180 kilometers (110 miles) northwest of Toronto, in the municipality of Brockton, is the tiny township of Walkerton. After dealing with a terrible E-coli outbreak in 2000, the generally serene and quiet community was forced to become quite well-known. The Walkerton E. coli epidemic was brought on by the contamination of the city’s drinking water supply with Campylobacter jejuni and E. coli bacteria. Following the heavy rains in late April and early May 2000, which drew germs from neighboring cattle manure used to fertilize crops into the shallow aquifer of a nearby well, the water supply became polluted as a result of insufficient water treatment. The first reported case was on May 17. The contamination resulted in cases of gastroenteritis and sickened more than 2,000 people with 6 people losing their lives to the sickness.
Due to some irresponsible decisions undertaken by the Walkerton Public Utilities Commission, the contaminated water was consumed by the citizens of the town of Walkerton while the government health agencies secretly investigated the origin of the outbreak, further creating tension between the government and the citizens. Amidst this chaos where every institution was shifting the blame on the other and the public was left angry and dissatisfied with the presiding administration, Charles Joseph Bagnato took it upon himself to right the wrongs and ran for council the same year. Bagnato was determined to do what was best for the town’s people and the taxpayers from the area, despite being outnumbered by many of the old councils being re-elected.
Bagnato, born on October 5, 1951, in Toronto, Ontario attended the Chaminade College School, and later transferred to and graduated from Weston Collegiate Institute in Toronto. Later he also completed the Rotman School of Management University of Toronto’s ICD (Institute of Corporate Directors) Not-For-Profit Governance Essentials Program in January 2009. His formal career began at Weston Post Office in 1971 where he served in the position of a mail sorter. He then took up a job at the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO) in 1972. During this period, he also worked at the Ministry of Transportation Licensing Office. In 1976, he was hired as a full-time clerk at LCBO and promoted to bookkeeper in 1984. In 1994, he was once again promoted to manage LCBO Walkerton. Before finally running for council in 2000, Bagnato also served as a technical trainer in many stores throughout the Western Region of the LCBO from 1994 to 2001 and retired in 2004 with 80 factors.
Bagnato wanted justice to be served and wished to make things right as much as he could. Eventually, the government offered to build “The Walkerton Clean Water Centre” (WCWC) but later tried to move it to another part of the province. Bagnato was against letting that happen and played an instrumental role in keeping the WCWC in Walkerton.
After becoming a municipal councilor, Bagnato also sat on the Walkerton Wastewater Treatment Plant committee and was an active member of the environmental assessment steering committee regarding Walkerton’s long-term water strategy for the next 6 years. Bagnato served as the mayor of the municipality of Brockton from 2003 to 2010. During his time, he spearheaded a number of successful environmental initiatives. He formed the Brockton/Walkerton Environmental Advisory Committee, which resulted in; the passing of an anti-pesticide by-law in 2006, an anti-idling by-law in 2007, a solid waste audit in 2008, an accelerated recycling program focused on the collection of Styrofoam, household batteries, clam-shell and film plastics, a green cone program, a composter program, and a clear garbage bag program, initiated in 2010 resulting in an astounding 50% reduction in waste going to the landfill.
Bagnato also sits on several other boards, including the Brockton Police Services Board, the Walkerton Clean Water Centre (WCWC) board, Westario board, the boards of Westario Power Inc., the Public Utilities of Walkerton (PUC), and Bluewater Radio. He chaired the Saugeen Municipal Airport Commission and sat on 15 municipal committees including, the Bruce County agriculture, tourism, planning, and economic development committee. He is also the past chair of the Grey-Bruce Health Unit and is a Rotarian and an active community volunteer. Bagnato has also been invited as a guest speaker and stakeholder by a number of organizations including the Canadian Water Network, Ontario Water Works Association, Grand River Water Forum, and the Ministry of Environment.
Bagnato proved to be a remarkable mayor throughout his tenure. He was a friend to farmers when he was on the Bruce County Agriculture Tourism & Planning Committee and was so outstanding a partner that he was honored with the Bruce County Federation of Agriculture Award of Merit in 2007. Presently, Bagnato works as a real estate professional with his wife Janet in Hanover, Ontario, since 2012.
