R E P O R T

OF THE

CANADA-UNITED STATES COMMITTEE

ON

WATER QUALITY

IN THE

SAINT JOHN RIVER

CHAPTER I Background

A I n t roduc t i on B Work o f t he Comnittee C Review of t h e Terms of Reference

CHAPTER I 1 Basin Planning i n Three J u r i s d i c t i o n s

A I n t r o d u c t i o n B Approaches t o Basin Planning & Regulat ion

1. Quebec 18 2. Maine 18 3. New Brunswick 2 0

I

C Compati b i 1 i t y o f Approaches

CHAPTER I 1 1 Spec i f i c Water Qua1 i t y Object ives f o r t h e 2 5 I n t e r n a t i o n a l Waters o f t h e Sa in t John R iver Basin

A Synops i s 25 B Recomnenda t i ons 27

CHAPTER I V Concl usions and Recomnendations 2 8

APPENDIC IES

A Terms o f Reference B Water Qua1 i t y Object ives Sub Committee Report

CHAPTER I

BACKGROUND

A. I n t roduc t ion

The Canada-U.S. Comni t t e e on Water Q u a l i t y i n the Sa in t John

River was founded by an exchange of notes i n 1972. The i n i t i a t i v e was

taken i n the f i r s t instance by Canada and U.S. p a r t i c i p a n t s i n a NATO/ I CCMS p r o j e c t on Water Management Planning i n In te rna t iona l River Basins I f o r which the Saint John River was selected as a p i l o t p r o j e c t , It was

the i n t e n t of the exchange o f notes t h a t establ ished the Committee t o

seek a semi-formalized arrangement by which two_sovereign s ta tes could

cooperate i n seeking and achieving mutual ly acceptable so lu t ions t o water

problems t h a t were o f mutual i n t e r e s t and concern. The exchange o f notes,

I which are appended t o t h i s repor t , s e t ou t t he purposes o f the Committee, 1 which are t o :

a ) review p e r i o d i c a l l y , proqress i n the conduct of water

q u a l i t y planning' on both sides a f the Canada-Uni t e d

States boundary i n the s a i n t John River Basin, w i t h

a view o f f a c i l i t a t i n g progress toward enhancement o f I

I I

water qua1 i t y ;

b ) exchange b p r o p r i a t e in format ion about plans, programs,

and act ions which could a f f e c t water q u a l i t y i n the

I Basin ; I c ) a s s i s t i n coordinat ion and consul t a t i o n among appropr iate

a u t h o r i t i e s on matters and act ions a f f e c t i n g water

q u a l i t y ; and

d ) make appropr iate recommendations t o re levant a u t h o r i t i e s

on both sides o f the boundary and t o the In te rna t i ona l

J o i n t Commi ss i on regarding the improvement o f water

q u a l i t y i n the Basin.

The Committee was o r i g i n a l l y faced n o t on ly w i t h the normal

range o f organizat ional problems bu t a l s o w i t h the i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f i t s

terms o f reference. This was o f p a r t i c u l a r concern as governmental

i n s t i t u t i o n s on both sides broadened t h e i r percept ions o f the range o f

a c t i v i t i e s t h a t the Committee miqht u s e f u l l y undertake. Despite t h i s

broadening, the Committee f e e l s t h a t i t has e f f e c t i v e l y responded t o i t s

mandate.

One o f the basic challenges conf ron t ing the Committee i n prepar ing

t h i s repo r t i s the cont inu inp nature o f water q u a l i t y planning. For example,

the two major basin planning studies i n ex is tence i n Maine and New Brunswick

when the Committee was created were both extended f o r a year, and, i n add i t i on ,

other s tudies w i t h water qua l i t v p lanninq components have been undertaken.

I n Fact, water q u a l i t y planning and a c t i o n r e s u l t i n g therefrom must be a

continuous process, if a h igh l e v e l o f water q u a l i t y i s t o be achieved, and

maintained, i n a changing economy.

The Committee has recognized from i t s incept ion the i n t e r i m

nature of i t s mandate. Simultaneously w i t h the Committee ' s c rea t i on t he

IJC was requested t o advise on f u r t h e r i n s t i t u t i o n a l arrangements fo l l ow ing

a review o f a " f i n a l repo r t " t o be prepared by t h i s Committee. Now, w i t h

the issuance o f repo r t s by the two major basin study groups the basis f o r

a f u r the r i n i t i a t i v e i n i n t e r n a t i o n a l cooperat ion e x i s t s .

The Committee has served a use fu l f unc t i on i n p rov id ing a

mechanism f o r the exchange of in fo rmat ion and data on water q u a l i t y ,

e f f l u e n t discharges, p lanning and a c t i v i t i e s t h a t cou ld have an e f f e c t

on water q u a l i t y . I n add i t i on , i t has played an important r o l e i n

f a c i l i t a t i n g coord ina t ion and consul t a t i o n amonq the Federal, State and

~ P r o v i n c i a l a u t h o r i t i e s invo lved i n water management and water qua1 i t y

I c o n t r o l . I 1 I n t he conduct o f i t s a c t i v i t i e s , the Committee has r e l i e d 1

e x tens i ve l y on bo th the i n d i v i d u a l c a p a b i l i t i e s o f i t s members and, t o

a major extent , on the e-xpert ise of a number o f o f f i c i a l s o f several

I p a r t i c i p a t i n g Departments and Agencies from both count r ies . The work o f I t h e l a t t e r , wh i l e o f t e n anonymous, has s i g n i f i c a n t l y broadened the

perspect ives o f t he Corn i t t ee and i t s a b i l i t y t o understand the magnitude

and range o f a l t e r n a t i v e so lu t i ons t o problems p e r t a i n i n q t o water

q u a l i t y i n the basin. I n p a r t i c u l a r , thanks are due t o those o f f i c i a l s

I who have ass is ted i n p rov id ing advice and repo r t s on the two major i n d u s t r y

I groups, f o r e s t r y and a g r i c u l t u r e , and especia l l y t o those o f f i c i a l s who

have worked on the water q u a l i t y ob jec t i ves r e p o r t . (Chapter 3 o f t h i s

document ) . B. The Work o f t h e Committee

It was recognized t h a t i t was incompat ib le w i t h e x i s t i n g Federal,

S ta te and P rov inc ia l l e g i s l a t i o n and expressions o f i n t e n t t o a l l ow l a r g e

I scale c o n t r o l l a b l e p o i n t sources o f p o l l u t i o n t o discharge i n t o the

i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters. I n add i t i on , n e i t h e r basin study was l i k e l y t o make

recommendations t h a t major ex i s t i n g d i scharges cont inue. Thus, the

I

Committee turned i t s e a r l y a t t e n t i o n t o the ques t ion o f these p o l l u t i n g

discharges a f f ec t i na t h e p o r t i o n s of t he bas in under the Committee's mandate.

I n essence, these discharges come from the f o r e s t products i n d u s t r y ; the

po ta to , o r food process ing i ndus t r y ; and f rom m u n i c i p a l i t i e s .

The Committee es tab l i shed Sub-committees t o examine, r e p o r t ,

and make recommendations on the f o l l ow ing s p e c i f i c o r p o t e n t i a l problem

areas :

I 1 ) t he Fraser Companies L im i t ed p u l p and paper mi 11s a t

Edmundston , New Brunswi ck and Madawaska, Maine ;

2 ) a pu lp and 1 inerborad m i 1 l a t Cabano, Quebec;

3 ) so l i d wastes o r c u l l s assoc ia ted w i t h the po ta to i n d u s t r y

I on bo th s ides o f t h e boundary;

4 ) mun ic ipa l and i n d u s t r i a l p o l l u t i o n sources i n the

Aroostook R i v e r - P r e s t i l e Stream ( i n Canada, t h e B ig

P resque ' I s l e Stream) sub-basins*; and

5 ) channel improvements and r e l a t e d a c t i v i t i e s on the Gobei l

R i ver , Quebec.

The Committee a l s o e s t a b l i s h e d a Sub-committee t o rev iew the

p lanning c r i t e r i a be ing used i n the two bas in s tud ies and t o make p r e l i m i n a r y

recommendations on the ques t ion o f s e t t i n g agreed water q u a l i t y o b j e c t i v e s

f o r the r i v e r and i t s t r i b u t a r i e s i n o rde r t o l ead t o compat ible r e g u l a t o r y

a c t i v i t y i n the two coun t r i es . The es tab l i shment o f t h i s Sub-committee

l e d i n due course t o the c r e a t i o n o f a separate Sub-committee on water

qua1 i t y ob jec t i ves . Progress achieved by t he m u n i c i p a l i t i e s i n aba t i ng

p o l l u t i o n was moni tored by t h e S ta te and P r o v i n c i a l members o f t h e Committee.

* Referred t o throughout t h i s r e p o r t as t he Aroostook - P r e s t i l e Sub-basin

I n t he Committee's 1973 r e p o r t t o Governments and Agencies,

s p e c i f i c recommendations were g iven f o r each o f these areas. The f o l l o w i n g

i s a b r i e f summary o f these a c t i v i t i e s f o r t he p e r i o d September 1972 t o

da te :

1 ) The Fo res t Products I n d u s t r y

a ) Fraser Compani es L i m i t ed

The main concern o f the Committee was, and con t inues t o

be, t h e use o f t he main stem o f t he S a i n t John R i ve r t o

r ece i ve un t rea ted o r p o o r l y t r e a t e d wastes by Fraser

Companies L im i t ed . A Sub-Commi t t e e was e s t a b l i s h e d t o

examine the problems o f t he Fraser m i 11s. I n b r i e f , t he

d i scharge o f i nadequa te ly t r e a t e d e f f l u e n t s f rom the pu lp

mi 11 a t Edmundston, New Brunswi ck, and t he paper m i 11 a t

Madawaska, Maine, i n t o the Sa in t John R i v e r has caused

comple te ly unacceptable water qua1 i ty c o n d i t i o n s i n t he

r i v e r f o r many years . The two p a r t s o f the complex, w h i l e

l o c a t e d on oppos i te s ides o f the Sa in t John R iver , c o n s t i t u t e

an i n t e g r a t e d f a c i 1 i t y .

The two Federal governments, t he State , and the Prov ince

have a1 1 conducted ex tens ive n e g o t i a t i ons w i t h the Company

and have secured agreement- in-pr inc i p l e on s p e c i f i c a t i o n s

and schedules f o r imp1 ementat ion o f po l 1 u t i o n c o n t r o l

measures. On t he Canadian s ide, a waste t reatment system

designed t o handle the wastes, n o t f rom t h e e x i s t i n g s u l p h i t e

process, b u t f rom a proposed pu lp i ng process w i t h chemical

recovery , has been b u i l t and p u t i n t o ope ra t i on . I n o r d e r

f o r t h i s treatment system t o be e f f e c t i v e , the Company I

must conver t the pu lp m i l l t o a process f o r which the waste

treatment system was i n s t a l led . The Company has a w r i t t e n (

agreement w i t h the Province t o convert t o a new process ~ cont ingent upon i t s f i n a n c i a l a b i l i t y t o undertake the

change. New Brunswick repor ted t o the Committee i n June

1975 t h a t the Company has made a commitment t o conver t t o ~ a chemical pulp ing system w i t h 1 i quo r recovery. The

conversion should be completed i n three and one-hal f years

r e s u l t i n g i n a reduced t o t a l load ing capable o f t reatment

i n the e x i s t i n g p lan t . ~ On the Uni ted States side, an e f f l u e n t discharge permi t f o r

t he Madawaska m i l l was agreed upon by the Federal, State,

and i n d u s t r i a l representat ives and has been reviewed by I Canaaian o f f i c i a l s . This permi t was issued on October 18,

1973 and establ ishes e f f l u e n t 1 i m i t a t i o n s on the Fraser

ope ra t i on a t the Madawaska m i 11 . Spec i f i c parameters re fer red

t o i n the permi t a re biochemical oxygen demand (5-day),

suspended sol i ds , t o t a l chromium, lead, z inc , mercury,

temperature, pH, and o i 1. The necessary p o l l u t i o n con t ro l

f a c i l i t i e s are t o be constructed and placed i n operat ion by

October 1, 1976.

