Stormwater Management Fee

Please contact our Stormwater Management Division by email at stormwater@townofbwg.com, or by phone at 905 775 5366 ext. 2403

Stormwater is rainwater and snowmelt that runs off roofs, driveways, parking lots, roads, and other hard surfaces. This runoff enters the municipal storm sewer system and eventually flows to local creeks, rivers, wetlands, and lakes.

The Stormwater Management Fee is a dedicated Fee that helps fund the operation, maintenance, repair, replacement, and improvement of the municipality's stormwater infrastructure and related environmental programs.

These services help:

• Reduce flooding.
• Maintain storm sewers, catch basins, and stormwater ponds.
• Protect local waterways.
• Improve water quality.
• Address impacts from climate change and severe weather events.

The Ministry of the Environment Conservation and Parks (MECP) implemented the Consolidate Linear Infrastructure Environmental Compliance Approval (CLI-ECA) process which requires the town to have a dedicated funding source for stormwater management activities

Stormwater infrastructure requires significant ongoing investment. Historically,  these costs were funded through property taxes, which can make it difficult to ensure adequate and sustainable funding.

A dedicated fee:

• Creates a stable funding source.
• Ensures users contribute toward the service.
• Increases transparency regarding stormwater costs.
• Helps fund future infrastructure renewal and growth.

The town uses the water/wastewater billing system as an efficient method to collect the stormwater management fee. This reduces administrative costs and allows residents to receive all utility-related charges on one bill.

For residents who are connected to the town’s water and/or wastewater utility system, this method also allows for the charge to be spread out over the year on to 6 separate bills.

Impervious areas are surfaces that prevent water from soaking into the ground, such as:

• Roofs.
• Asphalt driveways.
• Concrete patios.
• Parking lots.

These surfaces generate runoff that enters the storm sewer system.

Yes, you can receive you bill by email. Complete a request form to switch to paperless billing here.

Yes. If you are already enrolled in the Town’s pre-authorized debit program for water and wastewater services, the stormwater fee will automatically be included in those payments.

If you receive a Stormwater Only Bill you can request to be setup on a pre-authorized program and the town will debit your account on the due date. 

Learn more

There is a request for reconsideration form available if you believe your property was classified in the wrong tier (the size of your property does not match the size the town associated it with).

Click here to learn more and complete the form.

If you have any questions about reconsideration, please email stormwater@townofbwg.com or call 905 775 5366  ext. 2403.

Commercial owners whose property location contains multiple meters will receive a stormwater only bill annually. The stormwater fee will not be reflected on individual water/wasterwater utility bills.

*if the town charged each meter, the fee would be $615 annually (this is the lowest commercial fee). The $615 fee is a lot more expensive than the commercial fee for the entire parcel. It is up to the landlord to decide whether to pass the stormwater cost down to their “meters/ tenants.” 

Vacant properties can still generate stormwater runoff and benefit from municipal stormwater infrastructure and drainage systems.