accelerating the development of additional water quality guidelines;
• setting research priorities for addressing water quality issues such as disturbances to groundwater, land use impacts that have a potential adverse impact on our watersheds, and recycling and re-use; and
• providing information to Canadians through the CCME web-site, which will include a water quality index and links to water quality information from all jurisdictions.

Ministers recognized the need to promote strategic cooperation between Environment and Health Ministries to address concerns such as the special vulnerability of children to environmental contaminants.

This builds on the Ministers' commitments announced in Winnipeg (spring 2001):

Council members agreed the protection of surface and groundwater quality is a priority for all jurisdictions. Ministers acknowledged that most actions to better protect water quality are taken by individual jurisdictions, and agreed CCME can provide a forum for enhanced coordination in this area. In particular, they agreed to collaborate on priorities for water research; to share best management practices; to accelerate the development of water quality guidelines; and to link existing water quality monitoring networks to ensure Canadians have access to comprehensive information.