Supervised Persons

Operational checks for chlorine residual and turbidity must be conducted on-site and are done using portable or hand-held testing kits or devices.

These tests must be performed by a certified drinking water operator, water quality analyst or a Trained Person (depending on the category of the system). Individuals who are not certified can also perform chlorine residual and turbidity tests if all of the following conditions are met:

they were trained by a certified operator to conduct these tests; and
they work under the supervision of a certified operator; and
they immediately advise a certified operator of all test results.

Individuals who meet the criteria above are considered “Supervised Persons”.

Systems where a Supervised Person can conduct chlorine residual or turbidity tests

If you are a Supervised Person working under the supervision of a certified operator, you can conduct these tests in the following types of systems:

Municipal:
- a small municipal residential system
- a small municipal non-residential system serving a designated facility
- a large municipal non-residential system serving a designated facility

Non-municipal:
- a small non-municipal non-residential system serving a designated facility
- a large non-municipal non-residential system serving a designated facility
- a non-municipal year-round residential system
- a non-municipal seasonal system serving a designated facility.

Chlorine residual testing in a large municipal residential system must only be performed by persons holding a water treatment, water distribution or water quality analyst certificate.

Conducting operational checks for chlorine residual and turbidity: Roles of the Certified Operator and the Supervised Person

Certified Operator	Supervised Person
Train the Supervised Person in conducting chlorine residual and/or turbidity tests. The ministry’s Training Manual for Supervised Persons Conducting Operational Checks may be used to train supervised persons.	Receive training from the Certified Operator
Document the training you provided	Conduct on-site operational checks for chlorine residual and/or turbidity tests after you are properly trained
Supervise and give direction to the Supervised Person on when and where to conduct tests	Immediately advise the certified operator of all test results
Ensure you are available by phone, pager or other means if you need to provide direction to the Supervised Person	Seek direction from the certified operator as necessary

Refer to the ministry’s Training Manual for Supervised Persons Conducting Operational Checks for more information about the conditions that must be met for Supervised Persons to conduct chlorine residual or turbidity tests.

For information on the required qualifications to operate, test or sample drinking water systems under the Safe Drinking Water Act, refer to the reference chart available on the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks website at https://www.ontario.ca/page/ministry-environment-conservation-parks.