Federal-Provincial-Territorial Committee on Drinking Water Thirty-Eighth Meeting April 5 - 7, 2006 Saint John, New Brunswick

5.0 Old/New Business

5.01 National Drinking Water Conference

The next conference will be held in Quebec City in May or October 2008. Future spring committee meetings should be held in the month of May rather than March or April.

Decision/Action:

• CWWA to start researching hotel and conference facilities as 2008 will be Quebec City's 400^th anniversary

5.02 Drinking Water Databases (1998-04)

The Secretariat gave an update on the development of the data standards being used by the Canadian Network for Public Health Intelligence (CNPHI) and by other jurisdictions.

Decision/Action:

• For information

5.03 ISO Standard

The draft standard should be completed in April for ballot. The ISO Quality Criteria may be published by the end of 2006. CSA may consider its own standard for Canada.

Decision/Action:

• For information

5.04 FPT Food Safety (2004-10)

The draft guidance document is close to being completed and may be available for discussion at the next CDW meeting.

Decision/Action:

• For information

5.05 Election

M.Goebel thanked the committee and Secretariat for making his tenure as Chair enjoyable.

Members nominated M.Goebel for a 2nd term as Chair. He was elected for a second term by acclamation.

Members nominated B.Boettger to continue as Vice-Chair. He was elected by acclamation.

Decision/Action:

• M.Goebel elected as Chair, B.Boettger elected Vice-Chair
  

6.0 Secretariat Reports

6.01 Secretariat Reports

The Secretariat gave updates on a number of subjects including the Millership litigation related to fluoridation of drinking water; the activities of the Federal Drinking Water Compliance Program and the First Nations and Inuit Health Branch of Health Canada; the activities of the various divisions of the Water Quality and Health Bureau and the Health Canada laboratory; and issues related to small drinking water systems.

Decision/Action:

• Millership: CDW members to suggest wording to the Secretariat to draft the response to K. Millership's letter. Letter to be signed by the Chair.
  
  
• Food Regulatory Program: Secretariat to find out when the most current guidelines will apply to bottled water

6.02 Bureau Projects for CDW

The Secretariat gave updates on the following projects that involve the staff of the Water Quality and Health Bureau: guideline development templates and protocols; bacteriological sampling for small systems; the assessment of guideline assumptions; the review of existing guidelines; the CDW orientation manual; the Health Canada website and CDW extranet site; the toolbox for small and individual systems; a guidance document for determining a hierarchy for numerical guidance values; the Federal Waterborne Contamination and Illness Response Protocol; source water indicators; recreational water quality guidelines; water re-use guidelines and standards, and the activities of the Canadian Network for Public Health Intelligence (CNPHI).

Decision/Action

Bacteriological sampling:

• CDW member to circulate a summary of information to members, when available

Orientation manual:

• Secretariat to send documents for member review, when available

HC Web site:

• Members to send general comments on the Web site to Health Canada
  
  
• Secretariat to prepare the next edition of the Guidelines Booklet in PDF format for distribution through the Web site
  
  
• Secretariat to provide members with a list of direct links that can be posted on provincial/territorial Web sites

CDW Extranet site:

• Members agreed to begin using the extranet site for all CDW business between meetings

Small and individual systems:

• Members to provide feedback to the Secretariat on the homeowners' toolkit

Guidance on hierarchy for numerical guidelines:

• Members to provide comments on the sampling protocol and table by June 2006
  
  
• Secretariat to add text to the effect that jurisdictions may have more stringent sampling requirements
  
  
• Members agreed that the table should be provided as examples rather than recommended sampling frequencies and that the examples should be consistent with the frequencies listed in the guideline documents
  
  
• Secretariat to not include the general statement about sampling twice per year that is published in the 6^th Edition of the Guidelines when preparing the 7^th Edition
  
  
• Secretariat to use the approach outlined in the document when coming up with sampling frequencies for the proposed Benzene guideline

CNPHI:

• Members to provide comments on the idea of developing a module for waterborne illness and boil water advisories by June 2006