I would like to introduce myself. My name is Remo Odorico.

I am Canadian-born and a proud citizen of this great country. I have lived my entire life in Ontario - some of it in Toronto itself, some of it in what is now the GTA, and for the past 36 years I have owned a small farm holding in the township of Amaranth in the County of Dufferin. I also have a forestry property close to Cochrane in Northern Ontario.

For forty-seven years I served in the Malton (Ont.) Fire department, rising to the rank of Captain (a position which I held for 40 years).

Having lived in city, suburb and country, you will understand why I am concerned with the general and particular aspects of that soon to be ‘precious’ commodity called water in all of its residential and commercial uses.

In 2002 I began to take a personal interest in the subject when local farming friends and acquaintances in the Township of Amaranth became concerned at the low levels of their wells. I sought the help and advice of my brother-in-law, Dr. ‘Gus’ Mitges MP, who had been a distinguished federal politician with a special personal interest in agriculture. On his advice, I began to contact a number of national and local government bodies and a few individuals with particular interest and/or knowledge of the whole water-taking business. My concerns, at that time, was as follows:

The financial implications of agricultural water shortage (even deprivation) and the cost to the farming community of water-tankage and/or well redrilling. This situation would obtain whilst commercial water-takers were taking millions of gallons of first-class potable water a year without a responsible ‘taking levy.’ Other ‘takers,’ such as gravel and other mining operations wee required to pay a levy in direct proportion to the volume taken.

The response to my efforts were courteous but dishearteningly unhelpful.

2007 was the year of a ‘Level III’ drought (not only in Ontario but in many other parts of Canada) and in my area both farms and residential properties were the victims of low or empty wells. The result was discomfort and anxiety to private residents and to farmers the fear of loss of crops or severe harm to their beasts.

Not only that, but the cost of re-drilling a well varied between $12,000 and $18,000. The commercial water-takers, however, continued to extract their yearly millions of gallons either at their continuing absurdly low levy or an equally absurd gratuitous donation to the Local Authority.

In the intervening years, the issue of commercial water-taking has become more worrying. Hydrologists are now deeply-concerned about the future of global access to fresh water. In Canada (and in Norway, too) we have the distinction of having the second greatest availability of fresh water in the world! Sadly, Canada has also the dubious distinction of being the world’s greatest waster of water.

Remo Odorico

Amaranth