Permit to pump from reservoir had expired

Ken Gray
The Ottawa Citizen

Tuesday, July 27, 2004

The Ontario Ministry of the Environment is investigating possible improper water-pumping activities at an area golf club during a period when Mayor Bob Chiarelli was a director of the company that owned the course.

Provincial officials are looking into Cedarhill Golf and Country Club's water pumping practices from February 2002 to the present, ministry area supervisor Paul Kehoe said.

The golf course's permit to pump water expired at the beginning of that period, causing the ministry to investigate the club, Mr. Kehoe said. He believed the water was being used to irrigate the course.

In June 2002, an order was issued to stop pumping, Mr. Kehoe said.

The club subsequently filed an application for a permit, but it was rejected by the ministry because it lacked proper information, he added.

On June 15 of this year, the ministry discovered the club was taking more than the 50,000 litres per day allowed without a permit on some occasions, Mr. Kehoe said.

The Ontario Water Resources Act carries maximum penalties of up to $100,000 to corporations and up to $20,000 for individuals plus one year in jail, ministry spokesman John Steele said.

If damage is done to the environment, fines can be levied for up to $6 million for corporations, Mr. Steele said.

"The courts have assessed hundreds of thousands of dollar of damages," said Mr. Steele, though he doubts that will happen here because environmental damage appears to be minimal or none.

The course is owned by Cedarhill Golf Enterprises Inc., which was purchased from the Chiarelli family on April 8 by 2032788 Ontario Inc., club general manager Bob Williamson said. Mr. Williamson declined to name the new owners, but did say that the mayor is no longer associated with the company.

The mayor was a director of Cedarhill Golf Enterprises Inc. when the company owed the city $127,000 in unpaid property taxes from 2002 and 2003.

Those taxes have now been paid with the ownership change, Mr. Williamson said.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario also threatened to pull the company's liquor licence last year when it owed $65,000 in provincial sales tax. The company paid the bill after the notice was given.

Mr. Williamson said the golf course applied for a pumping permit during the first week of July. The course has been pumping from the same location for about 20 years, he said.

"We're not trying to ignore this," Mr. Williamson said. "If there is an issue, we're dealing with it."

The Citizen was unable to reach the mayor.

© The Ottawa Citizen 2004