ToxProbe Today
Environmental, Occupational Health & Risk Assessment News Jan 2003 (Vol. 2-1)
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ToxProbe Today |
Environmental, Occupational Health & Risk Assessment News Jan 2003 (Vol. 2-1) |
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Legislation The Ontario Ministry of the Environment recently proposed a regulation, made under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). The proposed regulation includes provisions of Ontario Regulation 459/00 and Ontario Regulation 505/01 and extends its application to other drinking water systems including smaller residential systems and commercial and institutional systems that serve the drinking water to the public. The proposed regulation also defines new categories of drinking-water systems which are easy-to-understand and have their own risk-based regulatory requirements. The regulation tailors the requirements to each category of drinking-water systems. Written submissions may be made between January 14, 2003 and March 15, 2003. http://204.40.253.254/envregistry/019461er.htm Notice with Respect to Certain Hydrochlorofluorocarbons
(Canada Gazette, Part I, January 25, 2003). The Notice requires facilities
that possess specified HCFCs to provide required information by March
25, 2003. Publications Proposed Risk Management Strategy Addressing Ammonia, Inorganic Chloramines and Chlorinated Wastewater Effluents under CEPA 1999: Report of Consultation Sessions August 20th to November 4th, 2002 (Environment Canada, December 2002). After consideration of the comments received from the report, Environment Canada will propose a preventive or control instrument addressing ammonia, inorganic chloramines and chlorinated wastewater effluents in the spring of 2003. http://www.ec.gc.ca/CEPARegistry/documents/part/mwwe/toc.cfm
Canadian Soil Guidelines for the Protection of Environmental and Human Health: Uranium - Scientific Supporting Document (CCME, December 2002). Any comments on the scientific supporting document should be submitted to CCME by March 28, 2003. http://www.ccme.ca/initiatives/soil.html?category_id=44#82 Proposed Revisions to the Export and
Import of Hazardous Waste Regulations - Discussion Paper for Winter 2003
National Consultations (Environment Canada, December 2003). The paper
is intended to support consultations on proposed reforms to the Regulations
during January and February of 2003. http://www.ec.gc.ca/CEPARegistry/documents/regs/EIHWR/EIHWR12-31-02.cfm Occupational Health Health Canada is requesting research proposals on Public Disclosure of Potential and Theoretical Health Risks to support the need for a better understanding of when, how and under what circumstances Canadians want disclosure of potential or theoretical risks to health, as well as the type of information Canadians want to receive. The deadline for researchers to submit proposals is March 5, 2003. Environmental Health The U.S. EPA has recently urged home owners to test for radon. Indoor radon gas is one of leading causes of lung cancer in the U.S. US EPA approximates that one home in 15 across the U.S. nation has unacceptably high radon levels and that in some areas of the country, as many as one out of two homes has high levels. Radon test kits, sold at home improvement and hardware stores, are easy to use and provide accurate readings of home radon levels. The U.S. EPA warns that homes with radon levels of 4 pCi/L (picoCuries per litre of air) or higher pose a danger and should be fixed by an experienced contractor. http://www.epa.gov/iaq/radon A Proposal for a Harmonized Pesticide
Classification System for Canada (Health Canada, 2002). The Federal/Provincial/Territorial
Committee on Pest Management and Pesticides identified that there were
benefits in developing a single harmonized pesticide classification system,
to replace existing federal and provincial classification systems. Stakeholders
are invited to comment on proposal. http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/pmra-arla/english/pdf/fpt/ciwg/propdoc-e.pdf Technical Guidelines The Ontario Ministry of the Environment
recently issued proposals to establish an Ontario Drinking Water Standards
for antimony, cyanobacterial toxins (microcystin LR), New Source Emission Guidelines for Thermal Electricity Generation (Environment Canada, 2002). The annexed Guidelines are a revised version of the former Thermal Power Generation Emissions and include emission limits for nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and sulphur dioxide based on the emissions performance achievable using current best available economically feasible technologies and strategies. (Canada Gazette, Part I, January 4, 2003). Environment Canada has published a response
to comments received on the Proposed Canada-wide Standards for Dioxins
and Furans for Iron Sintering Plants and Steel Manufacturing Electric
Arc Furnaces. The proposed standards were developed by the CCME and published
in February 2002. The response appears in the January 11, 2003 Canada
Gazette, Part I. At its upcoming meeting in the spring of 2003, the CCME
is expected to finalize the agreement. Research & Development A new study at the University of California,
Riverside has found that produce washes are not as effective as they claim.
The study looked to see if produce washes were more effective in removing
pesticide residues than water. The study will be published in the February.
In the first part of the study, crops that had been normally treated with
captan were separated into three groups. The first group was rinsed with
water; the second with water and produce wash, and the third was not rinsed.
The unrinsed produce had a residue level of 6.7 parts per million. The
group that was rinsed with water had a residue level of 4.1 parts per
million, 39% less than the unrinsed group. The group that was rinsed with
water and produce wash had a residue level of 3.7 parts per million, 45%
less than the unrinsed group. In the second part of the study, fruit that
had been treated in the field with a tank mix of captan on methomyl were
separated and treated as in the first part of the study. The fruit that
was unrinsed had a residue level of 0.52 for captan and 0.87 for methomyl.
The fruit that was rinsed with water had a residue level of 0.10 for captan
and 0.71 for methomyl, 81% and 18% less than the unrinsed fruit respectively.
The fruit that was rinsed with water and produce wash has a residue level
of 0.053 for captan and 0.53 for methomyl, 90% and 39% less than the unrinsed
fruit respectively. The claims that produce washes are much more effective
than water is not supported by this study. Risk Trivia What is the annual risk of an average American from the following? 1. A fractured skull. Answers will be provided in next month's
issue of ToxProbe Today. Answer: December 2002 Risk Trivia What is the rate of the following crimes in the United States? 1. Theft. Answers: 1. Every 4 seconds. |