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Convening a nationwide peer network of water utility leaders

Welcome to Canada’s premier network for pragmatic, forward-thinking community water leaders!

The provision of safe drinking water, wastewater treatment and stormwater management are anchor services in our communities. As water managers navigate change and uncertainty, they need timely insights, guidance and support from trusted peers.

The Canadian Municipal Water Consortium is a national network of utility leaders who share a common goal of advancing municipal water management. Senior leaders explore key issues and decision-making needs alongside their peers. Tangible takeaways include a deeper understanding of local issues through a national lens, access to curated leading information, a deeper understanding of what others are doing, and support to explore new approaches and best practices.

Currently, the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium supports water leaders from 26 municipalities and utilities.

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Leading Municipalities and Utilities
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of Canadian Population Represented
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Canadians Served
alberta capital region wastewater commission logo
City of Burnaby
city of calgary logo
crd logo
durham region logo
epcor logo
city of guelph logo
halifax water logo
hamilton water logo
city of kitchener logo
metro vancouver logo
city of montreal logo
ocwa logo
city of ottawa logo
region of peel logo
city of regina logo
city of saskatoon logo
thunder bay logo
city of toronto logo
union water supply system logo
utilities kingston logo
city of vancouver logo
region of waterloo logo
york region logo

Canadian Water Network actively convenes the right people at the right time to address pressing water management challenges. We help members navigate complexity and uncertainty using an approach that is grounded in science and led by the community.

The Leaders Group provides some of the best value available in terms of the opportunity to engage and learn from my peers in water utilities across Canada.
Reid Campbell, Director, Engineering & Technology Services, Halifax Water

Sharing ideas and approaches is so helpful. The value we get out of being able to tweak what others have done and customize it using only internal staff time is a huge cost saving for us.

Participant, Consortium Leaders

I am a strong proponent of the Municipal Consortium. Sharing best practices and experiences from across Canada is invaluable. The Strategic Sharing Group for COVID-19 was a great example of how agile and responsive the Consortium is to emerging issues.

Francois Bouchart, Director, Water Resources, City of Calgary

Curation + knowledge exchange

Canadian Water Network curates knowledge from sources and sectors that reflect the realities of real-world decision-making. The insights we generate are relevant, clear and impactful.

Strategic Sharing Groups bring municipal water leaders, academic researchers and other thought leaders together to share critical peer knowledge on emerging issues. Canadian Water Network’s team actively frames the discussions and curates key insights for members to accelerate, advance and improve decision-making.

Canadian Water Network convenes bi-annual Consortium Leaders Roundtables on multi-dimensional challenges in community water management. These national events foster in-depth discussions among utility executives, global thought leaders and cross-sector representatives. We capture the insights so that participants can focus on engaging and sharing their knowledge.

As the Canadian water landscape evolves and national/regional/local priorities shift, Canadian Water Network is at the forefront of identifying opportunities where progress is made and effort is aligned. We conduct environmental and jurisdictional scans to daylight trends and actionable insights that consider the realities surrounding local decisions.

Consortium themes

Water management is cross-cutting and extends beyond the boundaries of drinking water, wastewater and stormwater. Canadian Water Network targets this complex decision-making space to enable leaders to move forward confidently. The Consortium’s 2019 – 2023 strategic themes and their narratives guide our work:

Across the globe, increased customer engagement is becoming a clear industry focus and represents a significant change in utility culture. Equity is critical and in need of better shared understanding in our discussions, including rate equity across incomes and generations, as well as equity within communities.

Given the uncertainties of current and future conditions (e.g. population growth, development, climate change, new technologies) and the lack of clear separation of liabilities, risks and benefits, there is an increasing need to design investments and actions that more explicitly identify where benefits can accrue to groups across and outside the utility.

Water does not recognize boundaries such as public/private property lines. Lead in drinking water is one example; as treated water is distributed to home plumbing systems the quality of water can change. Other challenges of this nature include inflow and infiltration, downspout connections, stormwater management, Legionella and antimicrobial resistance.

Increasingly, concerns about elements found within water systems (such as pharmaceuticals, nutrients, microplastics and PFAS) are not straightforward, nor limited in control to the operation of water systems. Determining how to effectively define the best and most appropriate and responsible ways to deal with them is critical.

Annual update

Each year, the Consortium delivers decision-ready knowledge, connects people and perspectives, leads coast-to-coast conversations, and shapes national and international narratives to accelerate, advance and improve community water management decisions.

Join the Canadian Municipal Water Consortium

  • Contribute to a national effort to better navigate change and uncertainty in community water management.

  • Connect with peers to share insights, experiences and best practices that raise all boats.

  • Gain valuable insights that enable you to implement changes in your own community.

  • Expand your network to include peer leaders from across Canada, the United States and internationally.

General Members

Consortium members contribute to or collaborate on national initiatives, exchange knowledge with peers, expand their network of contacts, and access leading knowledge. This group includes utilities, municipalities of all sizes, academic institutions, industry, provincial and federal governments, and other water-related organizations.

Blue Cities Conference

Blue Cities is the Consortium’s annual flagship event, where water leaders and innovators from Canada and around the world gather to share insights, experiences and solutions. A broad cross-section of speakers and attendees from utilities, government, academia, NGOs and industry ensure a rich experience.

Visit Blue Cities Website

Looking for more information or to participate in the network?

Contact Sandra Cooke at [email protected] or (519) 904-2897 x78937

Projects & Reports
Strategic Sharing Groups
Annual update

Land Acknowledgement

Canadian Water Network (CWN) respectfully recognizes and acknowledges the deep connection that First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples across Canada have with the land that all Canadians call home. We also honour and recognize the significance of the treaties that establish the relationship between Indigenous peoples and settlers on this land.

Our office is located in Waterloo, Ontario, on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. More specifically, our office is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that extends six miles on each side of the Grand River.

We are grateful for the privilege to work and live on this land.