Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program

What Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program does

The Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program (ORMGP) is a partnership of Ontario government agencies, regional municipalities, and conservation authorities established in 2001 to consolidate and interpret groundwater and geological data across south-central Ontario. Hosted at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority headquarters in Toronto, the program is operated by a core team of five to six hydrogeologists, GIS specialists, and engineers, and serves municipal partners (Toronto, York, Peel, Durham, Halton), conservation authorities, environmental consulting firms, and academic institutions. Its central asset is a web-based interactive GIS platform (maps.oakridgeswater.ca) backed by a 100+ gigabyte integrated database covering 645,000+ boreholes, 159 million water-level measurements, 994 climate stations, 14,000+ documents, and approximately 100 numerical groundwater models, with records extending back to the 1980s (and climate data to 1900).

ORMGP's product surface spans data modules (Boreholes Database, Document Library, Long-Term Interpolated Climate Data via Delft-FEWS, High Resolution Topography) and analysis modules (Cross-Sections Tool, Particle Tracking, Groundwater Level Trends, Water Table and Depth-to-Water-Table Mapping, Drainage Area Delineation, Hydrograph Explorer, 3D Geological Model, and Integrated Groundwater/Surface Water Modeling). Partners gain authenticated access via a tiered system (Open Access and Partner Access), with the program offering the Ripple Effect newsletter, YouTube video content, an annual report ('Beneath the Surface'), and a 25th anniversary event in September 2026.

The program does not operate as a commercial vendor. It is funded through partnership contributions from Ontario regional municipalities and conservation authorities under memoranda of understanding, with no disclosed pricing, external investors, or public revenue figures. Pricing is not publicly available; organizations interested in partnering contact ORMGP directly. The historical name YPDT-CAMC was retired in favor of ORMGP.

Name

Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program

Legal name

Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program

Website

https://oakridgeswater.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program is a partnership of Ontario regional municipalities and conservation authorities operating an interactive GIS-based hydrogeological data platform serving government agencies, consulting firms, and academia across south-central Ontario since 2001.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hydrogeological Information Systems

NAICS

Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

Geospatial Data Management & Enterprise GIS (Geodatabases, Web GIS, Spatial Analytics) (EUAHAKAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Environmental Data Management Platforms (EHS/EMS, LIMS, ELN, Compliance Data Hubs) (EUAHAKAA), Water Quality & Watershed/Hydrologic Modeling (SWMM/HEC-RAS, Flood/Runoff/Nutrient) (EUAHAKAF), GIS & Spatial Data Management Platforms (BPAMANAK)

Keywords

• Groundwater data management
• Hydrogeological database services
• Subsurface mapping platform
• Water resource analytics
• Geological information systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Partnership Contributions: Funded through partnership contributions from Ontario government agencies including regional municipalities (Toronto, York, Peel, Durham, Halton) and conservation authorities. The program has operated since 2001 based on sustained multi-agency collaboration.
2. Partner Access Program: Provides data and tools to federal, provincial, or local government agencies, conservation authorities, environmental consulting companies, and academic institutions through partnership membership.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The ORMGP operates an interactive web-based GIS platform that consolidates geological, hydrological, and climate data for south central Ontario, providing mapping tools, a 600,000+ well borehole database, cross-section visualization, particle tracking, water-budget computation, and a 14,000+ document library. Partners access 100+ GB of integrated data to support water-related decision-making across municipalities, conservation authorities, consulting firms, and academic institutions in the Greater Toronto Area.

Product overview

The Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program (ORMGP) operates a unified hydrogeological knowledge system providing extensive geological and hydrological data through an interactive map-based website. The core platform is the ORMGP Interactive Mapping Platform, which serves as the primary interface for accessing the program's comprehensive database. Key data modules include the Boreholes Database (600,000+ wells), Document Library (14,000+ reports), and Long Term Interpolated Climate Data (Delft-FEWS climate service). Analysis modules include Cross-Sections Tool, Groundwater Level Trends, Particle Tracking Tool, Water Table Mapping, Drainage Area Delineation, and Hydrograph Explorer. The program also offers the Ripple Effect newsletter and maintains the ORMGP Database as its core data infrastructure containing 100+ GB of groundwater data.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ORMGP Interactive Mapping Platform Web-based interactive mapping platform at maps.oakridgeswater.ca providing Open Access and Partner Access tiers for viewing groundwater data, borehole records, cross-sections, climate data, particles, and hydrological analysis tools, designed for partner agencies, consulting firms, and academic institutions operating in south central Ontario.
• Boreholes Database Consolidated borehole database providing direct links to original well records and consultant borehole logs for over 600,000 wells across south central Ontario, with a multi-criteria Filter tool for customized queries on depth, drilling period, drilling company, and recommended pumping rate. Many wells in the database are unique and not available in provincial datasets.
• Document Library Geo-referenced library of over 14,000 consultant reports, government maps, scientific papers, and newspaper articles searchable by text and spatial analysis, providing partner organizations with historical context for Ontario's subsurface and groundwater resources.
• Long Term Interpolated Climate Data (Delft-FEWS) Delft-FEWS climate service delivering interpolated temperature and precipitation data going back to 1900 across approximately 10 km² sub-catchments, enabling long-term climate comparisons for groundwater recharge and watershed analysis in the ORMGP study area.
• ORMGP Database Core integrated hydrogeological database that has grown to over 100 GB, containing 645,000+ borehole locations, 2.2 million geological layer descriptions, 159 million water-level measurements from 700+ monitoring wells, 17,700 surface-water monitoring stations with 4.2 million daily streamflow measurements, 994 climate stations with 28 million meteorological readings, 965,000 chemical analyses, and approximately 100 numerical models.