To date, the Committee, through i t s Sub-Comni t tee , has reviewed

and commented on the Uni ted States e f f l u e n t discharge permit ;

monitored the achievement o f e f f l u e n t discharge permi t

condi ti ons ; re-examined e x i s t i n g agreements and the posi ti on

o f the Company t o determine i f a r a p i d turnover o f the Canadian

p l a n t t o the proposed new process i s possib le; and sought

t o determine i f o ther ways and means are a v a i l a b l e t o

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ensure e f f e c t i v e abatement o f p o l l u t i o n .

It should be noted t h a t the Committee's concern has been t o

improve the r i v e r ' s water qua1 i t y by whatever means poss ib le

t o acceptable l e v e l s by mutua l ly s a t i s f a c t o r y dates. I t i s

genera l l y accepted t h a t the most p r a c t i c a l means o f achieving

t h i s r e s u l t i s by a p l a n t conversion o f the Edmundston m i l l

t o permi t waste recovery and at tendent reduc t ion i n discharge

t o the treatment system and then t o the r i v e r .

b ) Pulp and Linerboard M i l l a t Cabano, Quebec I

I n 1973 the Committee was informed o f a proposal t o cons t ruc t

an amnonia-base, neu t ra l su l phi te, semi -chemi ca l m i 11 t o produce

pu lp and cor rugat ing medium near the Town o f Cabano on Lake

Temi scouata i n Quebec.

This lake discharges i n t o the Madawaska R iver through a dam used

by Quebec Hydro f o r l o c a l power generat ion and has a c o n t r o l l e d

minimum out f low o f 240 c fs . The Madawaska River empties i n t o the I I

S a i n t John River a t Edmundston, New Brunswick. The Madawaska

a l so serves as a source o f supply f o r i n d u s t r i a l process water,

p r i n c i p a l l y f o r the Fraser m i 11 s a t Edmundston. While these

f a c t o r s are of concern i n Canada, the Committee has been concerned

t h a t an inadequately t rea ted e f f l u e n t would adversely a f f e c t water

q u a l i t y i n the main stem of the Sa in t John.

As f o r the m i l l i t s e l f , the Sub-Committee was informed by ?.be

desi gner-consul t an ts t h a t the treatment process t o be i n s t a l l e d

should the proposal t o b u i l d a m i l l be implemented, was t o cons i s t

o f pr imary c l a r i f i c a t i o n w i t h sludge disposal fo l lowed by f i ve-day

r e t e n t i o n i n an aerated lagoon. The m i 11 w i l l incorporate 1 i quo r c o l l e c t i o n

~ and i nc ine ra t i on , b u t no d e t a i l s are ava i l ab le on the

e f f i c i e n c y o f the washing system o r ove ra l l recovery.

The Forest I ndus t ry Sub-comni t t e e was asked t o keep

the Committee informed o f re levant events by moni tor ing

developments as they took place; adv is ing the Committee

1 concerning the e f f i c a c y o f waste treatment p l ans ; and

examining the p o t e n t i a l impact o f the p r o j e c t on water

I q u a l i t y i n the Saint John River.

2) The Food Indust ry

A Sub-comnittee was establ ished t o review the ex tent

I o f the pota to s o l i d waste o r c u l l problem and i t s impact

on water q u a l i t y i n the Saint John River Basin. Approximately

twenty percent of the annual potato crop ends up as so l i d

waste. Unless t h i s mater ia l i s p roper ly disposed of',

ser ious problems can r e s u l t . The Committee, through i t s

Sub-comni t tee , has reviewed the ex tent and magnitude o f

the problems; reviewed cur rent disposal p rac t ices and t h e i r

impacts; and reported on a1 t e r n a t i ve disposal pract ices.

The Committee requested i t s Sub-cornmi t t e e t o respond t o

two questions: 1. I s po ta to c u l l disposal a problem w i t h

respect t o water q u a l i t y : and 2. What a l te rna t i ves are

ava i l ab le fo r t h e i r disposal ? The Sub-comni t t e e found as

fo l 1 ows :

a. Present p rac t ices o f c u l l disposal have a d i r e c t

r e l a t i o n s h i p t o water qua1 i ty degradation

b. The Sta te o f Maine Guidelines on potato c u l l "on

s i t e " disposal i s a v iab le a1 te rnat ive ; however,

because o f the farmer 's concern over the r i s k o f spreading

potato diseases, t h i s method needs t o be demonstrated; and

c. Processing unusable potatoes i n t o animal feed i s an

a1 t e r n a t i v e t h a t a lso needs t o be tes ted and demonstrated.

The Committee agreed t o encourage the usefu l disposal o f I unusable tubers and, f u r t h e r , t o encourage the demonstration

of the ava i l ab le techniques.

3 ) Aroostook - P r e s t i l e Sub-Basins

A Sub-comi t t e e was formed t o review the p o l l u t i o n problems i n the

Aroostook - P r e s t i l e Sub-basins, determine i f the upgrading o f stream

c l a s s i f i c a t i o n i s feas ib le , and monitor the progress o f the necessary

abatement f a c i l i t i e s . Both the Maine Department o f Environmental

Pro tec t ion and the Uni t ed States Envi ronmental P ro tec t i on Agency

have reviewed the c l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f the P r e s t i l e Stream and have

made recommendations t o upgrade i t from a State o f Maine

C l a s s i f i c a t i o n C t o Class B-1. Ear ly i n 1975, the 107th Maine

Leg is la ture d i d not approve the recommendations o f the Department

o f Environmental Pro tec t ion and the stream i s s t i l l c l a s s i f i e d as C.

However, because o f the extremely 1 i m i t ed capaci ty o f the stream,

the load a l l o c a t i o n developed f o r each o f the p o i n t sources i s v i r t u a l l y

the same f o r Class C as f o r Class 5-1 . Discharge permits w i 11 be

issued based on these a1 loca t ions and an adequate water qua1 i t y w i l l

be maintained dur ing a1 1 f l ow periods.

4) Gobeil River

A channel improvement p r o j e c t f o r land drainage on the lower Gobeil

River i n Quebec dur ing the e a r l y 1970's resu l ted i n h igh l e v e l s o f

suspended solids entering the Big Black River i n the

United States. Work t o remove the dredged material from

the banks of the Gobeil has been completed and studies

subsequently undertaken indicate t h a t conditions have 1

stabilized and no further action i s required.

5) Planning Cri teria/Water Qua1 i t y Objectives

A Sub-commi ttee was establ ished t o review the planning criteria

now being used .by bo th countries for the basin studies.

These studies cover the broad area of water quality uses,

goal s , objectives and standards; necessary abatement measures institutional and

and their timing; and currentladmini strative approaches to

pol 1 ution problems. The Sub-commi ttee was requested to:

a . Determine those areas where the two countries are consistent

and those where there are basic differences. The

differences were t o be defined and recommendations

of alternative means of resolving the issues

presented ;

b. Recommend ways and means of achieving compatible

approaches t o water qual i t y issues;

c. Monitor implementation of abatement facil i t ies;

d . Provide for the exchange of technical data; and

e. Consider desirable water-use patterns and the qual i ty

requirements (criteria) necessary to support such uses.

On this basis, the Sub-commi ttee was t o recommend

appropriate water quality objectives which could lead t o compatible regulatory approaches on the Canadian and

I n August 1974, the Sub-committee presented i t s recommendations

I t o the Committee. The recommendations included: 1. ways

and means o f achiev ing compatible approaches t o water ~ qual i t y issues, 2. moni tor ing o f implementation schedules

o f abatement f a c i l i t i e s , 3. coord ina t ion f o r the exchange

o f technical data, and 4. cons idera t ion o f l and use f a c t o r s

as they a f f e c t water qual i ty .

It was recomvended and the Committee agreed t o the establ ishment Object ives

of a Water Qua1 ity/Sub-committee. It should be noted t h a t the

development o f water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives i s a dynamic process t h a t r e f l e c t s the qual i ty needed t o support desi red uses and the techn ica l , soc ia l and economic s ign i f i cance o f achiev ing o r n o t achiev ing the ob jec t ives The water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives Sub-comit tee r e p o r t i s the basis

o f Chapter 3 o f t h i s r e p o r t .

6 ) Municipal Discharges

The Committee has moni tored, through i t s members, the progress

I on both sides o f abat ing municipal discharges. I n the view

o f the Committee, sa t i s fac to ry progress i s being made.

7 ) Coordinat ion w i t h Other Planning E f f o r t s

The Committee has been aware o f o ther a c t i v i t i e s and p lanning

e f f o r t s t h a t cou ld poss ib ly lead t o a s i g n i f i c a n t impact

on water q u a l i t y o f the Saint John River . These a c t i v i t i e s

inc lude a prospect ing e f f o r t f o r copper i n the Fish River

area and p lann ing s tud ies being conducted by the United States

Army Corps o f Engineers . A review was made o f the copper min ing p o t e n t i a l and the

Committee concluded t h a t the min ing was exp lora tory i n nature

and a t t h i s t ime had no water q u a l i t y impact. I f the mining

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became operat ional o r would have an impact on water

qua l i t y , the Committee would review the s i t u a t i o n a t t h a t

t ime.

The Committee has been concerned w i t h and commented on

two p lanning studies t h a t are being conducted by the Corps

o f Engineers. These two studies are a water resources I

i n v e s t i g a t i o n i n the Saint John River and pre l im inary

planning and environmental s tudies f o r the proposed

Dickey-Lincol n School dams p ro jec t . I n order t o achieve

a b e t t e r understanding o f these a c t i v i t i e s , the Committee

i n v i t e d the Corps o f Engineers t o the June 1975 meeting,

At the meeting the Corps and Committee members discussed the

proposals and t h e i r p o t e n t i a l water qua1 i t y imp1 ica t lons .

Further coordinat ion between the Corps and the Committee

i s expected. The Committee w i l l a l so be able t o monitor

t he p ro jec ts by means o f the Northern Maine Regional

Planning Commisssion's a c t i v i t i e s i n the Corps publ i c

p a r t i c i p a t i o n program and the Uni ted States Secretary ' s

appointment t o the Corps coord inat ing committee ,

C. Review o f the Terms o f Reference

While the Committee had concentrated heav i l y i n i t s f i r s t

two years on s p e c i f i c p o l l u t i o n problems as the two basin

studies approached t h e i r 1975 publ i c a t i o n dates, the members

agreed t h a t i t would be appropr iate t o review i n d e t a i l

~ i t s terms o f reference and how i t had responded i n

terms o f past performance and o f f u t u r e

perceived needs. T.he range o f issues discussed and the

outcome o f the de l i be ra t i ons fo l low.

1 . Geographic Area

Without p r e j u d i c i n g the f u t u r e o f t h i s Committee

o r an a1 te rna te mechani sm t h a t may be establ ished,

the members agreed t h a t broad d e f i n i t i o n o f the geo-

graphic area o f r e s p o n s i b i l i t y was requ i red bu t t h a t

specia l emphasis should be given t o the i n te rna t i ona l

sect ion. The f o l l o w i n g recommendation was accepted.

The Committee i s concerned w i t h a l l a c t i v i - t i e s t h a t a f f e c t o r may a f f e c t water qua1 i t y

I i n the Saint John River and i t s t r i b u t a r y

drainage basin. Speci a1 considerat ion and

emphasis i s t o be given t o the i n te rna t i ona l

sect ions o f the Sa in t John and S t . Francis

I Rivers and t o a1 1 t r i b u t a r i e s d ischarging to ,

I and upstream, o f the i n t e r n a t i o n a l sect ions

and t o a l l o ther t r i b u t a r i e s t h a t cross the

i n t e r n a t i o n a l boundary.

2 . Coordinat ion o f Water Qua1 i ty Planning

The major p lanning exercises have establ ished a very

c lose working r e l a t i o n s h i p through the mechani sm o f the

Committee and i t s re1 ated a c t i v i t i e s . However, the

Committee had n o t made a comprehensive assessment o f the

poss ib le areas o f c o n f l i c t and o f problems t h a t had been

overcome. Accordingly, the f o l low ing recommendation was

accepted by the Committee:

That the d i r e c t o r s o f the Sa in t John River

Basin Board and the Northern Maine Regional

Planning Commission prepare and present a I

review of those aspects of their water

quality planning studdes that are germaine to

the preceedi ng definition of geographic area.

