Ottawa Public Health defends decision to reduce water testing at beaches – CBC
Testing was daily for decades, now it will be once a week
Jun 12, 2025
Ottawa Public Health is defending its decision to reduce its testing of the city’s beach water, amid criticism that doing so makes swimming riskier.
Until this swimming season, OPH has tested beach water quality daily but announced last month it would reduce testing to once a week starting June 21 to align with provincial standards, following a review of its beach water monitoring program.
According to Matthew Ruf, the Safe Food and Water Program manager with OPH, the shift will allow swimmers to pay attention to other factors when determining if it’s safe to take a dip.
“We want people to broaden that horizon and think about those things that we can prove that are well known in science, and impact water quality,” said Ruf.
