Burgess 1 Dam Environmental Assessment Study

Public Information Centre | Municipal Class Environmental Assessment Study Burgess 1 Dam

The Township of Muskoka Lakes has initiated a Class Environmental Assessment (EA) Study for the replacement or rehabilitation of the Burgess 1 Dam facility located in Bala, Ontario.

Did you know?

Did you know that the Township owns and operates (under contract) a dam called the Burgess 1 Dam located north of the North Bala Falls Dam and west of Muskoka Road 169 between Portage Street and River Street. It was constructed between 1917 and 1922 and was purchased by the Ontario Power Commission in 1929 who operated the dam until 1957. The Township purchased the dam in 1963 and in recent years the Township has leased it to various companies who have operated it as an active hydroelectric generating station. The Township has retained the services of Tulloch Engineering to conduct a Municipal Class Environmental Assessment Study for the rehabilitation or replacement of the Burgess 1 Dam facility.

Notice of Study Completion - Project File

The Township of Muskoka Lakes completed an environmental assessment under the Environmental Assessment Act to identify the preferred method of improvement for the Burgess 1 Dam. The preferred alternative solution is to rehabilitate the dam and rehabilitate power generating ability of the facility.

The final project was posted for comments in the winter of 2022. The Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks provided feedback and requested an update to the executive summary and Project File Report. Updates to the report include a more thorough summary of the studies conducted for the report as well as the preliminary design package for the preferred alternative solution. The updated final project file has been provided below and is open for comment period of 30 days.

View the Final Project File

• The preferred alternative solution is to rehabilitate the dam and rehabilitate power generating ability of the facility.