Health Canada Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality – Consultations
Print this Article | Send to Colleague
Health Canada has published several drinking water guidelines that are currently open for public consultation. CWWA’s drinking water quality committee is reviewing the guidelines and will submit comments if there are any concerns.
Haloacetic acids
The proposed Guidelines reccomenad an acceptable concentration of 0.08 mg/L (80 μg/L) for total haloacetic acids (HAA6) in drinking water, based on a locational running annual average of quarterly samples.
The changes would notably:
- Expand monitoring from five haloacetic acids to six (HAA6), adding bromochloroacetic acid;
- Require steps to reduce brominated-haloacetic acid formation when bromochloroacetic acid concentrations equal or exceed 10 μg/L
- Mandate water treatment systems to maintain concentrations "as low as reasonably achievable without compromising the effectiveness of disinfection"; and
- recommend utilities develop a distribution system management plan to minimize the formation of HAAs
Asbestos in Drinking Water (
Proposoed guidelines for asbestos in drinking water, concluded that a maximum acceptable concentration is not recommended since there is no consistent, convincing evidence that oral exposure to asbestos causes adverse effects in humans and animals.
Chlorite and Chlorate in Drinking Water
The proposed MAC for chlorite in drinking water is 1 mg/L (1 000 µg/L). The proposed MAC for chlorate in drinking water is 1 mg/L (1 000 µg/L). A MAC for chlorine dioxide is not required because of its rapid reduction to chlorite and, to a lesser extent, chlorate in drinking water.
Drinking water treatment systems should make every effort to meet the guidelines; however, any method of control employed must not compromise the effectiveness of water disinfection.
