2 people tasked with enforcing cannabis bylaws in Waterloo region

Waterloo region says there's "some concern" that there will not be enough resources to enforce the Smoke Free Ontario Act and the region's code of use bylaw now that recreational cannabis is legal.

The region's two tobacco enforcement officers took on new responsibilities Wednesday morning as legalization took effect.

Under the updated Smoke Free Ontario Act, the two officers are now responsible for enforcing rules relating to where individuals can and cannot smoke cannabis in public. 

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They will also continue to enforce the region's own code of use bylaw, which prohibits smoking recreational marijuana on municipally-owned property.

"There is some concern about whether or not we have enough resources to handle all the calls or questions that we may get," said Kris Fletcher, director of council and administrative services  with the region.

Complaints could exceed capacity

She said the officers will enforce the act and the bylaw on a complaint basis. Even so, she said the number of complaints may exceed the region's capacity. 

"This is not unusual that we have an influx of calls when the law changes and, generally speaking, we've been able to cope," she said. 

It's not anticipated that every level of government or every private retailer or whatever will have all the answers on day one.- Shayne Turner, City of Waterloo

"However, we will be monitoring this one, because I think everybody's unsure at this point in time about what the call volumes might be."

If the number of calls jumps — and Fletcher expects it will — she said the region will have to decide whether or not it needs to re-assign other officers to the task or whether it needs to ask the province for more funding. 

City bylaws unchanged

While the region moves ahead with its updated bylaw, the three major cities have decided to stick with what they have. 

Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo have not updated their bylaws to reflect the legalization of cannabis, though all said they are considering a change.

In an email, the City of Kitchener said its priority "has always been on protecting our community and vulnerable populations from the negative impacts of legalization," and that it is working with the community to implement the new legislation. 

The City of Cambridge said it would be "closely monitoring public concerns and community impact to determine if more restrictive bylaws on places to smoke are needed."

It also noted that the city had updated its internal policies to clearly state that no recreational cannabis would be permitted in the workplace.

Waterloo working with other cities on policy

"This is, obviously, one of the biggest and most significant policy changes this country has seen in many, many years, and it's going to take some time to sort out," said Shayne Turner, director of municipal enforcement services with the City of Waterloo. 

"This is something that's going to evolve over time, and it's not anticipated that every level of government or every private retailer or whatever will have all the answers on day one."

Turner said that while the City of Waterloo has not changed its bylaws, it does have existing rules that allow it to "dictate what happens on municipal property."

"If somebody is doing something that we think is inappropriate, we have the ability to ask them to leave," he said. "It's not specific to cannabis, but it is something that we would try to work with in the meantime until further details are sorted out."

Turner said he doesn't know when those details will be "sorted out" but said Waterloo is working with the other cities to come up with a plan that would be similar across the region.