The Township of Selwyn owns the infrastructure for both the municipal water and wastewater (sewer) services available in Lakefield Ward and the Woodland Acres subdivision.

The Township of Selwyn is responsible for billing for water and sewer. The Township has an agreement with Peterborough Utilities Services Inc. to maintain the day-to-day operations of these systems until July 2024.

If you are located in Lakefield Ward or the Woodland Acres subdivision and are experiencing a technical issue with your water or sewer system, please contact the Peterborough Utilities Services Inc. Water Department.

Know Your Responsibility
Municipal Water & Sewer - Know Your Responsibility
What Not to Flush!
Wastewater treatment equipment is designed for toilet paper and human waste. Items like fats, oils, greases, feminine hygiene products, and wipes of any kind should never be flushed down the toilet or poured down a drain. Flushing these items causes equipment to fail, poses a health and safety risk to staff – and can even put your home at risk of sewage back-ups.
Protect Your Pipes!
  • Use toilet tissue mist that adds moisture to toilet paper and can be used instead of personal wipes. Wipes clog pipes, and should never be flushed, even if the packaging says you can.
  • Use a washable microfibre e-cloth, which can be used instead of disposable cleaning wipes.
  • Use reusable baby wipes that can be washed and dried.
  • Use menstrual cups or washable cloth menstrual pads, which are environmentally-friendly alternatives to feminine hygiene products. Never flush any feminine hygiene product or its packaging.
  • Keep cooking fats, oils and greases (FOG) out of the drain. Food scraps, butter, cooking oil, soups and sauces are all types of FOG. When poured down the drain, they solidify and build-up inside plumbing pipes and can create a sewer back-up in your home.
  • Use a hair trap for your shower and bathroom sink that can capture hair that otherwise clogs your plumbing and gets caught in lift-station pumps.
  • Other top clog offenders that should never be flushed include paper towels, rags, dental floss and hypodermic needles. 
Drinking Water Quality Management Standard (DWQMS)
The framework surrounding municipal drinking water is constantly changing ever since the Walkerton tragedy. The Ministry of Environment has been working with municipal stakeholders to develop a Drinking Water Quality Management Standard (DWQMS) to complement the comprehensive legislative and regulatory framework in Ontario.

In order to comply with new regulations stemming from the recommendations of Justice O'Connor, the Township of Selwyn has developed an Operational Plan that meets the requirements of the DWQMS for the new municipal licencing regulation, including a Drinking Water Quality Policy.

Additional information on the new licencing program is available at the Drinking Water Ontario website. 

Annual Monitoring Reports - Water and Sewer Systems
Source Water Protection

Source Protection Logo

We all have a role to play in caring for our water. The first step is protecting the surface or ground water that supplies municipal drinking water systems. This is called Source Water Protection.

If we want clean water tomorrow, we need to protect our sources of water today.

The Clean Water Act sets out a framework for source protection planning on a watershed basis. A watershed is an area of land that is drained by a river and its tributaries into a body of water such as a lake or river. Water is shared as it flows across the boundaries of municipalities, cities and towns. The best way to protect water is on a watershed-basis.

The Trent Conservation Coalition Source Protection Region includes both the Trent and Ganaraska watersheds. Under the Act, Source Protection Areas were established based on the watershed boundaries of Ontario's 36 Conservation Authorities. The Crowe Valley, Ganaraska, Kawartha, Lower Trent and Otonabee Conservation Authorities have entered into a partnership for this region. These five Conservation Authorities encompass a 14,500 square kilometre area stretching from Algonquin Park to Lake Ontario and the Bay of Quinte. Collectively they comprise The Trent Conservation Coalition Source Protection Region.

For more information, visit the Trent Conservation Coalition Source Protection Region website.
Water & Wastewater Budgets & Financial Plans
  Visit the Water & Wastewater Budgets page
2020 Water and Wastewater Service Delivery Review

Resources
  • Blue-Green Algae - What is Blue Green Algae? What are the health risks? What precautions should I take?

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