This review i s further defined t o consist of

three sections, one section fo,r each planning

study and a joint paper analyzing any differences for

and proposal s/resol ution of these differences

t h a t may exist- This review provides the basis

for Chapter 2 of this document.

3 . Exchange of Information

I t was agreed t h a t full and free exchange of information

on a broad range of developments t h a t could impact on

water quality in the basin was central t o succes$ful

efforts t o preserve and enhance water quality in the

basin. Conceptually, the flow of information should be

so structured and organized t o reflect the spir i t of the

previously proposed definition of the geographic area.

Thus, the exchange should go beyond information purely

devoted t o planning; and should include material on a

broad range of matters t h a t could have an impact on

water quality. I t should be noted t h a t , while the

intentions of the Committee are clear in this regard,

there are possible impediments, such as the disclosure of proprietary information, which wi 11 require further consideration. The Committee recommended the fol lowing:

The review of the planning studies would

include a review of the mechanisms or struc-

tures , degree of formality, and range of

information for exchange.

Appropriate Recommendations

The exchange of notes defines one purpose of the Committee

"to make appropriate recommendations to re1 evant authorit ies

on both sides of the boundary and to the International Joint

Commission regarding the improvement of water quality i n the

Basin". In th i s regard, the Committee recommended the following:

That the Committee continue to use th i s section

of i t s original terms of reference to ensure

that t s recommendations are effective. The

"relevant authorit ies" are considered to be the

two Federal Governments, the Provinces of New Brunswick

and Quebec, the State of Maine, and the International

Joint Commission.

5. Identification of Programs

Since the recommendations o f the two planning studies have

not yet been submitted t o , or accepted by, a1 1 of the respective

governments, agencies and other implementating authori t ies ,

the Committee recommended the fol 1 owing :

I t was agreed that upon completion and acceptance

of the two planning ef for t s , the Committee would

review those programs and measures needed to

improve and maintain water quality and decide

upon the Committee's course of action regarding

each .

6. Report t o IJC*

I ~ The t im ing and the content o f the " f i n a l r e p o r t t o the IJC"

i must, o f necessi ty , be based upon a number o f f ac to rs ,

i nc lud ing , i n p a r t i c u l a r , the re lease dates f o r the Sa in t

John River Basin Study and f o r the Northern Maine Regional I

I Planning Commission Study and the generat ion o f r e f i n e d water I

I

: qua1 i t y ob jec t ives . The Commi t t e e i n consider ing the mat ter

d i d, however, recommend the f o l l owing : I

Any f u t u r e mechanism o r i n s t i t u t i o n a l arrangement ~ should have a c lose working r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h the

IJC, the s p e c i f i c d e t a i l s o f which Pequire f u r t h e r

ana lys is and t h a t a recommendation along these l i n e s

would be contained i n the r e p o r t t o the IJC.

* It should be noted t h a t t h i s d iscussion took place i n

February 1975. I t was expected p r i o r t o t h a t t ime t h a t

the Committee might be i n a p o s i t i o n t o present t h i s

r e p o r t i n the sp r ing o f 1975.

CHAPTER I 1 - BASIN PLANNING I N THREE JURISDICTIONS

A. INTRODUCTION

The Comrni t t ee recognized that , as water qual i t y planning and sound

regulat ions must be based upon a / lega l and i n s t i t u t i o n a l framework,

and as there are two Federal, two Provincia l and one State j u r i sd i c t i ons and management

involved , basin planning and water qual i t y regulation/would c e r t a i n l y

be conducted d i f f e r e n t l y i n Quebec, Maine and New Brunswick. be a o f concern

Nevertheless , dif ferences o f approach would not imatter / as long

as the qua l i t y of water i n bodies o f shared i n t e res t i s restored

t o and maintained a t l eve ls i n keepins w i t h mutual ly agreed t o Water Q u a l i t y

Objectives, and provided t ha t the abatement program i s conducted according

t o a compatible schedule.

On the other hand, the Committee a lso rea l i zed t h a t there

may be a number o f technical areas i n which there are opportuni t ies

f o r j o i n t o r cooperative a c t i v i t i e s , and t h a t these, i f pursued,

might improve the cost-effect iveness o f l oca l programs i n a l l three

j u r i s d i c i t i ons and a lso lead t o be t t e r mutual understanding. I It has been from t h i s viewpoint t ha t the Committee has

approached i t s task o f "ass is t ing the appropriate au tho r i t i e s

i n Canada and the United States t o cooperate i n such water q u a l i t y

planning as may be necessary t o devise programs which w i l l enchance 5

the qual i t y of water i n the Saint John River". The steps taken

inc lude reviewing the approaches taken t o planning and regu la t ion

i n each j u r i sd i c t i on , i den t i f y ing any incompat ib i l i t i es t h a t might

occur, and iden t i f y ing opportuni t ies for j o i n t o r cooperative I i n i t i a t i v e s

- 18 -

0 . APPROACHES TO BASIN PLANNING AND REGULATION

1 . Quebec

The area o f the Sa in t John Basin t h a t l i e s i n Quebec i s

comparatively small (c. 2,750 sq. m i . ) and t h i n l y populated

(c. 50,000 persons)- and consequently, i s no t h igh on Quebec's

p r i o r i t y l i s t f o r basin planning. Quebec has not y e t begun

i t s ove ra l l program o f water resource planning i n the Saint

John Basin. Nevertheless, the Province has shown a considerable

i n t e r e s t i n the work o f the Saint John River Basin Board and

o f the Committee.

Furthermore, both Federal and Quebec e f f l uent regu la t ions apply,

and therefore, t heo re t i ca l l y , no degradation o f water qual i ty

can be ant ic ipa ted. The present l e v e l s of q u a l i t y are comparatively

high.

2. Maine - Perhaps the most s i g n i f i c a n t f a c t about water q u a l i t y p lanning

and regu la t i on i n the Maine p o r t i o n of the Saint John Basin i s t h a t

i t i s subject t o Federal Water P o l l u t i o n Control Act Amendments o f

1972 and the Maine statutes. Under both of these the waters are

c l ass i f l e d according t o acceptable 1 eve1 s o f qual i ty. These l e v e l s

are r e l a t e d t o e x i s t i n g and f u t u r e permiss ib le uses. A l l d ischargers

are required t o ob ta in a permi t t h a t spec i f i es e f f l u e n t q u a l i t y and

volume. I n add i t ion , m u n i c i p a l i t i e s and indus t r i es are requ i red t o

i n s t a l 1 best p rac t i cab le treatment of t h e i r e f f l u e n t s by J u l y 1 , 1977

and t o work towards best ava i l ab le treatment by 1983, and zero discharge

Under t h i s l eg i s l a t i on , and w i t h State and Federal f i nanc ia l

assistance, the Northern Maine Regional Planning Commission has car r ied

out a number o f h igh ly s i gn i f i can t planning studies.

F i r s t was the core area plan f o r an in tegrated treament system f o r ~ a1 1 munic ipa l i t ies and indust r ies occupying the heart o f the Aroostook

i River and P res t i l e Stream basins. This study has l e d t o l e g i s l a t i o n

creat ing the Aroostook-Presti le Treatment D i s t r i c t , t o funding and

construct ion o f a number o f treatment f a c i l i t i e s , and t o the commitment

o f a l l other munic ipa l i t ies and indust r ies t o undertake treatment i n the

near future.

Second i s the Saint John River Water Q u a l i t y Management Study

which covers a1 1 o f the Saint John River sub-basins i n the State o f

Maine, This study has included surveys o f water q u a l i t y and has

analyzed the re1 a t i ve contr ibut ions o f po in t and non-point sources

t o the present loadings o f BOD and nut r ients . The repor t has not y e t

been received, but i s expected t o include a water q u a l i t y management

plan.

Th i rd i s a p a i r o f mathematical models which can be used t o p red ic t

water q u a l i t y i n any o f the various sub-basins or i n the main stem

under various condit ions o f f low and various leve ls o f po l l u t an t discharge.

These models were prepared as too ls f o r the Water Qua1 i t y Management Study,

but they may we1 1 have a broader app l i cab i l i t y .

Fourth i s a se t o f land use plans re la ted t o water qua l i t y , each o f

which covers one o f the sub-basins.

p p

I n add i t ion t o these studies conducted by the Northern Maine

Regional Planning Commission, the State o f Maine Department o f

Environmental Protect ion, Bureau o f Water Qua1 i t y Control , operates

a continuous planning process ,directed towards the establ i shment and

I attainment o f water qua l i t y goals f o r a l l reaches and t r i b u t a r i e s of

I

~ each r i v e r basin. Under t h i s program, the Department has conducted

studies o f the P res t i l e and Aroostook Sub-basins and has examined the

impl icat ions o f upgrading the c lass i f i ca t ions o f the lower reaches o f

these streams from C t o B1 (Maine c l a s s i f i c a t i o n standards).

3. New Brunswick

Two p r inc ipa l thrusts are being made towards water qua1 i t y management

i n the New Brunswick por t ion o f the Basin.

The f i r s t i s the continuing e f f o r t by the New Brunswick Department ~ o f the Environment, Po l lu t ion Control Branch, w i th the strong support

o f Environment Canada, t o b r ing the older "grandfather" indust r ies I ~ pnder sat is fac tory c o n h l , t o speci fy discharge leve ls f o r new

industr ies, and t o obtain sa t i s fac to ry leve ls o f treatment f o r municipal

wastes . The second t h rus t i s the water management planning study, which

covers qua l i t y and quant i ty aspects, i n i t i a t e d by the Saint John River

Basin Board program, and now continuing under the New Brunswick

Department o f the Environment.

The e f f o r t t o b r ing the major po in t sources o f po l l u t i on under cont rq l

i s succeeding. The major Canadian cont r ibutor t o the in ternat iona l

waters, Fraser Companies Limited, i s a t l a s t committed t o a complete

rebu i ld o f i t s m i l l a t Edmunds ton t o include chemical recovery and

secondary treatment of residual effluents. This will resul t in the

reduction of the BOD load t o the river from i t s present daily average

of about 290,000 pounds to 16,000 pounds.

The recommendations of the Saint John River Board emphasize

the need t o establish a new management framework which will include a

licensing system and stream classification or zoning. Many people in New

Brunswick have been averse to stream classification and licensing,

claiming that the former makes i t easy to downgrade water quality off ic ial ly . ,

and that the l a t t e r i s licensing pollution. The Board holds strongly tha t ,

on the contrary, stream classification (or water use zoning) should se t I absolute l imits for a l l pollutants, while establishing also a base from which

to improve in-stream water quality and usefulness, and that the licensing

of effluents combined with effluent charges can be a very effective mechanism I for firm control over dischargers. I t should be made clear that th i s

concept i s completely compatible with the policy of establishing specific

water qual i ty objectives based on qual i ty needed to support specific

water uses. Both concepts are water-use oriented and both can specifically

lead to the assignment of acceptable or permissable levels of discharge

in designated portions of the water course.

The Board also ca l l s for land use planning of two kinds, advice

on the best use of lands of various categories, and constraints on

agricul tural , forestry and construction practices that can lead t o water

qual i ty degradation.

agreement i s encouraging. However, Quebec's p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n f u t u r e

d e l i bera t ions i s considered t o be essent ia l . Between the approaches o f Maine and New Brunswick, as evidenced

by the work done, e x i s t some i n t e r e s t i n g d i f f e rences which i n d i c a t e t h a t

thereaare a good many oppor tun i t ies open f o r mutual a i d and cooperat ive

e f f o r t s . These can be d iv ided, by subject, as fol lows: data system,

water qual i t y ob jec t ives , modeling and demonstration and r e s t o r a t i o n

p ro jec ts .

1 . Data System

Water q u a l i t y management requ i res a system o f continuous

mon i to r ing o f in-stream water qual i ty and survei 1 lance o f

e f f l u e n t s .

I n t h e i r approaches t o planning, the Maine and New Brunswick

s tud ies have d i f f e r e d markedly i n t h i s respect . The Maine sampling

was done i n t e n s i v e l y over two f o r t y - e i g h t hour periods, summer

and autumn. The New Brunswick study was based upon a regu la r se r i es

of samplings, done each two weeks f o r a year and a h a l f and l a t e r

done monthly o r bi-monthly. These are s t i l l going on.

I n a d d i t i o n t o the d i f f e rence i n sampling frequency, there are

d i f fe rences i n the parameters measured, i n the a n a l y t i c a l procedures

used, and i n the data storage and r e t r i e v a l system.

