Arsenic

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On January 1, 2018, the limit for arsenic in the Ontario Drinking Water Standards was lowered from 0.025 mg/L to 0.010 mg/L. The limit is based on the risk from lifetime exposure to arsenic. The limit of 0.010 mg/L for arsenic brings Ontario in-line with Health Canada and the World Health Organization.

Shakespeare Water EA Open House Information

The Township of Perth East initiated a Class Environmental Assessment process in January 2022 to identify a preferred method and location to provide treatment facilities to address background arsenic levels in the municipal water supply. A number of alternatives have now been identified and the Township is seeking input from residents to assist Council with selecting a preferred approach.

A Public Open House was held to present details of the Class EA investigation to residents of Shakespeare and obtain feedback on the alternatives.

Representatives from the Township and the Project Engineers were in attendance.

For further information on this project, please contact the project engineers: BM Ross and Associates Ltd. 62 North Street, Goderich, Ontario N7A 2T4. Telephone: 519-524-2641 attention Kelly Vader, Environmental Planner kvader@bmross.net

To view the presentation please follow this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJGeAxTJK1U

Township of Perth East Public Open House Notice

Display Boards From the Public Open House

Screening Report - Municipal Class Environmental Assessment

The Township initiated a Class Environmental Assessment (Class EA) in March of 2020 to evaluate the potential impacts associated with required upgrades to the existing municipal well supply servicing the community of Shakespeare. B.M. Ross and Associates was engaged to conduct the investigation on behalf of the Township.

The following report is to document the Class EA and planning and design process followed for this project and includes the following major components.

Overview of the general project area
Summary of the infrastructure deficiencies associated with the project area
Description of the alternative solutions considered to resolve the identified problems
Synopsis of the decision-making process conducted to select a preferred alternative
Detailed description of the preferred alternative.

Notice of Study Completion

Township of Perth East Municipal Class Environmental Assessment for Upgrades to the Shakespeare Well Supply Screening Report - Part 1

Township of Perth East Municipal Class Environmental Assessment for Upgrades to the Shakespeare Well Supply Screening Report - Part 2 and Appendices

What is arsenic?

Arsenic is a natural occurring element found widely in the earth’s crust and trace amounts can be found in food, soil, air and water.

How does arsenic get into drinking water?

Arsenic can enter drinking water through the ground or as runoff into surface water sources. When arsenic-containing minerals break down or erode, arsenic can enter lakes, rivers, and ground water. Because of these natural processes, trace amounts of arsenic can be found in some drinking water supplies, including wells.

What are the health effects of arsenic?

Arsenic is considered to be a cancer-causing agent according to Health Canada. Studies have shown that consuming drinking water with very high levels of arsenic over a lifetime can increase the risk of cancer in internal organs, such as the bladder, liver and lungs (Health Canada). Arsenic from all sources contributes to 120 cases of cancer per year in Ontario (Cancer Care Ontario/Public Health Ontario). Short-term exposure to very high levels of arsenic can lead to abdominal and muscular pain, diarrhea and vomiting, skin rash and numbness.

However, given the small exceedance of the limit for arsenic in drinking water in Ontario, the Health Unit believes the risk to the health of residents in Perth East is low.

For more information about health effects, visit Health Canada’s web page on arsenic in drinking water.

Is my drinking water safe?

You can continue to use the water for drinking, bathing, and for preparing food as you normally would while the remediation efforts are underway.

I have received a "Water Quality Notice" letter: what happens now?

As stated, you can continue to use the water for drinking, bathing, and for preparing food as you normally would while the remediation efforts are underway.

The Township of Perth East works with Huron Perth Public Health and the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks to undertake necessary steps to formulate a long-term solution to provide adequate treatment to the water and resolve the situation.

The plan is to explore various options, including treatment, in order to comply with these regulations and to have a solution in place within a suitable timeframe. Huron Perth Public Health will closely monitor the situation. An update will be provided to residents on the progress of the treatment within six months.

I have a private well system in Perth East. How do I test my water for arsenic?

Arsenic testing of private drinking water wells can be undertaken via a private licensed environmental laboratory on a fee-for-service basis. To find one in your area, please visit see Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks list of licensed laboratories.

Are there treatment systems that remove arsenic?

There are three treatment systems that remove arsenic.

Please note that the Township of Perth East cannot provide price quotes on these systems, or recommend an installer (water treatment specialist), or a system, make/model over another.

Reverse Osmosis

Reverse osmosis removal involves filtration of water at a molecular level through a semi-permeable membrane. This method is effective in removing arsenic under the right conditions if testing supports its use.

Advantages

RO is very effective at removing inorganic constituents like arsenic, iron, lead, chromium and manganese. When operated under ideal conditions, RO can remove over 95% of As (V).
RO requires very little maintenance and no addition of chemicals.

Disadvantages

Smaller RO point-of-use systems produce only a few gallons of treated water per day. The supply of drinkable water is limited and normally available only in the kitchen area of the home.
If As (III) is in the drinking water, it needs to be pre-oxidized to As (V) to allow the RO unit to remove it, which will increase the complexity and cost of the system.
If there are significant amounts of iron or manganese in the water, additional pre-treatment equipment to remove those prior to RO treatment will likely be needed.
Larger RO systems, called point-of-entry systems, can treat water for the entire house. However, these are much more expensive. More importantly, RO point-of-entry systems can cause corrosion control problems in house plumbing, which can elevate the levels of lead and copper in drinking water.

Anionic Exchange

Anionic exchange systems exchange ions between a resin bed and chemical elements in the water passing through it. These systems are used to soften water, remove iron and manganese, and lower nitrate and arsenic levels. Specific contaminant removal is determined by the type of resin bed used.

Advantages

Anionic exchange requires little maintenance; additional salt is added every few weeks.
Systems are typically installed to treat an entire house.

Disadvantages

Other chemicals in water can compete with arsenic for the resin sites reducing the systems effectiveness. The US EPA recommends the influent water have less than 500 mg/L of total dissolved solids (TDS) and less than 25 mg/L of sulfate.
Treated water can have a very low (acidic) pH and high levels of chloride which can cause corrosion control problems and high levels of lead and copper in the treated water.
If the system fails, all of the arsenic captured on the resin at that time can be released at once causing a large concentration of arsenic in the treated water.

Iron Oxide

Iron oxide filters are similar to activated carbon filters in that the filter material has a large amount of surface area and a structure that helps arsenic to stick to its surface. Although these filters are fairly new to the home treatment market, the principals behind them have been used by public water suppliers for many years.

Iron oxide media can be housed in small inline filter cartridges (point-of-use) or in larger point of entry tanks. These filters can be used to enhance the performance of reverse osmosis systems that are not effectively removing As (III).

Advantages

They are effective for both As (III) and As (V) removal.
They can be used as point-of-use or point of- entry systems.
They remove other inorganic chemicals.
They are simple to use and install.
They are disposable as non-hazardous waster

Disadvantages

The media must be replaced on regular basis.
The presence of iron, manganese, sulfate, silica or organic carbon can reduce effectiveness.

Where can I get more information?

For water system questions, call Perth East Public Works at 519-595-2800
For health-related questions, call Huron Perth Public Health at 1-888-221-2133.
Health Canada’s web page on Arsenic and Drinking Water