MontrealQuebec pool owners who haven’t yet complied with safety regulations requiring controlled access to outdoor pools, have been given at least another year to comply.Every summer in Quebec, approximately 1 child a day will either drown or nearly drown, researcher saysOwners have been given at least another year to comply with pool enclosure regulations. (Daniel Ricard/Radio-Canada)Quebec pool owners who haven’t yet complied with safety regulations requiring controlled access to outdoor pools, have been given at least another year to comply, without the risk of being fined. Less than two weeks before the original Sept. 30 deadline, newly-minted Municipal Affairs Minister Geneviève Guilbault announced the extension in a news release.”Even before I became Minister of Municipal Affairs, several citizens and municipal officials had expressed to me their confusion, irritation and exasperation regarding the rigidity of the standards applicable to the Residential Swimming Pool Safety Regulations,” she said.While it is essential that all residential swimming pools be designed safely, the minister’s office said that in certain situations, the “rigidity of applicable standards can cause significant harm to the owner, while the observed deviation does not have a significant impact on the safety level of the installations.”Under the Residential Pool Safety Regulation, passed in 2010, every outdoor pool — in-ground, above-ground, or even portable — must be surrounded by a fence with a self-closing, self-locking gate to stop young children from getting in. Older pools built before 2010 were exempt, but an amendment to the regulation in July 2021 removed that exemption, with owners initially given until July 1, 2023 to comply. The deadline was later pushed to September.Louis Mercier, a resident of Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville and a member of a citizen group called Comité Citoyens Piscines, that has been advocating for pool owners, called the announcement a “big victory.”A petition by the group, asking for an extension until the fall of 2026, has over 30,000 signatures. In addition to denouncing the high costs associated with securing a swimming pool, the committee felt the rules lacked clarity.WATCH | Experts warn against delaying pool fence rules in Quebec: Delaying implementation of pool fence rules could have deadly consequences, experts warnQuebec has decided to postpone the implementation of new regulations requiring pools to be fenced in, after some pool owners objected. Delays could have deadly consequences, say expertsBut not everyone is happy and experts warn the delay could put lives at risk. A recently-published study conducted by Pediatric Surgeon Dr. Hussein Wissanji, in collaboration with the Institut national de santé publique du Québec and the Quebec coroner’s office, found that every summer in the province, approximately one child per day will suffer a drowning or near-drowning.”What we know from the data, is that the fencing law helps the most vulnerable children, meaning the children under five,” Wissanji, who is also a researcher at the Montreal Children’s Hospital, said.”These are preventable problems where a child goes without supervision or by accident or into the neighbour’s pool and then falls into an unprotected unfenced pool.” What people often don’t realize is that a drowning can happen quickly, in “20 to 30 seconds, and can be completely silent,” he added.Wissanji is worried about the legislation being pushed back for another year. “The children aren’t protected during the swimming season of the summer 2026,” Wissanji said.That’s a concern also shared by Raynald Hawkins, executive director of the Quebec branch of the Lifesaving Society.While Hawkins said some good could come of the current pause, he’d like to see changes made before the summer season as well. “The bathing activities in backyard pools will be over soon, because we are going to the fall now, and for me the best aspect is … let’s change something inside the regulations, and we can extend that,” he said.Another concern with waiting until the fall of 2026, is that election season will be in full swing with Quebecers heading to the polls on Oct. 5. to elect their provincial government. “Historically measures such as this one risk to be diluted or even delayed again or cancelled altogether,” Wissanji said.Beyond the one -year grace period, the Quebec government hasn’t set a firm deadline as to when the fence regulation would come into effect.It says it will consult with municipalities about potentially changing the rules and making regulations easier to implement.ABOUT THE AUTHORAnnabelle Olivier is a digital journalist at CBC Montreal. She previously worked at Global News as an online producer. You can reach her at anne.isabelle.olivier@cbc.ca.With files from Radio-Canada’s Louis Gagné
Experts warn against Quebec’s move to delay implementation of new pool fence rules