Both sides would undoubtedly b e n e f i t from a purposeful program

t o make the data systems completely compatible. This program should

inc lude hydrometeorol og ica l data, and f l o w and f l o o d fo recas t ing ,

i n a d d i t i o n t o water q u a l i t y data. R e l a t i v e l y minor resources are

- 2 3-

needed t o implement these e f f o r t s .

Water Qual i ty Object ives

Nothing t h a t the Committee has found ind ica tes the l ong range

water qual i t y ob jec t ives o f Maine and New Brunswick t o be incompatible.

On the contrary, the goal o f " f i shable-swimmable" water has been

mutual l y agreed upon.

At the Committee's recommendation, a study o f water qual i ty

c r i t e r i a and ob jec t ives f o r the Saint John has been c a r r i e d out.

The r e s u l t s are reported i n Chapter 3. This i s an exce l l en t s t a r t ,

and should be fo l lowed up by a formal ized system o f cont inued I communication on the ob jec t ives (o r standards) o f a l l reaches and

t r i b u t a r i e s and agreement on a s u i t a b l e program t o achieve them,

3. Modeling

Several usefu l mathematical models are i n existence: t h e SAAR

f 1 ood model being used by New Brunswick, the Meta Systems Water

Qual i t y Models developed f o r the Northern Maine Regional Planning

Commission and the Saint John River Basin water qual i t y model

devel oped by Envi ronment Canada f o r New Brunswick. I I n both sho r t and long terms, a p r e d i c t i v e c a p a b i l i t y f o r both I

f lows and q u a l i t y w i l l be essent ia l i f water q u a l i t y i s t o be

kept w i t h i n agreed upon object ives. As the populat ion and

i n d u s t r i a l base expand, new more s t r i g e n t const ra in ts w i l l have t o

be imposed on e f f l u e n t s t o mainta in water qual i t y a t the l e v e l s

establ ished by the object ives. Both sides could b e n e f i t t e c h n i c a l l y

and economical l y from a j o i n t , o r cooperat ive, approach t o

p red ic t i ve water qual i t y and q u a n t i t y model ing .

- 2 4 -

4 . Demonstration and Restorat ion Projects

Several subjects o f mutual concern could we l l be undertaken

by j o i n t o r cooperat ive pro jec ts , as recommended i n the Canada-New

Brunswick Saint John River Basin Board Report.

The d i s p o ~ a l o f potato c u l l s and s o l i d waste i s one such

problem. Two methods have been suggested, manufacture o f animal

feed and use as s o i l condi t ioner ; both could we l l be cooperat ive ly

demonstrated on a p i l o t scale.

The development o f c r i t e r i a and guide1 ines f o r reducing non-point ~ source pol 1 u t i o n from farms, f o r e s t operat ions, const ruc t ion and

summer rec rea t ion a c t i v i t i e s i s another major problem. This problem

i s shared by Maine and New Brunswick and a common approach i s des i rab le .

Restorat ion o f A t l a n t i c salmon runs t o the Aroostook River i s

another aim t h a t c a l l s f o r j o i n t ac t ion . It i s t i m e l y t o a c t on t h i s

almost immediately, because the Committee bel ieves t h a t by the t ime

the f i r s t salmon r e t u r n from the sea, they w i l l f i n d waters o f h igh

q u a l i t y a l l a long t h e i r migra t ion route.

CHAPTER I 1 1 -

I A. synopsis

I I n January, 1974, the Committee establ ished a Sub-committee

composed o f th ree members from Canada and three members from the

! United States t o develop spec i f i c water qua1 i t y ob jec t ives f o r ~ preserving, improving and mainta in ing the water qua1 i t y i n the

i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters o f the Saint John River f o r a l l b e n e f i c i a l uses.

The Committee's guide1 ines emphasized the need fo r ob jec t ives f o r ~ pub1 i c water supply a f t e r adequate treatment, rec rea t i on i n c l u d i n g ~ water contact spor ts and w i l d1 i f e and f i s h i n c l u d i n g salmonoid f i shes .

The bene f i c i a l uses o f the i n te rna t i ona l waters o f the Saint John

River i d e n t i f i e d by the Sub-commi t t e e as being of concern t o both

count r ies were: (1 ) p u b l i c water s u p p l G (2 ) aes the t ics and recreat ion ,

(3 ) aquat ic l i f e and w i l d l i f e , ( 4 ) agr i cu l t u re , and (5 ) indus t ry .

I n the course o f i t s task, the Sub-committee drew ex tens ive ly on

~ t he s c i e n t i f i c 1 i t e r a t u r e f o r compi l ing the spec i f i c water qua1 i t y

ob jec t i ves and thoroughly inves t iga ted present methodologies f o r

t h e i r p r a c t i c a b i l i t y and r e l i a b i l i t y f o r measuring each ob jec t i ve

parameter. Present ly developed water qual i t y ob jec t ives and standards

were a l so taken i n t o account i n the course of es tab l i sh ing these

ob jec t ives . The members o f the Sub-commi t t e e a1 so drew upon the advice

o f s c i e n t i s t s spec ia l i zed i n the various user aspects o f water f o r s p e c i f i c

water qual i ty concerns.

- This chapter, w i t h some e d i t o r i a l changes, i s taken from the Sub-committee r e p o r t on s p e c i f i c water qual i t y ob jec t ives . Pages X through X I V are presented here and the e n t i r e r e p o r t i s attached as Appendix B.

~ The report presents, in tabular form, specific and multiple

purpose objectives for the protection and maintenance of each Identified

use. The objectives for each parameter of each use category are

referenced as t o the 1 iterature used. Use i s made of notes, i n the

tables, to explain the rationale for the selection of an objective when

conflicts occurred in the 1 i terature. Special consideration was given

to the fields of biocides and radioactivity.

The users of this report are encouraged t o make use of the master

table under this section and t o refer also t o the Specific Water Use

Objectives, Mu1 t i pl e Purpose Water Use Objectives and Special Consideration

for Water Use Objectives sections in Appendix B for full coverage

of the specific objectives.

Because of the rapid and pervasive change in social and economic

perspectives and policies for managing, enhancing, and preserving

water resources, the sub-committee took the approach in developing

objectives for these international waters that they be categorized

by use designation and t h a t the objectives be p u t to use, along with

social and economic consideration, by management as tools in developing

water management programs, assessing pol 1 ution control measures and

establishing ~ater-use patterns for these waters.

The Sub-committee believes t h a t the specific water quality

objectives and the recommendations in this report will be of value

t o water managers in their approaches t o preserve and enhance the

qua1 i t y of the international water of the Saint John River Basin.

B. Kecommenda t i ons - I The Comi t t e e makes the f o l l o w i n g recommendations : I 1. I t i s recommended t h a t the s p e c i f i c water q u a l i t y

ob jec t i ves , as de l inea ted i n t h i s r e p o r t , be accepted f o r use by management as a t o o l i n develop ing p o l l u t i o n c o n t r o l measures t o ensure t h a t the i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters i n t he Sa in t John R iver Basin a re p ro tec ted and enhanced t o meet the requirements o f a l l es tab l i shed water use pa t t e rns and t o p r o t e c t the l i f e systems these waters support .

2. It i s recommended t h a t water resource managers, i n us i ng the s p e c i f i c water qual i ty ob jec t i ves , s e l e c t the most s t r i n g e n t parameter o b j e c t i v e app l i cab le t o an es tab l i sed water-use p a t t e r n f o r the i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters o f t h i s bas in as the o b j e c t i v e t h a t must be met f o r the p r o t e c t i o n and enhancement o f the waters f o r such designated uses, recogn iz ing a t the same time, the s i gni f i cance o f the "Natural Background Qua1 i ty " when making the se lec t i on .

3. It i s recommended t h a t a l l i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters i n t h i s bas in whose e x i s t i n g q u a l i t y i s b e t t e r than the proposed s p e c i f i c ob jec t i ves , should be maintained a t t h e i r e x i s t i n g h i gh q u a l i t y l e v e l by t a k i n g a l l reasonable and p r a c t i c a b l e measures.

4 . It i s recommended t h a t m ix ing zone areas be designated f o r the i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters i n t h i s basin.

5 . I t i s recommended t h a t the methods o f sampling and p reserva t ion and analyses as de l inea ted i n t h i s r epo r t , be adopted by a l l l a b o r a t o r i e s when app l i ed t o these s p e c i f i c water qual i t y ob jec t i ves .

6. I t i s recommended t h a t the water qual i t y o b j e c t i v e s Sub-commi t t e e be desi gnated a s tanding comrni t t e e t o r ev i se the s p e c i f i c water qual i t y ob jec t i ves f rom a v a i l a b l e new knowledge, as requ i red , i f such an a c t i o n i s cons i s ten t w i t h f u t u r e i n s t i t u t i o n a l arrangements.

CHAPTER I V -

Conclusions and Recommendations

As can be observed from t h i s repo r t and those preceding, the

~ members o f the Committee have the knowledge and the a b i l i t y t o i n f l uence

many of the factors t h a t determine water q u a l i t y i n the i n t e r n a t i o n a l

sect ion o f the r i v e r . We are o f the view t h a t now i s a c r i t i c a l t ime

i n the decision-making process t o take adequate measures t h a t w i l l

determine water q u y l i t y i n the r i v e r f o r many years t o come. By and l a r g e

I we are conf ident t h a t independently and i n concert both sides are

making the r i g h t decisions. Abatement programs are proceeding apace.

Developments which could have a major e f f e c t on water q u a l i t y take t h e i r

p o t e n t i a l impact i n t o account dur ing t h e i r design process.

There has been a considerable exchange o f in fo rmat ion and

coord ina t ion o f plans through the mechanism o f the Commi t t e e . We

be l ieve , however, t h a t a number o f improvements i n i t s terms o f reference

cou ld be made. Indeed, i n expanding and c l a r i f y i n g i t s terms o f reference,

two obvious quest ions need t o be examined a t the same t ime. F i r s t l y , i f

the planning processes underway on both sides f o r the pas t several years

are t o lead t o implementation programs, as seems l i k e l y , there i s consider-

able m e r i t i n botn sides fo rma l l y agreeing now t o minimum water q u a l i t y

ob jec t ives i n order t h a t n e i t h e r s ide pre-empts o r deprives the o ther o f

i t s opt ions f o r f u t u r e development based on environmental ly sound use o f the

vdter resource. Secondly, the repo r t i ng l i n e o f the Committee obviously

needs re-examination. I n previous discussions w i t h the In te rna t i ona l J o i n t

Commission, i t was apparent t h a t i t would be o f b e n e f i t t o c l a r i f y the

respect ive r o l e s o f each.

River and i t s i n t e r n a t i o n a l and transboundary t r i b u t a r i e s .

The Committee i s aware o f and impressed by the agreement on

water q u a l i t y f o r the Great Lakes. It i s obvious t h a t there are s i g n i f i c a n t

geographic, soc ia l and economic d i f fe rences between the Great Lakes and

the Saint John River . These va r ia t i ons w i l l d i c t a t e a d i f f e r e n t type

o f agreement. However, we are o f the view t h a t i f both sides are w i l l i n g ,

the agreements cou ld be c l o s e l y re la ted , a t l e a s t conceptual ly,

Since 1909, under the Boundary Waters Treaty, Canada and the

Uni ted States have had an agreed s e t o f p r i n c i p l e s and mechanisms f o r

dea l ing w i t h water - re la ted problems along t h e i r common f r o n t i e r . An

agreement, o r a t l e a s t i t s preamble, would have t o recognize t h i s Treaty.

The agreement would no t , o f course, be an e f f o r t t o modify o r change the

Treaty i n any way b u t r a t h e r would serve t o b r i n g i t s under ly ing precepts

more f o r c e f u l l y and d i r e c t l y i n t o p lay i n the Sa in t John Basin.

