Sewer Surcharge Rebate Program

How to Participate

Step 1: Submit a letter of intent

Submit a letter of intent by email to ssr@toronto.ca that includes:

• Company name
• Facility address
• Contact information (full name, phone number, email address)
• Water account number(s)
• Water meter number(s)

Step 2: Submit the application*

Applicants will have nine months from the date the letter of intent is received by the City to submit the application with all required documentation to ssr@toronto.ca (see online application forms and reporting requirements section below). Applications must include:

• all City forms stamped and certified by an independent licensed Professional Engineer of Ontario; and
• all supporting material.

Step 3: Assessment and rebate*

If all documentation and information is received within the nine-month period from Step 2, and the application is approved, the rebate will be retroactive to the date the letter of intent was received by the City.

If the application received is incomplete, and all additional information required to complete the submission is not received within 10 business days of being requested by the City, the rebate will be retroactive to the date all requested information required to complete the submission is received.

Step 4: Subsequent applications

To continue to receive a rebate for the subsequent year after the initial year in the program, a renewal application must be submitted (except the letter of intent) to ssr@toronto.ca by February 1 of the following year. The application must contain all documentation including data from the most recent 12-month period.

If a renewal application is not received by February 1, the rebate will be adjusted and made retroactive to the date the renewal application is received.

Applications received later than September 30 will be processed together with the next year’s applications, and the rebate (if qualified) will apply to the year of application. The retroactive date will be the date the application was received. A new application is due on February 1 of the following year.

*All communications with respect to the current year’s application will be maintained with the facility owner and the Professional Engineer of Record.

Online Application Forms and Reporting Requirements

Provide an engineering report that follows this outline:

Preface

i. A completed Sewer Discharge Summary form (Excel).

ii. Background – An overview of the facility, the dates of the study periods, and a process flow diagram showing: connection to the City’s sanitary sewer system, water meter and sub-meter locations, process connections, discharge connections, outflow(s) to sewer, and other relevant appurtenances.

1. Total Annual Water Consumption

1.1 Completed Purchased Municipal Water form. Include copies of the first and last month’s water bills for each water account in Appendix A.

1.2 Other Sources – Specify and provide meter readings or calculations for volumes for other sources of water.

2. Distribution to Non-Sanitary Components

2.1 Completed Boiler/Cooling Tower form(s) for cooling tower(s), include makeup and blowdown water meter readings, as applicable. Conductivity readings are required where blowdown meter readings are not available and where there is any discharge by-passing the blowdown meter.

2.2 Completed Boiler/Cooling Tower form(s) for boiler(s), include makeup and blowdown water meter readings, as applicable. Conductivity readings are required where blowdown meter readings are not available and where there is any discharge by-passing the blowdown meter.

2.3 Completed Product Water Content form. For each product include:

1. 1. a description of the product responsible for water consumption; and
   2. any calculations providing water content percentage or amount based on a minimum of three separate, non-consecutive periods of study or production records, showing seasonal variations in Appendix B.

Note: Monthly production records are required to be submitted with the report, along with the completed product water content form.

2.4 For other processes, not included above, that divert water from the sanitary system, include:

1. 1. a detailed description of the process with enough information for City staff to analyze;
   2. any calculations supporting your totals must clearly be explained and reference industry-accepted methodologies and formulae;
   3. any other evaporation (not from cooling towers or boilers) must be explained in detail with calculations and equations provided to receive consideration; and
   4. a minimum of three separate, non-consecutive periods of study, records or meter readings showing seasonal variations in Appendix C.

Appendix

A. First and last month’s water bills

B. Production records and/or verification study periods

C. Other Process records and/or verification study periods

 

If you need help locating an engineer to help prepare the report, you may contact Partners in Project Green.

Tri-annual Application Process

Clients who meet the below criteria are eligible to receive a tri-annual rebate (verification process every three years), without having to submit a renewal application annually:

• must be in good standing with Revenue Services, and
• must have been approved for a rebate in the previous three years consecutively, where:
  • volume of purchased municipal water each year during this period must not deviated by more than 10 per cent,
  • percentage of water discharged to sanitary sewer each year during this period must not deviate by more than 10 per cent, and
  • all processes diverging water from sanitary sewer must be sub-metered.

Eligible clients will be sent an invitation letter to participate and may choose to opt-in to the tri-annual verification process.

Case Study: Example of Savings

In 2023, a business consuming 100,000 m³ and diverting 20 per cent of purchased water could receive a rebate of $50,004 (100,000m³ x $4.3863** x 57%*** x 20%).

Annual water bill for general customer: 
$438,630 (100,000m³ x $4.3863)

Annual water bill with sewer surcharge rebate: 
$388,626 ($438,630 – $50,004)

**Rebate calculation applies to water rate paid by consumer, either the general (Block 1) or industrial (Block 2) water rate. See the current water rates.

***57 per cent represents the portion of water rate charged for sewer use discharge (sewer surcharge). This rate of rebate is determined by City Council and can be subject to change.