Who Can Sign a Hydrogeological Report?
P.Geo. or P.Eng., the exception in the Professional Geoscientists Act, and how to check the person named on a proposal.
In Ontario, writing and signing a hydrogeological report is the practice of professional geoscience, and the Professional Geoscientists Act, 2000 decides who may do it. In practice that means a licensed professional geoscientist (P.Geo.) or a professional engineer (P.Eng.) whose own training and experience cover the work. Municipal terms of reference and ministry guides then put their own wording on top, and both licences can be checked online in a few minutes.
What the Act says
Section 3 of the Professional Geoscientists Act, 2000 says an individual must not practise professional geoscience, or imply they are qualified to, unless they are a member of the Association. The Association is the body now known as Professional Geoscientists Ontario; its legal name in the Act, the Association of Professional Geoscientists of Ontario, is still used on seals and certificates. Only a member may use the title "professional geoscientist" or the abbreviation P.Geo. (section 5).
The same section lists exceptions. The one that matters for groundwater work is paragraph 2 of subsection 3 (3): an individual licensed as a professional engineer under the Professional Engineers Act who is competent, by training and experience and in line with the regulations under that Act, to do work that would also be professional geoscience. Municipal documents call this person an "exempted" engineer. The exception is personal. It turns on the engineer's own competence, so a P.Eng. alone does not qualify someone to sign a hydrogeological report.
Firms are covered too. Under section 4, a corporation or partnership that offers geoscience services to the public needs a certificate of authorization, unless it offers them in the name of members who are partners, or it is an engineering firm that uses no geoscience members and holds a certificate under the Professional Engineers Act that covers the work.
Seals and responsibility
The seal is what makes the report the signer's responsibility. Section 6 allows a member's stamp or seal on a document only if it was prepared by the member or under their supervision, and only with their knowledge and consent. A member may also consent to seal a document prepared by someone they did not supervise, but then they are responsible for its contents as if they had prepared it. For an owner, the practical point is that the name on the seal is the person who answers the reviewer's questions, so it should be the person who planned the field work or checked it closely.
What municipalities ask for
Most terms of reference repeat the Act and add a requirement to stamp, sign and date the report. A few examples, with the wording each one uses:
| Where | Who may prepare or sign |
|---|---|
| Barrie | "A licensed, professional geoscientist or exempted engineer as set out in the Professional Geoscientist Act of Ontario"; all reports and drawings stamped, signed and dated by a qualified professional licensed in Ontario (terms of reference) |
| Brampton | Qualified persons with relevant experience in groundwater assessments: a licensed P.Geo. or an exempted P.Eng. as set out in the Act (Brampton terms of reference) |
| Toronto | A licensed P.Geo. or exempted P.Eng. in good standing, who signs and stamps the Hydrological Review and completes the summary form (Toronto terms of reference) |
| Vaughan | For dewatering discharge, a report sealed by a professional geoscientist (Vaughan dewatering discharge checklist) |
| Whitchurch-Stouffville | For site alteration, a pre-screening questionnaire signed by a qualified professional such as a P.Eng. or P.Geo. (Whitchurch-Stouffville site alteration application guide) |
Vaughan's wording is the one to watch: where a reviewer asks for a professional geoscientist's seal by name, an engineer relying on the exception should confirm with the City before the work is priced.
What the ministry asks for
For construction dewatering registered on the Environmental Activity and Sector Registry, the ministry's EASR water taking guide requires the water taking report to be prepared by a qualified person who is a practising member of the Association of Professional Geoscientists of Ontario (now Professional Geoscientists Ontario), or a professional engineer who meets the requirements of the Act. For a Category 3 Permit to Take Water, the ministry's application requirements call for a hydrogeological study and/or surface water study prepared by a qualified person. In both cases the report carries the qualified person's statement, so the same licensing question applies.
How to check a licence
Toronto's Hydrological Review Summary form asks City staff to check the professional directories before accepting a report. An owner can do the same before signing a proposal:
- Get the name and licence number. Ask for the full name of the person who will seal the report, not just the firm.
- For a P.Geo., search the PGO public register of registered members and confirm the person is listed as practising.
- For a P.Eng., search Professional Engineers Ontario's licence holder search. A listing confirms the licence, not the geoscience competence the exception requires, so also ask for a short summary of their groundwater experience.
- Check the firm. Where a company offers the work, ask whether it holds a certificate of authorization under section 4 of the Act or its engineering equivalent.
Geotechnical and hydrogeological work on one site
Many projects need both a geotechnical report and a hydrogeological study, and one firm may prepare both. Each report still needs a signer qualified for it. Our comparison of a hydrogeological study and a geotechnical report sets out the differences, and what's in a hydrogeological report walks through the reports section by section.
Related questions
Can a geotechnical engineer sign a hydrogeological report?
Only if they are licensed as a professional engineer and are competent, by training and experience, in the geoscience the report involves. That is the exception in section 3 of the Professional Geoscientists Act, 2000. Otherwise the report needs a P.Geo., and some reviewers ask for one by name: Vaughan's dewatering discharge checklist asks for a report sealed by a professional geoscientist.
Can staff prepare the report and a P.Geo. seal it?
Yes, within limits: under section 6 of the Act a member's seal may go on a document prepared by or under the supervision of that member, with their knowledge and consent. A member who consents to seal a document prepared by someone else is responsible for its contents as if they had prepared it.
Does the person need an Ontario licence?
Yes: the Act governs the practice of professional geoscience in Ontario, and the member it means is a member of the Ontario association, now Professional Geoscientists Ontario. Barrie's terms of reference, for example, ask for reports stamped, signed and dated by a qualified professional licensed in the province.
Where to go next
- Development Hydrogeological Study: scope, cost and what the reviewer checks
- Hydrogeological study Toronto: local rules, data and costs
- Hydrogeological study Barrie: local rules, data and costs
- Hydrogeological study Vaughan: local rules, data and costs
- Hydrogeological study vs geotechnical report
- What’s in a hydrogeological report
Sources
- Professional Geoscientists Act, 2000, S.O. 2000, c. 13, sections 3 to 6 (consolidated to e-Laws currency date October 13, 2026) (opens in a new tab), Government of Ontario (e-Laws).
- New business name: Professional Geoscientists Ontario (since June 2019; the legal name in the Professional Geoscientists Act is unchanged) (opens in a new tab), Professional Geoscientists Ontario.
- Hydrogeological Study: terms of reference (2026) (opens in a new tab), City of Barrie.
- Terms of Reference: Hydrogeological Report (June 2025) (opens in a new tab), City of Brampton.
- Application Support Material: Terms of Reference, Hydrological Review (August 2018), in Building Toronto Together: A Development Guide (opens in a new tab), City of Toronto.
- Dewatering Discharge Approval (Sewer Use By-law 025-2024) (opens in a new tab), City of Vaughan.
- Guidelines for Application of a Site Alteration and Fill Permit (2025) (opens in a new tab), Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville.
- Water taking user guide for the Environmental Activity and Sector Registry (opens in a new tab), Government of Ontario (MECP).
- Permits to take water: application requirements (opens in a new tab), Government of Ontario (MECP).
- Hydrological Review Summary (form, August 2018) (opens in a new tab), City of Toronto.
- Public Register (registered members) (opens in a new tab), Professional Geoscientists Ontario.
- Search for licence holders and engineering interns (opens in a new tab), Professional Engineers Ontario.