The Waters Act is a territorial act that sets rules for using water, and disposing wastewater and other matter into water. The act defines the substances (and concentration of substances) deemed “waste.”
The act outlines how commercial or industrial water users apply for water licences and what rules they must follow to keep these licences. That includes publicly reporting their water use and wastewater discharge activities. The act defines consequences for water licence holders who don’t follow the law or the terms of their licences.
The Waters Act regulations differentiate between two types of water licences. For example, if a mining company plans to use more than 300 cubic metres of water per day, it applies for a Type A water licence. The company must submit detailed plans for Type A water licence and answer questions from regulators, experts, and community members at a public hearing held by a regional land and water board. (There are five separate, regional water boards in the NWT.) The board recommends the approval or denial of the application to the Government of the Northwest Territories’ (GNWT) Minister of Environment and Natural Resources. The minister can approve or deny the licence, or ask the board to reconsider aspects of the licence. Renewals or major changes to a Type A licence can result in a public hearing process. A Type B licence may be directly issued by a land and water board for smaller operations.
The Waters Act applies to most NWT water bodies, although two federal departments (Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, and Fisheries and Oceans) have authority over waters in national parks, contaminated sites and the Arctic Ocean.