The proposed agreement should inc lude commonly agreed t o and shared

water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives . This r e p o r t contains a se t o f c r i t e r i a f o r e s t -

a b l i s h i n g ob jec t i ves which i n our view provides an exce l l en t s t a r t i n g

p o i n t f o r such agreement. The ob jec t ives cannot stand alone. The abatement

programs present ly underway should be reviewed from t ime t o t ime and, as

appropriate, should be agreed t o , alona w i t h t imetables f o r meeting the

ob jec t ives . The Agreement should f u l l y recognize the a b i l i t i e s and r i g h t s

o f each side t o determine and s e t i t s own p r i o r i t i e s i n a fashion f u l l y

consis tent , f i r s t l y w i t h i t s domestic p r i o r i t i e s and secondly w i t h i t s

i n t e r n a t i o n a l ob l iga t ions .

It i s understood t h a t the In te rna t i ona l J o i n t Commission should

assunle the r o l e envisaged f o r i t under the Boundary Waters Treaty. Some

o f the func t ions t h a t cou ld be assigned t o the Commission are analogous

t o those i t performs under the Great Lakes Agreement. Such tasks cou ld

i nc lude the coord ina t ion o f f u t u r e research and moni to r ing a c t i v i t i e s ,

advice on the adequacy o f abatement programs v i s - a - v i s agreed ob jec t i ves

and the adequacy o f t he ob jec t ives themselves. It i s our hope t h a t the

Commission would a l so have c lose contact w i t h the p u b l i c and t o make i t s

repo r t s n o t o n l y t o Governments and agencies b u t t o the p u b l i c as we l l .

The assumption of these r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s would requ i re the format ion o f a

permanent water q u a l i t y board f o r the Sa in t John River .

The Commi t t e e s t rong ly recommends t h a t the membershi p o f the

proposed Board should f o l l o w the l i n e s of the present I n t e r n a t i o n a l

Saint John River Committee. I t has been our experience t h a t our

d e l i b e r a t i o n s have benef i ted g r e a t l y by having as members o f the Committee

o f f i c i a l s who are c l o s e l y associated w i t h the p lanning process on each

s ide and w i t h the pub l i c .

The Board should be selected from among a l l l e v e l s o f government,

l o c a l o r reg iona l , p r o v i n c i a l and s ta te , and federa l . The members should

be sen ior o f f i c i a l s w i t h a r e s p o n s i b i l i t y t o the p u b l i c f o r p lanning and

implementing the water q u a l i t y programs. The Committee does n o t ho ld t h a t

numerical e q u a l i t y o f membership as between the two sides on the proposed

Board i s essen t i a l .

I n summary, therefore, the Cornmi t t e e makes the f o l l o w i n g

recommendation :

Both s ides should e n t e r i n t o an agreement on water

q u a l i t y i n the i n t e r n a t i o n a l sec t i on o f the Sa in t I John R i v e r and i t s i n t e r n a t i o n a l t r i b u t a r i e s .

The f o l l o w i n g elements should be inc luded i n t he agreement:

1 ) The agreement should r e f l e c t the o b l i g a t i o n s o f t h e

Boundary Waters T rea ty o f 1909. I 2 ) Water q u a l i t y o b j e c t i v e s should be mu tua l l y agreed t o and

es tab l i shed. They shoul d s e t i d e n t i c a l minimum requ i rements

f o r each reach and t r i b u t a r y .

3 ) Timetables f o r the achievement o f t he water q u a l i t y

o b j e c t i v e s should be agreed t o .

4 ) Each s ide , w i t h i n domestic l e g i s l a t i o n and p r i o r i t i e s ,

c o n s i s t e n t w i t h t he T rea t y and the agreed water qua1 i t y

o b j e c t i v e s , should es tab l i s h abatement and su rve i 1 lance

programs t o meet and ma in ta in the ob jec t i ves .

5 ) The I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o i n t Commission should be requested t o

mon i t o r and t o superv ise progress under the agreement.

6 ) Both s ides and the Commission should consu l t and agree on

the c o n s t i t u t i o n of a water q u a l i t y Board f o r the i n t e r -

n a t i o n a l sec t i on o f t he Sa in t John R i ve r and i t s

i n t e r n a t i o n a l t r i b u t a r i e s .

7 ) P rov i s i on should be made f o r making p u b l i c r e p o r t s o f t he

Board and t he Commission.

8 ) Prov is ion should be made i n the Agreement f o r both sides

t o cooperate c lose ly on water qua1 i t y r e l a t e d programs n o t

s p e c i f i c a l l y r e l a t e d t o the abatement o f p o i n t sources o f I p o l l u t ion . These could inc lude cooperat ion on enhancing

the f i s h e r i e s resource and developing innovat ive programs I f o r the con t ro l s f b ~ t h p o i n t and non-point sources o f

po l 1 u t i on.

The Comi t t e e recogni zes t h a t the Commi s s i on w i 1 1 requi res some

t ime t o consider t h i s r e p o r t and t~ make i t s views known t o both Governments

as i t has been requested t o do. Further, should the Commission recommend

t o both sides some fu ture i n s t i t u t i o n o r an agreement as proposed i n t h i s

repor t , i t w i l l take an add i t i ona l per iod o f t ime f o r the two sides t o

undertake and complete the necessary arrangements t o p u t these changes i n

place. Accordingly, i t i s recommended t h a t the present Committee cont inue

i t s a c t i v i t i e s under the terms o f the e x i s t i n g b i l a t e r a l arrangement u n t i l

A P P E N D I X A

DEPARTMENT OF MINISTERE DES AFFAIRES EXTERNAL AFFAIRS CANADA EXTERIEURES

Ottawa, September 21 , 1972

NO. GWU-310

His Excel 1 ency The Honourable Adolph W. Schmidt,

Ambassador o f the United States o f America, OTTAWA.

Excel 1 ency ,

I have the honour t o re fer t o the discussions which have taken place between representatives o f our Governments regarding the preservation of the qua l i t y of water i n the in ternat iona l sect ion o f the S t . John River and t o propose t h a t our Governments estab l ish a Canada-United States Comi t tee on water qua l i t y i n the S t . John River and i t s t r i b u t a r y r i v e r s and streams which cross the Canada- United States boundary. The composition, purposes and object ives o f the Comit tee, which sha l l conduct i t s work i n a manner which i s consistent w i t h the provisions and object ives o f the Boundary Waters Treaty o f 1909, are set out i n the Annex t o t h i s Note.

I f the foregoing proposal i s acceptable t o the Government o f the United States o f America, I have the honour t o propose t ha t t h i s Note, together w i t h i t s Annex, which are equal ly authent ic i n Engl ish and French, and Your Excellency's rep ly t o t ha t e f fec t , sha l l cons t i tu te an agreement between our Governments w i hch sha l l enter i n t o force on the date o f your rep ly .

Accept, Excel lency , the renewed assurances o f my highest consideration.

Whereas the Governments o f Canada and the United States i n the l i g h t o f t h e i r r i g h t s and ob l igat ions under A r t i c l e I V o f the Boundary Waters Treaty o f 1909 w i t h respect t o the avoidance o f transboundary pol 1 ut ion, are concerned about the qual i t y o f water i n the in te rna t iona l sect ion o f the S t . John River and i n i t s t r i b u t a r y r i v e r s and streams which cross the Canada-United States boundary;

Whereas water qual i t y planning has been under way i n the S t . John River Basin i n both countr ies for more than a year, and proper co-ordination o f t h i s planning i s urgent ly required t o assure achievement o f a un i f i ed approach t o the problem;

It i s hereby agreed t ha t a Canada-United States Committee on Water Q u a l i t y i n the S t . John River and i t s T r ibu ta r ies crossing the In ternat iona l Boundary (here inaf ter re fe r red t o I I

as the "committee") be establ ished t o ass is t the appropriate au thor i t i es i n Canada and the United States t o co-operate i n such water q u a l i t y planning as may be necessary t o devise programs which w i l l enhance the q u a l i t y of water i n the S t , John River. The Comnittee w i l l conduct i t s work i n a manner which i s consistent w i t h the object ives and provisions o f the Boundary Waters Treaty o f 1909.

I The purpose o f the Comnittee sha l l be:

(A) To review pe r i od i ca l l y progress i n the conduct o f such water q u a l i t y planning on both sides o f the Canada-United States boundary i n the S t . John River Basin, w i t h a view t o f a c i l i - t a t i n g progress toward enhancement o f water qual i t y ;

(B) To exchange appropriate informat ion about plans, programs and act ions which could a f f e c t water q u a l i t y i n the Basin;

(C) To ass is t i n co-ordination and consul tat ion among appropriate au thor i t i es on matters and act ions a f f ec t i ng water qual i ty;

(D) To make appropi r a t e recommendations t o re1 evant au thor i t i es on both sides o f the boundary and t o the In ternat iona l J o i n t Comnission (herein- a f t e r re fer red t o as the "Commission") regarding the improvement of water qua l i t y i n the Basin.

2

I n the conduct o f i t s work the Commi t t e e should consider i n p a r t i c u l a r t he f o l l o w i n g aspects of water q u a l i t y :

( A ) The cond i t i on o f water qual i t y , and the nature, ex ten t and sources o f po l 1 u t ion ;

(B) The need f o r and means o f de f i n ing and achiev ing agreed i n t e r n a t i o n a l water qual i t y ob jec t ives ;

(C) The i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f programs and o ther measures needed t o ob ta in a s i g n i f i c a n t reduct ion i n l e v e l o f p o l l u t i o n w i t h t imetables f o r accomplishment, i nc lud ing measures r e l a t e d t o water qual i ty and r a t e o f f low, t ak ing account o f soc ia l and economi c impacts .

I t i s understood t h a t ciiscussions w i t h i n the Committee w i l l serve t o enhance and no t t o replace e x i s t i n g formal and informal discussions o r o ther contacts among federa l , s t a t e p rov i n c i a1 and l o c a l a u t h o r i t i e s .

I I The Committe s h a l l cons i s t o f an equal number o f members from each country and w i 11 inc lude appropr iate o f f i c i a l s from the Governments o f Canada and the Uni ted States; the Governments o f New Brunswick, Quebec and Maine, and a l so representat ives o f the S t . John River Planning Board, and the Northern Maine Regional Planning Commission. The members w i 11 represent the respect ive a u t h o r i t i e s (who w i l l pay such expenses as may be i ncu r red i n t h i s respect) and prov ide the speci a1 s k i l l s , experience and i n fo rma t ion requ i red t o ca r r y ou t t he above terms o f reference, The Committee should have the smal lest number o f members e f f e c t i v e l y t o perform i t s funct ions. Advisors o r observers t o the Committee may be paid by Governments o r serve w i thout sa la ry o r expense allowance. The Uni ted States and Canadian sect ions o f the Committee s h a l l each designate a Chairman o f i t s sect ion. The Chairmen o f the two sect ions s h a l l be J o i n t Chairmen o f the Committee and s h a l l be responsib le f o r p r o v i d i ng proper 1 i a i son between the Commi t t e e and t h e i r respect ive au thor i t i e s . The Chai rmen w i 11 keep t h e i r respect ive sec t i on members i nformed of p l ans , a c t i v i t i e s and pro- gress. Each Chairman a f t e r consu l t ing the members o f h i s own sec t ion of the Committee may appoint a Secretary o f t h a t sect ion.

I 1 1 Upon the completion of i t s e f f o r t s w i t h regard t o the co-ord ina t ion of water qual i t y planning i n the S t . John River Basin, the Committee s h a l l prov ide a repo r t on i t s progress and a c t i v i t i e s fo r the Commission. I f the Committee has n o t completed i t s work w i t h i n one year o f the date o f t h i s Exchange o f Notes, i t s h a l l i n t h a t event prov ide an i n t e r i m progress r e p o r t

. . . 3

THE SECRETARY OF STATE SECRETARI RE D ' ETAT AUX FOR EXTERNAL AFFAIRS CANADA AFFAIRES EXTERIEURES

OTTAWA, K l A 062

September 21 , 1972.

