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Safe Drinking Water Act, 2002

ONTARIO REGULATION 169/03

Amended to O. Reg. 17/04

ONTARIO DRINKING-WATER QUALITY STANDARDS

Historical version for the period February 10, 2004 to June 2, 2005.

This is the English version of a bilingual regulation.

Standards

1. The standards set out in Schedules 1, 2 and 3 are prescribed as drinking-water quality standards for the purposes of the Act. O. Reg. 169/03, s. 1.

Deemed compliance

2. (1) A person who, pursuant to section 10 of the Act or otherwise, has an obligation to ensure that water meets a standard set out in Schedule 1, 2 or 3 shall be deemed not to have contravened the obligation if, in circumstances where the water does not meet the standard, the person immediately contacts the medical officer of health and takes such other steps as are directed by the medical officer of health. O. Reg. 169/03, s. 2 (1).

(2) Despite subsection (1), the owner or operating authority of a drinking-water system that provides water that does not meet a standard set out in Schedule 1, 2 or 3 shall be deemed not to have contravened paragraph 1 of subsection 11 (1) of the Act only if the owner or operating authority ensures that the appropriate corrective action is taken under Schedule 17 or 18 to Ontario Regulation 170/03 (Drinking-Water Systems). O. Reg. 169/03, s. 2 (2).

3. Omitted (provides for coming into force of provisions of the English version of this Regulation). O. Reg. 169/03, s. 3.

SCHEDULE 1
MICROBIOLOGICAL STANDARDS

Item

Microbiological Parameter

Standard (expressed as a maximum)

1.

Escherichia coli (E. coli)

Not detectable

2.

Fecal coliforms

Not detectable

3.

Total coliforms

Not detectable

4.

General bacteria population expressed as background colony counts on the total coliform membrane filter

200 colony forming units (CFU) per 100 millilitres

5.

General bacteria population expressed as colony counts on a heterotrophic plate count

500 colony forming units (CFU) per millilitre

O. Reg. 169/03, Sched. 1.

SCHEDULE 2
CHEMICAL STANDARDS

Item

Chemical Parameter

Standard (expressed as a maximum concentration in milligrams per litre)

1.

Alachlor

0.005

2.

Aldicarb

0.009

3.

Aldrin + Dieldrin

0.0007

4.

Antimony

0.006

5.

Arsenic

0.025

6.

Atrazine + N-dealkylated metabolites

0.005

7.

Azinphos-methyl

0.02

8.

Barium

1.0

9.

Bendiocarb

0.04

10.

Benzene

0.005

11.

Benzo(a)pyrene

0.00001

12.

Boron

5.0

13.

Bromate

0.01

14.

Bromoxynil

0.005

15.

Cadmium

0.005

16.

Carbaryl

0.09

17.

Carbofuran

0.09

18.

Carbon Tetrachloride

0.005

19.

Chloramines

3.0

20.

Chlordane (Total)

0.007

21.

Chlorpyrifos

0.09

22.

Chromium

0.05

23.

Cyanazine

0.01

24.

Cyanide

0.2

25.

Diazinon

0.02

26.

Dicamba

0.12

27.

1,2-Dichlorobenzene

0.2

28.

1,4-Dichlorobenzene

0.005

29.

Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) + metabolites

0.03

30.

1,2-dichloroethane

0.005

31.

1,1-Dichloroethylene (vinylidene chloride)

0.014

32.

Dichloromethane

0.05

33.

2,4-Dichlorophenol

0.9

34.

2,4-Dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D)

0.1

35.

Diclofop-methyl

0.009

36.

Dimethoate

0.02

37.

Dinoseb

0.01

38.

Dioxin and Furan

0.000000015 a

39.

Diquat

0.07

40.

Diuron

0.15

41.

Fluoride

1.5

42.

Glyphosate

0.28

43.

Heptachlor + Heptachlor Epoxide

0.003

44.

Lead

0.01

45.

Lindane (Total)

0.004

46.

Malathion

0.19

47.

Mercury

0.001

48.

Methoxychlor

0.9

49.

Metolachlor

0.05

50.

Metribuzin

0.08

51.

Microcystin LR

0.0015

52.

Monochlorobenzene

0.08

53.

Nitrate (as nitrogen)

10.0

54.

Nitrite (as nitrogen)

1.0

55.

Nitrate + Nitrite (as nitrogen)

10.0

56.

Nitrilotriacetic Acid (NTA)

0.4

57.

N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA)

0.000009

58.

Paraquat

0.01

59.

Parathion

0.05

60.

