Mr. TAWNEY. Mr. Wollatt, you represent Walkerville?
Mr. WOLLATT. In connection with the Essex Board of Utilities
Commission.
Mr. TAWNEY. That is for Essex County?
Mr. WOLLATT. For the municipalities in Essex County, opposite
Detroit, beginning with Ford, Walkerville, Windsor, Sandwich,
Sandwich West, and Ojibway. That is running down the river.
Mr. MAGRATH. The extreme distance between the two points is what?
Mr. WOLLATT. Probably about 12 miles.
Mr. GARDNER. Have you full jurisdiction over the whole territory?
Mr. WOLLATT. This bill which I have in my hand gives the commission
complete jurisdiction. This is an act passed by the Ontario
Legislature last session. We just simply wish to report that this
act has been granted to the utilities commission, and we are getting
busy. We have a meeting this week, at which action will be taken as
to what the outcome will be of the matters under discussion. We are
in deep sympathy with the water question and the sewage matter; but
just what the utilities commission will do we can not say at the
present moment. We are not that far advanced yet, except to say, of
course, that we will have to be governed by the provincial board of
health.
Mr. TAWNEY. You are subject to the Ontario or Provincial Board of
Health?
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes.
Mr. TAWNEY. Have you given any study, or have your engineers given
any study, to the report of the sanitary engineers of this commission?
Mr. WOLLATT. No; not yet.
Mr. MAGRATH. Have you organized yet?
Mr. WOLLATT. Just last week, so far as the appointment of a chairman
and secretary; but no further organization. We will do that this week.
Mr. MAGRATH. What are your purposes?
Mr. WOLLATT. The bill sets out that we may construct main waterworks,
which will be a system taking in from Ford to Ojibway and sewers in
similar manner, if they are thought desirable. Whether it will be
done under this or individually the commission have not got that far
yet. We are in a preliminary stage in regard to that yet. We thought
we would come here and let you gentlemen know we are alive to this
situation, and that we have taken action in having this bill passed.
Mr. MAGRATH. Your utility commission exists purely for water problems?
Mr. WOLLATT. Water and sewage. We are hoping to include other matters
later, such as town planning, and so on. That will come later.
Mr. MIGNAULT. Is your commission already named?
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes; and the commission has been appointed.
Mr. MIGNAULT. Is the commission appointed named in the bill?
Mr. WOLLATT. The municipalities are named in the bill, with power in
the municipality to name their commissioners, the mayors being ex
officio members.
Mr. POWELL. Have you copies of that bill?
Mr. WOLLATT. No. I can let you have this, and we can probably secure
more for you, if necessary.
Mr. MIGNAULT. The commission has been formed already and constituted?
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes.
Mr. MIGNAULT. And proposes to consider these problems?
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes.
Mr. MIGNAULT. And that is the position you take?
Mr. WOLLATT. That is our position.
Mr. MIGNAULT. You have doubtless received the report of our sanitary
engineer?
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes.
Mr. MIGNAULT. Have you any remarks to make with respect to it?
Mr. WOLLATT. No: I must confess that I have not, because I have not
studied the situation.
Mr. MAGRATH. Who are the officers of the commission?
Mr. WOLLATT. Myself, as chairman--William Wollatt--and J. E. Hoan,
Walkerville, secretary. We have no further officers appointed yet,
although this bill empowers us to engage engineers and various other
officers as we may find necessary as we proceed. The municipalities,
we may say, have all consented; that is, the municipalities named and
included in this for the commission to take the matter of sewer and
water out of their hands and place it in the hands of the commission.
Mr. MAGRATH. What led to the obtaining of that commission? Was it
dissatisfaction with the present conditions over there?
Mr. WOLLATT. Not altogether. We had in view a very large growth on
that side of the border, and we were not as well provided with water
as we thought we ought to be, and that was one of the main things;
then the unsatisfactory conditions entered into it.
Mr. TAWNEY. I suppose economic considerations entered into it?
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes; that entered into it partly.
Mr. MAGRATH. Are you prepared to indorse the results of the
examination and the recommendation by our sanitary experts?
Mr. WOLLATT. That is a question I would hardly like to answer at this
time without having the proper consultation with the engineer who
may be appointed to go into the matter in detail. We are heartily in
sympathy with the proposition to obtain pure water. That is what we
want, but just how we shall obtain such we can not at this moment say.
Mr. MAGRATH. But you realize that you must live up to the treaty
conditions; that you must not pollute water to the injury of health
or property on this side of the boundary?
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes; and we presume they will not do anything on this
side to injure us.
Mr. TAWNEY. Have you copies of the report?
Mr. WOLLATT. I believe we have.
Mr. TAWNEY. One has been sent to all the villages, and I did not know
whether your board had one.
Mr. WOLLATT. Yes; we have one.
(Adjourned till 2.30 p. m.)