Mr. D.G. Chance, Secretary, In ternat iona l Jo i n t Commission, Burnside Bui lding, 151 S la ter St. , Ottawa, K I P 5H3

Dear S i r ,

The ~overnments o f Canada and the United States i n the l i g h t of t h e i r r i gh t s and obl igat ions under A r t i c l e I V o f the Boundary Waters Treaty o f 1909 w i t h respect t o the avoidance o f trans- boundary pol l u t ion , and i n 1 i ght o f the i r commi tment under A r t i c l e 2 o f the North A t l an t i c Treaty t o cont r ibute toward the development o f peaceful and f r i end l y i nternat ional re1 at ions by strengthening t h e i r f ree i ns t i t u t i ons , by br ing ing about a be t t e r understanding o f the p r inc ip les upon which these i n s t i t u t i o n s are founded, and by promoting condit ions o f stabi 1 i t y and we1 1 being , are concerned about the qual i t y o f water i n the S t . John River system, especi a l l y i n the in ternat iona l section o f the S t . John River and i t s upstream t r i b u t a r i e s and i n the downstream t r i bu ta r i es which cross the i nterna t i onal boundary. The Government o f Canada has undertaken t o act as p i l o t country f o r a p ro jec t r e l a t i n g t o in land water pol 1 u t ion conducted w i t h i n the framework o f the NATO Comni t t e e on Challenges o f Modern Society. A pa r t o f t h i s p ro jec t concerns the Basin o f the S t . John River. The Governments o f Belgium, France and the United States have associated themselves w i th t h i s project . and are working c losely w i th the Government o f Canada.

I n conjunction w i th t h i s pro jec t the Governments o f Canada and the United States have agreed t o the establishment o f a Canada-United States Committee composed o f representatives o f Federal , State, Provi nc i a1 and loca l Governmental agencies t o undertake a r ev i ew o f progress i n the conduct o f water qual i t y planning i n the S t . John R i ver Basi n i n both count r i es , t o exchange i nformati on concerni ng . plans, programs and actions which could a f f e c t water qua l i t y i n the Basin, t o ass is t i n coordination and consultat ions among appropri ate author i t ies , and t o make appropriate recommendations t o re levant author i t ies on both sides o f the boundary regarding the improvement o f water qua l i t y i n the Basin, A copy o f an Exchange o f Notes ef fected i n Ottawa today creat ing t h i s Committee i s attached t o t h i s

Reference. It i s the re in spec i f i ed t h a t the Committee w i l l prov ide the Comiss ion w i t h a f i n a l r e p o r t o f i t s a c t i v i t i e s , together w i t h copies o f t he proceedings o f i t s meetings and w i t h annual i n t e r i m repor ts as necessary.

On the basis o f these repor ts and o f such f u r t h e r i n v e s t i - ga t ion as t h e Commission deems appropriate, t he Commission i s requested, i n accordance w i t h A r t i c l e 1 X o f t h e Boundary Waters Treaty o f 1909, t o i n q u i r e i n t o and repor t t o the two Govern- ments on the fo l l ow ing questions:

1. What a c t i o n should be taken by the Governments i n regard t o those matters examined by the Canada-Uni ted States Comni t t e e i n the l i g h t o f i t s f i n a l repo r t?

I 2. What j o i n t i n s t i t u t i o n a l arrangements t o a s s i s t t h e two countr ies i n cont inuing t h e i r cooperat ive e f f o r t s t o p r o t e c t and enhance the q u a l i t y o f t he water i n the S t . John River system and t o avoid transboundary p o l l u t i o n would be appropr iate?

U n t i l such t ime as the Conmission, f o l l ow ing r e c e i p t o f t h e f i n a l r e p o r t o f t he Committee, i s ab le t o make a f i n a l r e p o r t and recommendations i n response t o t h i s Reference, the Comnission i s requested t o submit t o the two Governments from t ime t o t ime such i n t e r i m repor ts as the Commission may consider desi rable.

I n the conduct o f i t s i n v e s t i g a t i o n and otherwise i n the performance o f i t s du t ies under t h i s Reference, t h e Commission may u t i l i z e t h e services o f engineers and other s p e c i a l l y q u a l i f i e d persons o f t he technical agencies o f Canada and t h e Uni ted States and w i l l so f a r as poss ib le make use o f in format ion and techn ica l data heretofore acquired o r which may become ava i l ab le dur ing t h e course o f t he i nves t iga t i on .

Yours s incere ly ,

IS / M i t c h e l l Sharp

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

Ottawa, Canada February, 1975

Mr. Richard H. M i l l e s t , Mr. John A. S. McGl ennon , Co-Chai rmen, Canada-Uni ted States Cornrni t t e e on Water

Qua1 i ty i n the Sa in t John River

Gent 1 emen :

I t i s our pleasure t o t ransmi t t o you the r e p o r t

Specidkc W a t e / r . Qua&A.j Objeotivu doh .the 'Intennation& Watm i n

;the Saint John Riven Bmin, 1 9 7 5 , prepared by the Water Q u a l i t y

Ob j e c t i ves Subcommi t tee .

The repor t presents, i n deta i 1 , the condi t ions o f qua1 i ty

required t o support def ined water uses o f t he i n te rna t iona l waters o f

the Sa in t John River Basin and r e f l e c t s the best s c i e n t i f i c in format ion

on cause/effect re la t i onsh ips o f pol 1 utants t h a t i s avai 1 able. The

conclusions and recommendations o f f e r e d r e f l e c t a lso the best judgement

o f the Subcommittee.

The r e p o r t evaluates s c i e n t i f i c data and p r a c t i c a l and

re1 i able methods f o r de tec t ing and measuring such data, and i t develops

t h i s in format ion arranged i n categories o f def ined benef i c i a1 use.

We are o f the opin ion t h a t the informat ion contained i n t h i s

repo r t w i 11 be o f use and value t o the water resource managers o f t h i s

i i

basin and t o a l a rge number of people throughout the basin who are

concerned w i t h achieving a h igh l e v e l o f water q u a l i t y f o r the Sa in t

John River and i t s t r i b u t a r i e s .

The Chairman and Members of the Subcommi t t e e express

pleasure i n having had the oppor tun i ty t o undertake t h i s assignment.

Respect fu l ly submi t t ed ,

rn Stewart W. Reed r, Chai m a n Envi ronment Canada

Wi l l i am J. Bu t l e r ,

w i & * Robert H. Cook,

U. S. Environmental P ro tec t i on Envi ronmen t Canada Agency

GLWL &* \+ c!- c3ao-r~ech-c.

Charles Ki ng , Owen Washburn, Maine, Department o f New Brunswi ck Department o f Envi ronmental P ro tec t i on F isher ies and Envi ronment

q7if-7 J e f f r e y Gammon, Northern Main Regional Planning Comni s s i on

iii

WATER QUALITY OBJECTIVES SUBCOMMITTEE

MEMBERS

Mr . Stewart W. Reeder, Water Qua1 i t y Branch, Envi ronment Canada,

Ottawa, Chdman

Mr. W i 11 iam J. But ler , Envi ronmental Protect ion Agency, Region I,

Boston, Mass.

D r . Robert H. Cook, Envi ronmental Protect ion Servi ce , Envi ronment

Canada, A t l an t i c Region, Hal i fax, N.S.

M r . Je f f rey Gammon, Northern Maine Regional Pl anning Comrni ss i on, Caribou,

Mai ne

M r . Charles King, Maine Department o f Environmental Protect ion, Augusta,

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Subconmi ttee on Water Qua1 i t y Objectives

grateful for the assistance of many individuals in preparing

the materi a1 for this report. They are especially grateful

for the tireless assistance so willingly given by Mr. Jerome ~ J . Heal ey , Water Supply Branch, Envi ronmental Protecti on

Agency, Region 1 , and Mr. Robert Wilson, Environmental

Table o f Contents

Page

L e t t e r o f Transmit ta l f i

Members o f the Subcommittee i v

Acknowledgements v

Synopsis ( Inc lud ing master t a b l e o f ob jec t ives) x

Recomnendati ons x i v

In t roduc t ion

Sect ion 1

In t roduc t ion

General Approach Used i n Estab l ish ing the Sa in t John River

Water Qual i ty Object ives Purpose o f the Sa in t John River Water Qual i t y

Object ives Water Qual i ty Object ives App l ica t ion o f Water Qual i t y Object ives Non-Degradation o f Water Qual i t y Non-Conformance o f Water Qual i t y Object ives

Sect ion 2

Speci f i c Water Qual i t y B b j e c t i ves

Pub1 i c Water Supply 9 Aesthet ics and Recreation 14 Aquatic L i f e and W i l d l i f e 23 Agr i cu l tu re 33 Indust ry 35

Sect ion 3

Speci a1 Considerations f o r Water Use Object ives

Bi o c i des Radi onucl ides

Sect ion 4

M u l t i p l e Purpose Water Use Object ives

Mu1 t i p l e Use Non-Degradati on Non-Conformance Areas

v i

T i t l e Page

1-1 Summary o f Spec i f i c and Mu1 t i p l e Purpose x i i Water Qual i t y Object ives

2- 1 Raw Water Q u a l i t y Object ives f o r Pub1 i c 11 Water Supply

2-2 Water Qua1 i t y Object ives f o r Aesthet ics 17

2-3 Water Qua1 i t y Object i ves f o r D i r e c t Contact 18 Recreation

2-4 Water Qua1 i t y Object ives f o r Aquatic L i f e 2 5 and W i 1 d l i f e

2- 5 Concentrations o f Chemical Compounds i n 3 1 Water t h a t can Cause Ta in t i ng o f the Flesh o f F ish and Other Aquatic Organi sms

2-6 Water Qua1 i t y Objec t i ves f o r - Ag r i cu l tu re 34

3- 1 Water Q u a l i t y Object ives f o r Biocides - 41 Freshwater Aquatic L i f e and W i 1 d l i f e

3- 2 Water Qua1 i t y Object ives f o r Biocides - 4 4 Publ i c Water Supply, Livestock Watering and Water Contact Recreation

3- 3 Water Qua1 i t y Object i ves f o r Radionucl ides 48

4- 1 Mu1 ti p l e Purpose Water Qua1 i t y Object ives 5 2 f o r the Sa in t John River

5- 1 Summary o f Sampl i n g and Preservat ion 5 8 Techniques

5-2 Summary o f Ana ly t ica l Methods 6 3

v i i i

Water Q u a l i t y i n the Sa in t John River establ ished a Subcommittee

composed o f three members from Canada and three members from the

Uni ted States t o develop speci f i c water qua1 i t y ob jec t ives f o r 1 preserving, improving and mainta in ing the water qual i ty i n the

i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters o f t he Sa in t John River f o r a l l bene f i c ia l uses.

The guide1 ines emphasized the need f o r ob jec t ives f o r p u b l i c water ~ supply a f t e r adequate treatment, recreat ion i nc lud ing water contact

spor ts and w i l d l i f e and f i s h i nc lud ing salmonoid f i shes.

The benef ic ia l uses o f the i n te rna t iona l waters o f t he

Saint John River i d e n t i f i e d by the Subcommittee as being o f concern

t o both countr ies were: (1) p u b l i c water supply, (2 ) aesthet ics and

recreat ion, (3) aquat ic 1 i f e and w i l d l i f e , (4) a g r i c u l t u r e , and

(5) indust ry .

I n the course o f i t s task, the Subconanittee drew ex tens ive ly I

on the s c i e n t i f i c 1 i t e r a t u r e f o r compi 1 i ng the s p e c i f i c water qual i ty

ob jec t ives and thoroughly inves t iga ted present methodologies f o r

t h e i r p r a c t i cab1 1 i ty and re1 i abi 1 i t y f o r measuring each ob jec t i ve

parameter. Present ly developed water qual i t y ob jec t ives and standards

were a lso taken i n t o account i n the course o f es tab l i sh ing these

ob jec t ives . The members o f the Subconmi t t e e a lso drew upon the advice

o f s c i e n t i s t s spec ia l i zed i n the various user aspects o f water f o r

s p e c i f i c water qual i t y concerns.

The repor t presents, i n tabu lar form, spec i f i c and

mu l t i p l e purpose object ives f o r the pro tect ion and maintenance o f

each i d e n t i f i e d use* The object ives for each parameter o f each use

category are referenced as t o the l i t e r a t u r e used. Use i s made o f

notes, i n the tables, t o explain the ra t iona le fo r the se lec t ion of

an object ive when c o n f l i c t s occurred i n the 1 i terature. Special

~ consideration was given t o the f i e l d s o f biocides and rad ioac t i v i t y .

The users o f t h i s repor t are encouraged t o make use o f the

master tab le under t h i s section but t o r e f e r t o the Spec i f ic Water

Use Objectives, Mu1 t i p l e Purpose Water Use Objectives and Speci a1

Consideration f o r Water Use Objectives sections f o r f u l l coverage

o f the speci f i c object ives.

