Two of the 22 drinking water threats identified by the Province of Ontario relate to water quantity:
1. An activity that takes water from an aquifer or a surface water body without returning the water taken to the same aquifer or surface water body. An example is water taken from a river or bay and then discharged onto the ground and into groundwater; and
2. An activity that reduces the recharge of an aquifer. An example is increasing the impervious cover of the ground, often through construction of paved areas such as parking lots. Large paved areas block rain and precipitation from filtering back into the ground thus reducing the recharging of the aquifer.
In the Quinte Region it was determined through the science of the Water Budget study that there are no significant water quantity threats to our 11 municipal drinking water sources.