Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality: Guideline Technical Document – Lead

Overview

This guideline technical document reviews and assesses all identified health risks associated with lead in drinking water. It assesses new studies and approaches and takes into consideration the availability and limitations of appropriate treatment and analytical technologies. The maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) for total lead in drinking water is 0.005 mg/L (5 µg/L), based on a sample of water taken at the tap and using the appropriate protocol for the type of building being sampled. As current science cannot identify a level under which lead is no longer associated with adverse health effects, lead concentrations in drinking water should be kept as low as reasonably achievable (ALARA).

Who this document is for

• Part I. Overview and Application
  • 1.0 Guideline
  • 2.0 Executive summary
    • 2.1 Health effects
    • 2.2 Exposure
    • 2.3 Analysis and treatment
    • 2.4 International considerations
  • 3.0 Application of the guideline
    • 3.1 Monitoring
• Part II. Science and Technical Considerations
  • 4.0 Identity, use and sources in the environment
    • 4.1 Environmental fate
    • 4.2 Sources of lead in drinking water
  • 5.0 Exposure
    • 5.1 Water
    • 5.2 Food
    • 5.3 Air
    • 5.4 Consumer products
    • 5.5 Soil
    • 5.6 Blood lead levels in Canada
    • 5.7 Multi-route exposure through drinking water
  • 6.0 Analytical methods
    • 6.1 Sample preparation
  • 7.0 Treatment technology and distribution system considerations
    • 7.1 Municipal scale
    • 7.2 Residential scale
  • 8.0 Kinetics and metabolism
    • 8.1 Absorption
    • 8.2 Distribution
    • 8.3 Metabolism
    • 8.4 Excretion
    • 8.5 PBPK models
  • 9.0 Health effects
    • 9.1 Effects in humans
    • 9.2 Effects on experimental animals
    • 9.3 Mode of action
  • 10.0 Classification and assessment
    • 10.1 Cancer risk assessment
    • 10.2 Non-cancer risk assessment
    • 10.3 Comparison of cancer and non-cancer risk assessments
    • 10.4 International considerations
  • 11.0 Rationale
  • 12.0 References
• Appendix A: List of acronyms

View complete guideline

Download PDF (1 MB, 113 pages)

Details and history

Published: [March 8, 2019]

Consulted: [January 11 – March 15, 2017] (see all consultations)

Part of topic(s): Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality

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