Because o f the rap id and pervasive change i n soc ia l and

economic perspectives and po l i c i es f o r managing, enhancing, and

preserving water resources, the Subcommittee took the approach i n

developing object ives f o r these in ternat iona l waters t ha t they be

categorized by use designation and t ha t the object ives be put t o

use, along w i t h socia l and economic consideration, by management as

too ls i n developing water management programs, assessing po l 1 u t i on

control measures and establ i shing water-use patterns f o r these waters.

The Subcommittee be1 ieves t ha t the spec i f i c water qua1 i t y

object ives and the recommendations i n t h i s repor t w i l l be o f value

t o water managers i n t h e i r approaches t o preserve and enhance the

q u a l i t y o f the in ternat iona l water o f the Saint John River Basin.

x i

TABLE 1 - 1

Summary 0 f

S p e c i f i c and Mu1 tiple ~ u ~ s e Water Qua1 i ty Objectives

urnma I Y

Sped f i c and M u l t i p l e Purge Yater Qua1 i ty Objectives

RECOMMENDAT IONS

T h e W a t e r Q u a l i t y O b j e c t i v e s Subcommi t t e e o f t h e W a t e r

Qua1 i t y C o m m i t t e e i n t h e S a i n t J o h n R i v e r B a s i n i n c a r r y i n g o u t i t s

task as d e f i n e d b y i t s t e r m s o f r e f e r e n c e makes t h e f o l l o w i n g

r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s :

I T I S RECOMMENDED THAT THE SPECIF IC WATER QUALITY OBJECTIVES, AS DELINEATED I N T H I S REPORT, BE ACCEPTE FOR USE BY MANAGEMENT AS A TOOL I N DEVELOPING POLLUTION CONTROL MEASURES TO ENSURE THAT THE INTER- NATIONAL WATERS I N THE SA INT JOHN RIVER BASIN ARE PROTECTED AND ENHANCED TO MEET THE REQUIREMENTS OF A L L ESTABLISHED WATER USE PATTERNS AND TO PROTECT THE L I F E SYSTEMS THESE WATERS SUPPORT.

I T I S RECOMMENDED THAT WATER RESOURCE MANAGERS, I N USING THE SPECIF IC WATER QUALITY OBJECTIVES, SELECT THE MOST STRINGENT PARAMETER OBJECTIVE APPLICABLE TO AN ESTABLISHED WATER-USE PATTERN FOR THE INTERNATIONAL WATERS OF T H I S BASIN AS THE OBJECTIVE THAT MUST BE MET FOR THE PROTECTION AND ENHANCEMENT OF THE WATERS FOR SUCH DESIGNATED USES, RECOGNIZING AT THE SAME T IME THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE "NATURAL BACKGROUND QUALITY"

3. I T I S RECOMMENDED THAT ALL INTERNATIONAL WATERS I N T H I S BASIN WHOSE EXIST ING QUALITY I S BETTER THAN THE PROPOSED SPECIF IC OBJECTIVES, SHOULD BE MAINTAINED AT THEIR EX IST ING HIGH QUALITY LEVEL BY TAKING ALL REASONABLE AND PRACTICABLE MEASURES.

I T I S RECOMMENDED THAT NON-CONFORMANCE AREAS BE DESIGNATED FOR THE INTERNATIONAL WATERS I N T H I S BASIN.

I T I S RECOMMENDED THAT THE METHODS OF SAMPLING AND PRESERVATION AND ANALYSES AS DELINEATED I N T H I S REPORT, BE ADOPTED BY ALL LABORATORIES WHEN APPLIED TO THESE SPECIF IC WATER QUALITY OBJECTIVES.

I T I S RECOMMENDED THE WATER QUALITY OBJECTIVES SUBC0Mr:ITTEE BE DESIGNATED A STANDING COMMITTEE TO REVISE THE S P E C I F I C WATER QUALITY OBJECT1 VES FROM AVAILABLE NEW KNOWLEDGE, AS REQUIRED.

SECTION 1

In t roduc t ion

General. .

Approach Used f o r Es tab l ish ing the Sa in t John River Water Qual i t y Object ives .

The Purpose o f the Sa in t John River Water Q u a l i t y Object ives.

Water Qual i ty Ob j e c t i ves . App l ica t ion o f Water Qual i t y Object ives . Non-Degradation o f Water Qual i t y . Non-Conformance o f Water Qual i t y Object ives .

wa*tm wvttact: hecnea;tion and doh wL&i..U6e and

6i-h h i n h d i r z g a almonoid 6i-h h a . " The members o f t h i s Subcommittee were se lec ted f o r t h e i r

exper t i se and experience i n water qua1 i t y matters from federal and

~ p r o v i n c i a l o r s t a t e agencies o f both Canada and the Uni ted States.

The water use pat te rns i d e n t i f i e d by the Subcommittee as

being of concern t o both countr ies were: (1) p u b l i c d r i n k i n g water

supply, (2) aesthet ics and recreat ion , (3) aquat ic l i f e and w i l d -

l i f e , ( 4 ) ag r i cu l t u re , and ( 5 ) indus t ry .

-1 -

Approach Used f o r Es tab l ish ing the Sa in t John River Water Q l l d l i t y Object ives

The f i r s t s tep i n developing the water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives

f o r t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l waters o f the Sa in t John River Basin was t o

compile s c i e n t i f i c a l l y based c r i t e r i a f o r each o f the water use

pat te rns i d e n t i f i e d above. The s c i e n t i f i c in format ion avai 1 able i n

the l i t e r a t u r e formed the basis f o r t h i s compilat ion.

Secondly, p r a c t i c a l and re1 i able methods f o r de tec t ing and

measuring the water qual i ty ob jec t ives selected f o r each water use

p a t t e r n were invest igated.

Th i rd ly , a1 1 developed water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives and standards

f o r the waters o f the Sa in t John River Basin were taken i n t o account.

And f o u r t h l y , the developed water qual i t y ob jec t ives f o r

each water use pa t te rn were forwarded t o s c i e n t i s t s spec ia l i zed i n

the various user aspects o f water f o r comments.

The Purpose o f the Sa in t John River Water Qua1 i ty Object ives - ,

Water qual i ty ob jec t ives represent attempts t o quan t i f y

water qual i t y i n terms o f i t s physical , chemt cal , b i o l o g i c a l and

aesthet ic c h a r a c t e r i s t i cs.

The fundamental purpose i n eva luat ing object! ves f o r

water q u a l i t y i n t h i s repo r t i s t h a t the assignment o f a l e v e l

o f q u a l i t y i s r e l a t i v e t o the use man makes o f water. And the use

man makes o f water i s the r e s p o n s i b i l i t y of management based on

sound p u b l i c po l i cy . For management t o evaluate the q u a l i t y o f

water required f o r various uses, i t i s essent ia l o f i t t o know the

l i m i t s o f q u a l i t y t h a t have a detr imenta l e f f e c t on a designed use.

Thus, i n decid ing whether o r n o t water w i l l be o f s u i t a b l e q u a l i t y ,

management must be able t o determine whether o r r iot the i n t r o d u c t i o n

i n t o , o r presence o f any mater ia l i n the resource, i n t e r f e r e s w i t h ,

a1 t e r s , destroys i t s intended use, o r threatens t o do .so w i t h time.

Water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives designed on a user basis, along w i t h socio-

economic considerat ions, prov ide the t o o l s f o r management t o make

such eval u a t i ons.

Management, i n designing water q u a l i t y programs, has a

responsi b i 1 i t y t o ensure t h a t water qual i t y i s p ro tec ted and enhanced

t o meet the requirements f o r a1 1 benef i c ia1 uses and t o p r o t e c t a1 1

1 i f e sys tems these waters support.

Water Qual i t y Object ives

The d e f i n i t i o n o f a water q u a l i t y o b j e c t i v e as used i n

t h i s r e p o r t i s a l i m i t based on s c i e n t i f i c data evaluated t o de r i ve

the qual i t y o f water associated w i t h s p e c i f i c uses. These ob jec t i ves

s t a t e the best s c i e n t i f i c in fo rmat ion on cause/effect re la t i onsh ips

o f pol 1 utants and water uses t h a t i s ava i lab le . Because these

ob jec t ives were s e t w i t h i n the 1 i m i t s o f present avai 1 able knowledge,

p rov i s ion must be made f o r r e v i s i o n as new knowledge becomes ava i lab le .

Appl i c a t i on o f Water Qual i t y Ob jec t i ves

The app l i ca t i on o f water qual i ty ob jec t ives and the water

q u a l i t y managemnt programs required t o meet such ob jec t ives must

be based on techni ca1 -soci a1 -economi c assessments o f water use i n

a l l designated i n t e r n a t i o n a l water areas o f the Sa in t John River

Basin. Once an ove ra l l assessment i s made and a water use pa t te rn

i s establ ished f o r the i n t e r n a t i o n a l por t ions o f the Sa in t John

River and the i n te rna t iona l water areas o f i t s t r i b u t a r i e s can

these water qua1 i t y ob jec t ives be trans1 ated i n t o po l 1 u t i o n cont ro l

measures.

Add i t i ona l l y , i t i s important t o recognize t h a t the water

q u a l i t y ob jec t ives developed f o r the i n te rna t iona l water areas o f ,

t h i s ri ver basin take i n t o account the natura l background condi t ions .

Non-Degradation o f Water Qual i ty

The Subcommittee recognized t h a t a number o f water

parameters i n t h i s r i v e r system w i 11 be b e t t e r than the s p e c i f i c

water q u a l i t y ob jec t i ve and recommends t h a t a l l reasonable and

p rac t i cab le measures be taken t o mainta in the present l e v e l s o f

such parameters e x i s t i n g i n the waters.

Non-Conformance o f Water Qual i t y Object ives

The Subcomnittee i n i t s assessment o f the present water

q u a l i t y condi t ions o f the Sa in t John River Basin, recognized t h a t

there are areas i n the system which w i 11 f a i l t o conform t o

the s p e c i f i c ob jec t ives because o f na tu ra l condi t ions, d i f f u s e d

source input , p o i n t source discharges, o r where, i n some instances,

there has n o t been s u f f i c i e n t t ime f o r the e f f e c t o f remedial programs

t o be r e f l e c t e d i n improved water q u a l i t y .

I n areas where the water qua1 i t y has been degraded t o a

l e v e l worse than the ob jec t ives , the Subcomnittee i s o f the op in ion

t h a t remedi a1 programs should be undertaken, b u t t h a t such programs

would have d i f f e r e n t p r i o r i t i e s f o r t h e i r implementation. It i s

there fore recommended t h a t areas which are n o t i n conformity w i t h

the ob jec t ives f o r a p a r t i c u l a r use should be recognized and designated

as such, so t h a t the p r i o r i t i e s f o r remedial ac t ion may r a t i o n a l l y

be based on the r e l a t i v e importance o f the uses a f fec ted t o an ove ra l l

s t ra tegy f o r management o f the bas in 's resources.

SECTION 2

Speci fi c Water Use Objectives

Pub1 i c Water Supply.

Aes t h e t i cs and Recreation.

Aquatic L i f e and Wi ld l i fe .

Agri cul ture.

Industry,

SPECIFIC WATER USE OBJECTIVES

Introduction

This section of the report presents specific water quality

objectives by use category. I t presents the objectives as two limi t s

where the available information was adequate and as the maximum

acceptable instantaneous concentration where the information was

1 imi ted. These 1 imi t s are designated as "desi rable level and

"not-to-exceed 1 imi t" and they are defined as fol lows :

(1) Desirable Level - long term quality goal to be

reached, especi a1 ly for those parameters which

are introduced into the system by man. I t

offers the greatest margin of safety for the

designated use.

( 2 ) Not-to-exceed Limit - offers the minimum degree

of protection for the designated use. Some

deleterious effects may occur to the most sensitive

use, i f this 1 imi t persists for an extended period

of time.

The section also references the l i te ra ture referred to in

developing the specific objectives and notes where conflicts were

encountered involving l i te ra ture sources, existing background levels I

and legislation and c r i t e r i a .

- 7-

Pub1 i c Water Supply

General

Water supply i s currently recei ving significant attention I

as a part of man's environment that can be e i ther a valuable natural

resource or a vehicle through which disease organisms or toxic

chemi cal s can be transported. Health and waterworks off ic i a1 s are

I constantly s t r iving to protect the publ i e which has no way of I

directly protecting i t s own water supply. The effor ts o f these

of f ic ia l s i s needed to produce and dis t r ibute water of high qual i ty.

