Inventory of Federal, Provincial and Territorial Environmental and Occupational Health Data
Sources and Surveillance Activities

Health and Environment Initiatives and Activities

2) Water Quality

2.1 Environmental Monitoring

Drinking Water Monitoring ("Intake to Tap"): Typically done by municipalities, but some provincial monitoring is conducted. Purpose is to ensure safe drinking water. Parameters monitored typically include microbiological and chemical parameters for which there are Canadian Drinking Water Quality Guidelines. Some municipalities and/or provinces (e.g., Ontario) include monitoring at the "intake" to treatment plants, as a surrogate for source water quality. Existing F/P/T mechanisms (e.g., CEOH Drinking Water Committee, CCME Water Quality Task Group) facilitate access to and reporting of results nationally.

Ambient Water Monitoring (CCME Water Quality Task Group, CCME Water Quality Monitoring Sub-group): Purpose of source water monitoring is to evaluate quality of water prior to intake to treatment plants. Formal F/P/T mechanism and initiative are underway to address this area. The CCME Action Plan on Water includes national, geo-referenced water quality monitoring inventories; a Data Referencing Network (see CISE entry); network development; and development of a National Framework for water quality monitoring networks. This monitoring includes surface waters and groundwaters used for drinking water sources, recreation and other water uses (e.g. aquatic life, agriculture).

Federal Water Quality Monitoring (EC): Main purpose is to consolidate current federal capacities on water quality monitoring in Canada. Includes inventories of federal water quality monitoring programs, EC monitoring activities (Environmental Monitoring Inventory), and source waters on federal lands. Also a plan for monitoring source waters on federal lands for microbial pathogens.

Community Water Quality Monitoring (EC): This inventory of source and ambient water monitoring activities conducted by community groups, NGOs and volunteer networks across Canada, is currently under development.

Canada-Wide Water Quality Data Referencing System (EC): A CISE demonstration project (see CISE entry) whose purpose is to develop a nationally coherent and consistent approach to accessing federal/provincial/territorial data on water quality monitoring programs. Phase 1 of this meta-data system will include data verification in the F/P/T inventory of activities, on-line mapping of programs, and searchability by parameter, region, or keyword.

2.2 Environmental Health Surveillance

Surveillance of Waterborne Infectious Diseases (HC): HC's F/P/T Enteric Disease Surveillance Steering Committee provides a national advisory mechanism resulting from a 1995 national consensus conference on waterborne/foodborne enteric disease surveillance. Its objective is to advise on needs, priorities, goals and strategies for waterborne, foodborne, and enteric disease surveillance and related special studies. This mechanism is well placed to nationally coordinate the integration of water quality (source and finished drinking water) monitoring with related health surveillance information.

(Proposed) Safe Water Information System (SWIS) (EC, HC): Supported by EC, SWIS is a CISE demonstration project (see entry on CISE) whose aim is to explore the feasibility of integrating water quality and health outcome data into a single information system. This could facilitate access to a wide range of water, health and associated land-use information by data owners/providers (e.g., professionals in the drinking water, environmental, and health care sectors). The intent is to link distributed information systems through a web-based tool (i.e., act as a 'portal' with 'one-window' access to a repository of data from distributed networks).

2.3 Environment and Public Health Indicators

NRTEE Water Quality Indicators: Under the ESDI initiative, the NRTEE has proposed a series of indicators on: incidence of water-borne disease, surface water quality, municipal population served by wastewater treatment, mercury in fish tissue.

National Environmental Indicator Series (EC): Includes urban water indicators relating to municipal water use and wastewater treatment (e.g., daily municipal water use, metered residential water use, municipal population served by wastewater treatment).