Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances under Annex 3 of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement – Joint

By Linda Heron on Monday, June 28th, 2021

Posted in Chemicals of Mutual Concern, Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, Joint, ORA Submissions, PFAS, Regulatory, River Concerns, Toxics

On behalf of the 23 undersigned organizations, we are writing concerning work on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under Annex 3 of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. We urge the U.S. and Canadian Governments to work together in developing a joint binational strategy to address these chemicals in the Great Lakes region.

As you know, under Annex 3 of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA), the Canadian and U.S. Governments (the Parties) have designated two individual PFAS and their isomers (perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid, or PFOS) and one category (long-chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids, or LC-PFCAs) as chemicals of mutual concern (CMCs).

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Time to clean the swimming pool but where to drain the water?

By Linda Heron on Tuesday, May 12th, 2020

Posted in Aquatic Life, Chemicals of Mutual Concern, Chlorine, Fisheries, ORA Reports, Pollution, River Concerns, salt, Toxics, Water Quality

MEDIA RELEASE: For Immediate Release – 14 May 2020

Time to clean the swimming pool but where to drain the water?

It’s that time of year when you are likely thinking about getting the pool or hot tub ready for the summer season. It’s a good idea to prepare by first checking with your local town or city to find out what you should do with the water when you drain the pool. “Beware, that releasing pool or hot tub water containing chlorine or salt directly into the street or a storm drain could bring a very heavy fine. That’s because those chemicals would then flow untreated into a local stream, river or lake and could result in a fish die-off or be very harmful to aquatic life”, said Linda Heron, Chair of the Ontario Rivers Alliance (ORA). Continue reading →

NGO Comments on Draft Binational Screening Criteria for Nominated Chemicals of Mutual Concern – ORA Support

By Linda Heron on Monday, December 16th, 2019

Posted in Chemicals of Mutual Concern, Regulatory, Regulatory Submissions, Support, Toxics

The government recommendation asks whether the current concentrations of the chemical “exceed” the benchmarks or guidelines. This implies that we are okay until the benchmarks or guidelines are exceeded. This is not true. Health impacts don’t suddenly start to occur when you cross that narrow threshold of meeting the threshold and move into exceeding. We are already in trouble once we are near or have met the benchmarks or guidelines.

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