Pentachlorophenol

0.06

61.

Phorate

0.002

62.

Picloram

0.19

63.

Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB)

0.003

64.

Prometryne

0.001

65.

Selenium

0.01

66.

Simazine

0.01

67.

Temephos

0.28

68.

Terbufos

0.001

69.

Tetrachloroethylene (perchloroethylene)

0.03

70.

2,3,4,6-Tetrachlorophenol

0.1

71.

Triallate

0.23

72.

Trichloroethylene

0.05

73.

2,4,6-Trichlorophenol

0.005

74.

2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4,5-T)

0.28

75.

Trifluralin

0.045

76.

Trihalomethanes

0.100 b

77.

Uranium

0.02

78.

Vinyl Chloride

0.002

Footnotes:

a Total toxic equivalents when compared with 2,3,7,8-TCDD (tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin).

b This standard is expressed as a running annual average.

O. Reg. 169/03, Sched. 2; O. Reg. 268/03, s. 1.

SCHEDULE 3
RADIOLOGICAL STANDARDS

Item

Radiological Parameter

Standard (expressed as a maximum in becquerels per litre)

Natural Radionuclides

1.

Beryllium-7

4000.0

2.

Bismuth -210

70.0

3.

Lead-210

0.1

4.

Polonium-210

0.2

5.

Radium-224

2.0

6.

Radium-226

0.6

7.

Radium-228

0.5

8.

Thorium-228

2.0

9.

Thorium-230

0.4

10.

Thorium-232

0.1

11.

Thorium-234

20.0

12.

Uranium-234

4.0

13.

Uranium-235

4.0

14.

Uranium-238

4.0

Artificial Radionuclides

15.

Americium-241

0.2

16.

Antimony-122

50.0

17.

Antimony-124

40.0

18.

Antimony-125

100.0

19.

Barium-140

40.0

20.

Bromine-82

300.0

21.

Calcium-45

200.0

22.

Calcium-47

60.0

23.

Carbon-14

200.0

24.

Cerium-141

100.0

25.

Cerium-144

20.0

26.

Cesium-131

2000.0

27.

Cesium-134

7.0

28.

Cesium-136

50.0

29.

Cesium-137

10.0

30.

Chromium-51

3000.0

31.

Cobalt-57

40.0

32.

Cobalt-58

20.0

33.

Cobalt-60

2.0

34.

Gallium-67

500.0

35.

Gold-198

90.0

36.

Indium-111

400.0

37.

Iodine-125

10.0

38.

Iodine-129

1.0

39.

Iodine-131

6.0

40.

Iron-55

300.0

41.

Iron-59

40.0

42.

Manganese-54

200.0

43.

Mercury-197

400.0

44.

Mercury-203

80.0

45.

Molybdenum-99

70.0

46.

Neptunium-239

100.0

47.

Niobium-95

200.0

48.

Phosphorus-32

50.0

49.

Plutonium-238

0.3

50.

Plutonium-239

0.2

51.

Plutonium-240

0.2

52.

Plutonium-241

10.0

53.

Rhodium-105

300.0

54.

Rubidium-81

3000.0

55.

Rubidium-86

50.0

56.

Ruthenium-103

100.0

57.

Ruthenium-106

10.0

58.

Selenium-75

70.0

59.

Silver-108m

70.0

60.

Silver-110m

50.0

61.

Silver-111

70.0

62.

Sodium-22

50.0

63.

Strontium-85

300.0

64.

Strontium-89

40.0

65.

Strontium-90

5.0

66.

Sulphur-35

500.0

67.

Technetium-99

200.0

68.

Technetium-99m

7000.0

69.

Tellurium-129m

40.0

70.

Tellurium-131m

40.0

71.

Tellurium-132

40.0

72.

Thallium-201

2000.0

73.

Tritium

7000.0

74.

Ytterbium-169

100.0

75.

Yttrium-90

30.0

76.

Yttrium-91

30.0

77.

Zinc-65

40.0

78.

Zirconium-95

100.0

Notes:

Radionuclide concentrations that exceed the standard may be tolerated for a short period, as long as the annual average concentrations remain below the standard and the restriction (see immediately below) for multiple radionuclides is met.

Restrictions for multiple radionuclides: If two or more radionuclides are present, the following relationship, based on International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) Publication 26, must be satisfied and, if not satisfied, the standard shall be considered to have been exceeded:

where

c1, c2 and ci are the observed concentrations, and C1, C2 and Ci are the maximum acceptable concentrations for each contributing radionuclide.

O. Reg. 169/03, Sched. 3.