Environment Canada Releases CEPA Annual Report

Environment Canada released, February 6, 2015, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act,  1999 Annual Report for April 2013 to March 2014. The document discusses, in part, key risks; living organisms; air pollution and greenhouse gases; water quality; waste; environmental emergencies; reporting; public participation; and compliance promotion and enforcement.

The report included a section on water quality which addressed federal activities in protecting water quality.This included monitoring activities citing upgrades to monitoring technologies and to data reporting and database infrastructure.

The targeted survey of selected emerging disinfection by-products in Canadian drinking water systems from source waters with high saline content was completed, and results are currently being compiled.

 

Both Health Canada and Environment Canada continued their water quality research activities. Health Canada conducts research on drinking water quality in support of the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality. Environment Canada’s research included analytes in wastewater treatment plant influent and effluent; the environmental fate of azo benzidine compounds and their transformation products; and organophosphorus flame retardants in a variety of environmental compartments; biotoxins in algal blooms in the St. Lawrence River; degradation products from pharmaceuticals in surface waters; impacts of municipal effluents on wild fish in the St. Lawrence River; contaminant levels and toxicity in a system impacted by an abandoned mining facility; bioaccumulation and toxicity of cobalt and selenium under varying water quality parameters.

 

Health Canada continued research to develop methods for measuring disinfection by-products of emerging concern in drinking water.

 

The report also addressed federal risk management activities. It included continuing activities to identify and manage toxic substances, as well as Health Canada’s continued work to develop Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality.