The Alberta Centre for Toxicology tests drinking water to make sure it’s safe to drink. They use the
Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water set by Health Canada to report safe levels of substances in drinking water that can be harmful to your health. To understand your drinking water test results, use the information below.
Some of the results are reported using these categories:
Maximum acceptable concentration (MAC) is the highest amount of a substance in drinking water that is safe for a person to drink. This value is set to protect an average person from a substance in drinking water, if they drink 1.5 litres of water each day over 70 years.
Aesthetic objective (AO) looks at substances that can change the taste, odor, and appearance of drinking water. The AO is the level of a substance used to decide if people will use or drink the water.
Operational guidelines (OG) are followed when a substance in the water may affect water treatment or damage pipes and plumbing fixtures. An OG is not used to test private well water supplies.
Drinking water test results
The following is a list of metals that are tested for in drinking water. If your water testing shows high levels of any of the following substances, call your local public health inspector. They can give you information about treatment devices for your home water supply.
Talk to your doctor if you have questions about substances in drinking water and if they could affect your heath.
Aluminum
-
Guidelines:
OG - 0.1 or 0.2 mg/L (depending on treatment type) -
Information:
Aluminum is found naturally in ground and surface water, but it is more common in in surface water.
Acidic soil (having a pH below 6.5) can lead to higher amounts of aluminum in water.
Researchers aren’t sure if aluminum in drinking water affects your health.
Antimony
-
Guidelines:
MAC - 0.006 mg/L -
Information:
Antimony gets into untreated water from:
- natural weathering (erosion) of rocks
- runoff (water that flows over soil and gets into a water supply)
- water used for mining and manufacturing that gets into a water supply
- plumbing fixtures with antimony
Antimony levels higher than the MAC may cause small changes in organs, including the thymus, kidney, liver, spleen, and thyroid.
Arsenic
Barium
Boron
Cadmium
Chromium 6 (VI)
Copper
-
Guidelines:
MAC - 2.0 mg/L, AO<1.0 mg/L -
Information:
Copper can get into a water supply from industrial waste. It can also get into drinking water from water systems that use copper piping.
We need a small amount of copper in our diets to stay healthy. Drinking water that has copper levels higher than the MAC can cause:
- nausea, pain, vomiting, and diarrhea
- kidney problems (if you drink it over a long time)
Lead
-
Guidelines:
MAC - 0.005 mg/L
-
Information:
Lead gets into drinking water from:
- lead pipes used in older plumbing systems (commonly used before 1945 but most have been replaced)
- solder
- unplasticized polyvinyl chloride (uPVC) pipes
- landfill runoff
- industrial and city or town (municipal) wastewater
- storm water
When high levels of lead are found in Alberta drinking water, it usually has come from solder or lead pipes.
Higher levels of lead in drinking water can cause:
- development problems in children under 6 years of age
- development problems in unborn babies (whose mothers drink water with high levels of lead)
- learning and memory problems
- kidney problems
Contact with high levels of lead over many years can cause stomach and lung cancer.
Manganese
-
Guidelines:
MAC 0.12mg/L, AO<0.02 mg/L -
Information:
Manganese is commonly found in soil, rocks, surface water, and groundwater. It is commonly found at high levels in groundwater and surface water in Alberta.
Manganese can get into water from:
- weathering of rock and soil
- landfill runoff
- manufacturing waste and wastewater
Manganese can:
- stain plumbing fixtures and laundry
- give drinking water a bad taste
- cause bacteria to grow in pipes
- form coatings on pipes (this can come off and look like black liquid or specks in the water)
We need a small amount of manganese in our diets to stay healthy. Drinking water high in manganese can lead to:
- learning, memory, and behavioral problems
- having trouble paying attention (concentrating)
- movement problems
People who are very young, pregnant, older, and those with liver disease have the highest risk of developing these health problems.
Infants also have a high risk of developing these problems if they drink formula made with water that has high levels of manganese.
Selenium
-
Guidelines:
MAC 0.05 mg/L -
Information:
Higher levels of selenium can be found in groundwater in Alberta.
Selenium gets into an untreated water supply from:
- petroleum refineries
- mine and industrial waste
- natural breakdown of rock and soil
It may also be found in unleaded brass (to replace lead).
We need a small amount of selenium to stay healthy. We get most selenium from food.
Eating food or drinking water with high levels of selenium can cause:
- hair loss
- tooth decay
- weak nails
- numbness and tingling of the arms and legs
- muscle weakness
Uranium
-
Guidelines:
MAC 0.02 g/L -
Information:
Uranium is naturally found in some types of soil and rocks, like sandstone, shale, and granite bedrock.
Uranium may be found in well water when the well is drilled in bedrock that has uranium. Wells that are shallow (dug or bored wells) and surface water supplies usually have less uranium.
Low levels of uranium may also be found in food, water, and air.
Drinking water with higher levels of uranium over a long time can cause kidney problems.
Zinc
-
Guidelines:
AO<5.0 mg/L -
Information:
Zinc gets into an untreated water supply from:
- weathering of rock and soil
- burning fuel
- using pesticides
- manufacturing waste from industries that make things from iron, steel, copper and nickel
- the zinc coating on galvanized pipe
- zinc parts in hot water tanks
- brass fittings
Water with zinc levels higher than the AO will look cloudy or milky, and have a greasy film when boiled.
Health Canada has not found any health concerns related to drinking water with zinc.
If your drinking water supply comes from a system that uses galvanized pipes, run your tap for 1 minute before drinking the water.
The following metals aren’t included in the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality. At this time, Health Canada has not found that these metals are related to any health concerns.
- beryllium
- cobalt
- molybdenum
- nickel
- silver
- thallium
- titanium
- vanadium
Alberta Health Services is collecting information about these trace metal levels to better understand if they get into our drinking water from natural causes or industrial activity.
For more information about drinking water, visit:
Alberta Health Services – Information for your Home
Alberta Environment and Parks – Working Well
