Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada
Abstract Objectives The First Nations Food, Nutrition and Environment Study (FNFNES), a community-based participatory research project, measured the levels of metals of health concern and the levels of metals that have operational guidance (OG) and aesthetic objectives (AO) in drinking water of Firs...
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crspringernat:10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5 2023-05-15T16:15:36+02:00 Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada Schwartz, Harold Marushka, Lesya Chan, Hing Man Batal, Malek Sadik, Tonio Ing, Amy Fediuk, Karen Tikhonov, Constantine First Nations and Inuit Health Branch, Indigenous Services Canada Canada Research Chairs Canadian Institutes of Health Research 2021 http://dx.doi.org/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5 https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5.pdf https://link.springer.com/article/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5/fulltext.html en eng Springer Science and Business Media LLC https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 CC-BY Canadian Journal of Public Health volume 112, issue S1, page 113-132 ISSN 0008-4263 1920-7476 Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health General Medicine journal-article 2021 crspringernat https://doi.org/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5 2022-01-04T15:18:35Z Abstract Objectives The First Nations Food, Nutrition and Environment Study (FNFNES), a community-based participatory research project, measured the levels of metals of health concern and the levels of metals that have operational guidance (OG) and aesthetic objectives (AO) in drinking water of First Nations (FN) south of the 60 th parallel. Methods Both stagnant (first draw) and flushed tap water samples were collected from participating households in 91 FN representing 11 ecozones. The concentrations of metals were quantified and compared to Health Canada’s Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality (GCDWQ). Results In total, 1516 FN households participated in this study component. Exceedances of the 2019 GCDWQ for the health-based maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) were found for five metals: lead 8.4% of households (first draw), manganese 4.0%, uranium 1.6%, aluminum 1.3%, and copper 0.2% (flushed). Flushing taps resulted in a decrease to 0.7% of households exceeding the lead MAC. Exceedances of the current OG for aluminum were found in 14.2% and the exceedances of the proposed OG were found in 18.1% of households (flushed). Exceedances of the AO (flushed) were as follows: manganese 12.8%, sodium 5.1%, iron 3.5%, and copper 0.4%. Results of the study were compared to provincial surveys where the data were available. Taste and colour were reported to be the main reasons for limiting the use of tap water. Conclusion Overall, the quality of drinking water with respect to trace metals of human health concern is satisfactory. However, elevated lead levels were found in some FN communities. Until appropriate action can take place, it was recommended to flush the water before use to reduce the lead levels. Article in Journal/Newspaper First Nations Springer Nature (via Crossref) Canada Canadian Journal of Public Health 112 S1 113 132 |
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Springer Nature (via Crossref) |
op_collection_id |
crspringernat |
language |
English |
topic |
Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health General Medicine |
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Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health General Medicine Schwartz, Harold Marushka, Lesya Chan, Hing Man Batal, Malek Sadik, Tonio Ing, Amy Fediuk, Karen Tikhonov, Constantine Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada |
topic_facet |
Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health General Medicine |
description |
Abstract Objectives The First Nations Food, Nutrition and Environment Study (FNFNES), a community-based participatory research project, measured the levels of metals of health concern and the levels of metals that have operational guidance (OG) and aesthetic objectives (AO) in drinking water of First Nations (FN) south of the 60 th parallel. Methods Both stagnant (first draw) and flushed tap water samples were collected from participating households in 91 FN representing 11 ecozones. The concentrations of metals were quantified and compared to Health Canada’s Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality (GCDWQ). Results In total, 1516 FN households participated in this study component. Exceedances of the 2019 GCDWQ for the health-based maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) were found for five metals: lead 8.4% of households (first draw), manganese 4.0%, uranium 1.6%, aluminum 1.3%, and copper 0.2% (flushed). Flushing taps resulted in a decrease to 0.7% of households exceeding the lead MAC. Exceedances of the current OG for aluminum were found in 14.2% and the exceedances of the proposed OG were found in 18.1% of households (flushed). Exceedances of the AO (flushed) were as follows: manganese 12.8%, sodium 5.1%, iron 3.5%, and copper 0.4%. Results of the study were compared to provincial surveys where the data were available. Taste and colour were reported to be the main reasons for limiting the use of tap water. Conclusion Overall, the quality of drinking water with respect to trace metals of human health concern is satisfactory. However, elevated lead levels were found in some FN communities. Until appropriate action can take place, it was recommended to flush the water before use to reduce the lead levels. |
author2 |
First Nations and Inuit Health Branch, Indigenous Services Canada Canada Research Chairs Canadian Institutes of Health Research |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Schwartz, Harold Marushka, Lesya Chan, Hing Man Batal, Malek Sadik, Tonio Ing, Amy Fediuk, Karen Tikhonov, Constantine |
author_facet |
Schwartz, Harold Marushka, Lesya Chan, Hing Man Batal, Malek Sadik, Tonio Ing, Amy Fediuk, Karen Tikhonov, Constantine |
author_sort |
Schwartz, Harold |
title |
Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada |
title_short |
Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada |
title_full |
Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada |
title_fullStr |
Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada |
title_full_unstemmed |
Metals in the drinking water of First Nations across Canada |
title_sort |
metals in the drinking water of first nations across canada |
publisher |
Springer Science and Business Media LLC |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5 https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5.pdf https://link.springer.com/article/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5/fulltext.html |
geographic |
Canada |
geographic_facet |
Canada |
genre |
First Nations |
genre_facet |
First Nations |
op_source |
Canadian Journal of Public Health volume 112, issue S1, page 113-132 ISSN 0008-4263 1920-7476 |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 |
op_rightsnorm |
CC-BY |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.17269/s41997-021-00497-5 |
container_title |
Canadian Journal of Public Health |
container_volume |
112 |
container_issue |
S1 |
container_start_page |
113 |
op_container_end_page |
132 |
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1766001361011343360 |