There is a wealth of information available online about climate change, but not all information is created equal. Below you will find a curated list of resources relevant to the Ontario water sector, pulled together by the changemakers and thought leaders on the OWWA/WEAO Climate Change Committee. We lead into each link with some opinions on why the resource is good or useful.
Do you know of a good resource that we have missed, or have any other suggestions on the list below? We very much welcome your feedback so we can make this page better. Please send us comments at waterinfo@owwa.ca.
General
IPCC
The IPCC website is a valuable resource for the latest scientific assessments and reports on climate change. The IPCC plays a crucial role in informing policymakers and the public about the current state of climate science and the need for action to address the challenge.
NASA
NASA's climate change website provides a reputable source of research, data, and educational resources. NASA's expertise in Earth science allows us to access up-to-date images and information that highlight the impacts of climate change to better understand our planet's evolving climate.
Government of Canada - Climate Change
Learn more about climate change as well as relevant funding programs, Canada's plan, how Canada is taking action and how you can take action too.
International Water Association - Climate Smart Utilities
This is a resource specific to the water sector and contains a number of useful links.
IWA Fact Sheet - GHG Emissions and WRRFs
This is a great primer on GHG emissions for water utilities, published in 2023. Read this to get a quick, general overview from industry experts.
Adaptation & Resiliency
Canadian Government - Canada's National Adaptation Strategy
Learn about Canada's first National Adaptation Strategy and what it takes to build a resilient community through the above link.
US EPA - Adaptation for Water Utilities
This resource provides comprehensive information on adaptation actions for water utilities to address current and future climate threats to enhance their resilience. The adaptation strategies cover various aspects, including increasing system efficiency, modeling climate risk, modifying water demand, monitoring operational capabilities, planning for climate change, and more.
Mitigation (Reducing GHG Emissions)
GHG Quantification & Reporting: Understanding your current emissions is usually the first step toward mitigation.
OWWA/WEAO GHG Inventory Tool
The GHG Inventory Tool is hosted and maintained by a Sub-committee of the joint OWWA/WEAO Climate Change Committee. The tool was based on a GHG Inventory developed by the University of Toronto, under contract to Toronto Water. Although the tool was primarily developed for the use of Ontario water and wastewater utilities, guidance is provided further on in this guide to enable its use by any Canadian utility.
2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories
This is a globally recognized standard for quantifying GHG emission and many other GHG reporting protocols refer to the IPCC. Although the 2019 Refinement linked below has updated emission factors for wastewater process emissions, IPCC 2006 has all the "non-wastewater" emissions that WWT facilities still must report like incinerator emissions, boiler combustion emissions, etc.
2019 Refinement to the 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories
An update of the guidelines provided by the IPCC for countries to measure and report their GHG emissions. These important guidelines serve as a framework for countries to report and calculate their emissions data, providing a common standard for assessing climate change.
Ontario GHG Reporting
Any wastewater treatment facility in Ontario which emits more than 10,000 equivalent tonnes of CO2 per year must report their GHG emissions to the provincial government. This link will start you out on the GHG reporting journey in Ontario.
Canada GHG Reporting
Any wastewater facility in Ontario which emits more than 10,000 equivalent tonnes of CO2 per year must ALSO report their GHG emissions to the federal goverment. The report is made in the same portal as for the provincial reporting, but the requirements are not always the same. You will need to review both federal and provincial requirements to make sure you are covering both. This link will direct you to federal regulatory reporting resources.
GHG Emissions in Canada
This website compiles the data from all industrial facilities that report GHG emissions to the federal government. It features visuals and detailed information illustrating the breakdown of reported emissions by sector, location, and year.
Global Water Intelligence - Utility Net Zero (GHG) Targets
At this link, you can find two lists. One of water utilities with net zero pledges, and another list of utilities that sit within municipalities that have net zero targets (spoiler - there are a lot more in that last category). Keep in mind that "net zero" sometimes means different things to different organizations, but often the baseline will include Scope 1 and 2 emissions.
Videos
Combating Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Wastewater Treatment Plants
This video is from the University of Queensland, a global leader in water sector GHG mitigation. In it they discuss their four-step approach to implementing mitigation strategies as well as go over a project done in South Australia. It's an informative short resource detailing counteractive efforts of GHG emissions in WWTP.
IWA Master Classes on Process Emissions
The IWA has some of the best resources available in the world right now on fugitive and process emissions from wastewater treatment processes. These three webinars from 2022-23 adress the three main aspects of process emissions:
Quantifying Modelling and Mitigating Process Emissions - Masterclass 1 (IWA)
Monitoring, Modelling and Mitigating Nitrous Oxide - Masterclass 2 (IWA)
Monitoring, Modelling and Mitigating Methane in Wastewater - Masterclass 3 (IWA)
Please send us your feedback at waterinfo@owwa.ca