Quantifiable outcome

• Saves time for consultants who don't have to reinvent the wheel and can access historical data easily
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature12 records

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Regional Municipality of DurhamcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2001Primary municipal partner since program inception in 2001. Durham Region participates in the multi-agency partnership providing groundwater data and utilizing ORMGP resources for water management decisions.
• City of TorontocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary municipal partner in the Greater Toronto Area. Toronto contributes to and benefits from the comprehensive groundwater database for city planning and environmental management.
• Regional Municipality of YorkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey municipal partner using ORMGP for reviewing historical documents, accessing borehole/well/bedrock insights, water table mapping and specialty tools.
• Regional Municipality of PeelcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMunicipal partner that values ORMGP's data consolidation, finding it valid, accurate and reliable, saving time and money for consultants.
• Regional Municipality of HaltoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMunicipal partner that uses ORMGP for water-related decision making, finding that synthesized data saves time compared to searching individual records.
• Toronto and Region Conservation AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost organization for ORMGP offices in the newly constructed sustainable building. Key conservation authority partner in the partnership.
• Conservation HaltoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner participating in the multi-agency partnership for groundwater management across the Oak Ridges Moraine area.
• Credit Valley ConservationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner contributing to and utilizing the ORMGP database for watershed management and planning.
• Lake Simcoe Region Conservation AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner extending the program's geographic reach to the Lake Simcoe watershed area.
• Central Lake Ontario Conservation AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner contributing to watershed-scale groundwater monitoring and management.
• Kawartha ConservationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner in the eastern portion of the study area.
• Lower Trent ConservationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner extending program coverage to the Trent River watershed.
• Ganaraska ConservationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner in the eastern GTA/Central Lake Ontario region.
• Otonabee ConservationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner in the Otonabee region for groundwater monitoring.
• Nottawasaga Valley Conservation AuthoritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation authority partner covering the Nottawasaga watershed area north of the moraine.
• Ontario Ministry of the EnvironmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvincial government ministry providing foundational data including the original Water Well Information System (WWIS) database that seeded the ORMGP database.
• Geological Survey of CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal geological agency whose original geological interpretation of Oak Ridges Moraine sediments from the 1990s provided the foundation for subsequent ORMGP geological modeling work.
• Provincial Groundwater Monitoring Network (PGMN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvincial monitoring network operated by the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and partner Conservation Authorities, integrated with ORMGP monitoring data.
• Water Survey of CanadaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFederal agency providing streamflow measurement data that is updated regularly in the ORMGP database.
• Environmental Consulting FirmscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerConsulting companies across the study area have partnered with ORMGP and rely on the website for day-to-day work including R.J. Burnside and Associates and Hatch.
• Academic InstitutionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversities including University of Toronto contribute to and benefit from the ORMGP database for research and education in hydrogeology.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Geological Survey of Canada (NRCan): Federal agency that provided the original 1990s geological interpretation of Oak Ridges Moraine sediments that seeded ORMGP's 3D geological model. Functions as a data provider/ecosystem partner rather than a competitor, but is the closest public-sector analogue for national-scale geological and hydrogeological data curation.
• Conservation Ontario: Provincial umbrella organization representing Ontario's 36 conservation authorities, including most of ORMGP's core partners. Related rather than competing — ORMGP is a service program for these authorities — but Conservation Ontario's role in coordinating source water protection creates strong thematic overlap.

Direct peers

• Matrix Solutions Inc. Canadian environmental and hydrogeological consulting firm specializing in groundwater characterization, numerical modeling, and watershed studies across Canada. Closest direct peer in the Ontario groundwater services market, serving overlapping consulting and municipal clients.
• SLR Consulting: Global environmental and advisory firm with strong Canadian hydrogeology practice. Directly competes with ORMGP-supported consultants for groundwater characterization, contaminant investigations, and water supply studies in Ontario.
• Cambium Environmental: Canadian environmental and forestry consulting firm with hydrogeology, water resources, and source water protection practices serving Ontario municipalities. Directly comparable in target clients (small/medium Ontario municipalities and conservation authorities) to ORMGP's partner base.
• S.S. Papadopulos & Associates (SSPA): Specialized North American hydrogeology and water resources consulting firm focused on groundwater flow and contaminant transport modeling. Comparable in technical depth and Ontario project footprint to ORMGP's specialist work.

Broad incumbents

• WSP Canada (including Golder Associates): Global environmental and engineering consultancy with one of the largest Canadian hydrogeology and groundwater practices following the Golder acquisition. Competes for the same municipal groundwater and source water protection engagements ORMGP's partners fund.
• GHD: Global engineering and environmental consulting firm with a substantial water resources and hydrogeology practice serving municipalities in Ontario. Overlaps with ORMGP in providing groundwater data, modeling, and source water protection support to municipal clients.
• Stantec: Major North American environmental and water resources consultancy with significant Ontario presence. Provides hydrogeological investigations, groundwater modeling, and water supply services to many of the same municipal clients as ORMGP.
• AECOM: Global infrastructure and environmental consulting firm with a water and environment practice active in Ontario. Delivers hydrogeological assessments, source water protection, and groundwater modeling for municipal and provincial clients in similar domains to ORMGP.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=9m67ef_V9TU
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oak-ridges-moraine-groundwater

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Oak Ridges Moraine Groundwater Program