In order to continue this task, water quality objectives should be

established for water supply sources so t h a t those individuals

responsible for providing potable water wi 11 have suff ic ient

information to determine treatment requirements.

In developing raw water qual i ty objectives for publ i c

water supplies, i t i s necessary to establish some rather arbitrary

condi tions. Water treatment technology has now reached a level of I

sophisti cation that w i 11 convert almost any water, including sea

water and grossly polluted fresh water, into a potable product.

Therefore, the sub-commi t t ee has adopted two forms of treatment

I found to be the most common in the water supply industry. These

are (1 ) conventional treatment which includes coagulation,

sedimentation, rapid sand f i 1 t ra t ion and disinfection, and ( 2 ) dis-

infection only.

Conventional Treatment

Conventional water treatment i s a multistage type of

treatment relying on various processes t o produce a potable water.

These consist of coagul ation, sedimentation, sand fi 1 tration and

disinfection (pre and post). Coagulation includes two mixing

stages, rapid and slow.

During the rapid mix stage, chemicals are dispersed

throughout the water by violent agitation with a mixing basin

detention period for the water of 30 seconds t o two minutes.

The slow mix stage requires a detention time of 20 t o 30 minutes

t o a1 low for proper development of the flocculent of colloidal

matter. I n the sedimentation stage, the water passes from the

slow mix basins where i t is held for four t o eight hours allowing

the flocculent t o sett le t o the bottom of the basin. From the

sedimentation stage the water passes t o the filtration basins.

These basins are called slow or rapid f i l ters depending upon the

rate of passage of water through the f i l ters . The f i l ters remove

nearly a l l o f the suspended particles, bacteria and other harmful

organisms. The recommended rate of passage of water through

the f i l ters i s often set a t four t o six gallons per minute per

square foot for a rapid sand f i l te r . However, the rate can go

up t o eight gallons per minute or higher if the water is properly

treated before entering the f i l ter ; on the other hand, a rate of

one gallon per minute might be too high i f water is not properly

treated prior t o fi 1 tration. I ~ I

-9-

F i n a l l y , d i s i n f e c t i o n of the f i 1 te red water i s conducted

before the water i s de l i vered t o the d i s t r i b u t i o n system and the

consumer. One o f the methods o f d i s i n f e c t i o n i s accomplished by

the add i t i on o f ch lo r i ne t o the f i n i s h e d water. The amount requ i red

depends upon the ch lo r i ne demand of the water, the amount and k i n d

o f ch lo r i ne res idua l desi red i n the system, the q u a n t i t y o f f l o w

t o be t r e a t e d and the t ime of contact o f ch lo r i ne w i t h the water.

I t i s common t o f i n d a res idua l o f 0.2 t o 0.3 pa r t s per m i l l i o n (ppm)

o f f r e e ava i l ab le ch lo r i ne i n the water leav ing the p lan t . A t some

p lan ts , employing conventional water treatment, ch lo r i ne i s a l so

app l ied t o the raw water before i t enters the mix ing and coagulat ion

stages. This p rech lo r i na t i on operat ion need var ies w i t h the qua1 i t y

o f the water and i s an add i t i on t o the normal post c h l o r i n a t i o n

stage. Other methods o f d i s i n f e c t i o n are ava i l ab le i n c l u d i n g

ozonation and the app l i ca t i on of u l t r a - v i o l e t l i g h t . A t present,

however, ch lo r i ne appears t o be the pr imary d i s i n f e c t i o n agent.

D i s i n f e c t i o n i s conducted i n the same manner as ~ descr ibed above f o r the f i 1 te red water. The i n t e n s i t y o f d i s i n f e c t i o n

w i 11 probably be greater i n t h i s process as no o ther form o f treatment

w i l l be appl ied.

TABLE 2 - 7

Raw Water Quality Objectives f o r Pub1 i c Water Supply (Concentration i n whole (Unfi 1 tered) water)

Parameter

Carbon Chloroform Extract mg/f

TMLE 2-1 (Cont 'd)

1. 1.1. - I n s u f f i c i e n t I n fo rmat ion - due t o a general l a c k o f data, s c i e n t i f i c a l l y defensib le ob jec t i ves cannot be s e t a t t h i s t ime.

2. V.F. - V i r t u a l l y Free - imp l ies t h e concept o f freedom from t h e undesirable e f f e c t s o f t h e c o n s t i t u e n t b u t n o t necessar i l y freedom from the const i t uen t i t s e l f .

r

L i t e r a t u r e Reference

6 . 6 3 6

6 3,6,9 3,6,9 3,6

6 15

3 9 6

3 ,6

D i s i n f e c t i o n Only

5.0 - 9.0 0.001 0.2 1.1.

I. I 0.01 0.05 (note 4)

250.0 (note 2) 0.05

1000.0 (note 2) 1 .o 1.1. 5.0

Conventional Treatment

5.0 - 9.0 0.001 0.2 1.1.

1.1 0.01 0.05 (note 4)

250.0 (note 2) 0.05

1000.0 (note 2 ) No L i m i t Set I. I. 5.0

Parameter

pH Un i t s Phenol i c Compounds mg/l Phosphate (as PO4) mg/l Phthalate Esters mg/l P o l y c h l o r i nated Biphenyls

(PCB) mg/i Selenium mg/l S i l v e r mg/l Sodium mg/l

mg/l S u l f a t e (as SO4) S u l f i d e (as H S) mg/l T o t a l ~ i s s o l v g d So l ids

(TGS mg/l Turbi d i t y J.T.U. Vi rus Zinc mg/l

F No

27 28 29 30 31

32 33 34 35 36 37

38 39 40

Notes t o TABLE 2

1. A l k a l i n i t y - the des i rab le a l k a l i n i t y f o r any water i s associated

w i t h o the r const i tuents such as pH and hardness. It i s des i rab le

t h a t there be no sudden var ia t ions i n the a l k a l i n i t y .

2. I n some cases, Maine Dr ink ing W,ater Standards d i c t a t e a more

s t r i n g e n t standard which i s based on h igh q u a l i t y water found i n

the s ta te . These are f i n i s h e d water standards. P a r t i c u l a r

parameters and Maine standards are :

Parameter Maine Standard mg/l

Arseni c 0.01

Chlor ide

Cyanide

N i t r a t e (mg/l N) 5

Su l fa te (mg/l SO4)

Tota l Dissolved Sol ids 150

3 . Economic considerat ions r e s u l t i n the consumer's des i re t o reduce

hardness t o a l e v e l below 120 mg/l as CaC03.

4. Assuming a per cap i ta consumption r a t e o f 2 l i t e r s o f water per day,

the American Heart Associat ion recormends a maximum concentrat ion o f

20 mg/l. For those people n o t on a sodium r e s t r i c t e d d i e t , a maximum

concentrat ion o f 270 mg/l i s recomnended. The quest ion remains as

t o what populat ion needs you meet. Recommendation i s made by the

U.S. Nat ional Research Counci 1 , Food and N u t r i t i o n Board, 1954.

I

Aesthet ics and Recreation

General I

This sec t ion considers water q u a l i t y i n the context o f

aesthet ics and recreat ion, on the basis o f avai 1 able s c i e n t i f i c

in format ion and on judgement.

The importance o f water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives t o preserve

and enhance the aesthet ic and recreat iona l values o f the water

resources i n the Sa in t John River Basin, i n te rna t iona l sect ion,

i s paramount, p a r t i c u l a r l y i n view o f the increasing demand f o r the

water i n t h i s basin.

O f the many fac to rs t h a t can in f l uence the aesthet ic and

recreat iona l value o f t he water i n t h i s basin, they may be broadly

grouped, such as geography, management and 1 and use p r a c t i ces ,

i n d u s t r i a1 development, eutrophicat ion, and the car ry ing capaci ty

o f the resource. It i s necessary t o understand the i n t e r - r e l a t i o n -

ships between these fac to rs and water q u a l i t y i n s e t t i n g water

q u a l i t y ob jec t ives t h a t w i l l mainta in the aesthet ic and recreat iona l

values o f the surface waters i n t h i s basin.

The app l i ca t i on o f water qual i t y ob jec t ives f o r aes thet ic

and recreat iona l uses i n t h i s basin can on ly be a p a r t i a l s o l u t i o n

f o r the preservat ion o f water qual i ty. What i s a lso requi red i s

a comprehensi ve 1 and-use management program.

Preservat ion o f Aesthet ic Values o f Water I

I n p reserv ing aes the t i c values o f a water resource,

a t t e n t i o n must be focused on the ex ten t t o which the beauty o f

water can be preserved o r enhanced by the establ ishment o f water

qua1 i t y ob j e c t i ves . Aes the t i ca l l y p leas ing waters add t o the qual i t y o f

human experiences by being pleasant t o look upon, t o walk o r r e s t

beside, o r simply meditate on. Many people i n viewing a water

resource achieve a c e r t a i n res t fu lness from i t s prox i m i t y t o

nature.

I n preserv ing water f o r aes the t ic purposes, a program o f

management must be s e t up and executed i n t he context o f the use

o f the land, the shorel ine, and the water resource. The re ten t i on

o f s u i t a b l e aes the t i c q u a l i t y i s more l i k e l y t o be achieved

through s t r i c t con t ro l o f p o l l u t i o n a t the source r a t h e r than by

excessive dependence on assimi 1 a t i o n by rece i v ing waters.

The na tu ra l condi t ions t h a t a f f e c t the aesthet ics o f

water vary widely. It i s because o f these vary ing cond i t ions t h a t

the ob j e c t i ves recommended are desc r ip t i ve , t o b e t t e r prov ide f o r

the p r o t e c t i o n o f sur face waters from substances o r cond i t ions

a r i s i n g from o the r than na tu ra l sources which could degrade the

aes the t ic qual i t y o f water. The o b j e c t i ves , therefore, are intended I

t o cover degradation from discharges o r wastes whether from surface

f low, p o i n t sources, o r sub-surface drainage. i

The ob jec t i ves , as presented i n Table 2 - 2 , are e s s e n t i a l l y

f i n i t e ob jec t i ves which become so when app l ied as in tended i n the

context o f n a t u r a l background condi t i o n s .

Preservat ion o f Recreat ional Values o f Water

The rec rea t i ona l use o f water r e f e r s p r i m a r i l y t o swimming,

bathing, and o t h e r water contact spor ts and secondar i ly t o boat ing, I camping, f i s h i n g , aes the t i c enjoyment, and o the r water-dependent

spor ts i n v o l v i ng l ess f requent bodi l y contact w i t h water.

Waters used f o r body contact spor ts should conform t o

th ree basi c cond i t ions : (a ) bac te r i a1 i n d i c a t o r s o f e n t e r i c pathogens

1 should be w i t h i n acceptable concentrat ions; ( b ) substances o r I organisms t h a t may be t o x i c upon i nges t i on o r i r r i t a t i n g t o t he s k i n

and mucus membranes o f Ran; and ( c ) a e s t h e t i c a l l y appeal ing by

being f r e e o f obnoxious f l o a t i n g o r suspended mat ter , ob jec t ionab le

c o l o i r , and f o u l odours. The recommended water qua1 i t y ob jec t i ves

t o meet these requirements are presented i n Table 2-3. Any body

of water t h a t cannot meet these requirements should be designated

f o r a rec rea t i ona l use t h a t does n o t i nvo l ve planned immersion o f

the body.

TABLE 2-2

\.later Qua1 i ty Object ives For Aesthet ics

References

4, 5, 6

4, 5, 6

4, 5, 6

4, 5, 6

4, 5 , 6

Des i r a b l e Level

V . F.

V . F.

V. F.

V. F.

V.F.

I -I

V I

1

No

1

2

3

4

5

Parameter

Mater ia ls t h a t w i l l s e t t l e t o form put rescent o r o ther - wise ob j e c t i onabl e s l udge depos i t s . F loa t ing debris, o i l , scum and o the r ma t te r I

Ma te r ia l s producing ob jec t ionab l e colour , odour, t a s t e and t u r b i d i t y .

Substances and condi ti ons o r t h e i r combinations i n concen- t r a t i o n s which produce undesi rable aqua t i c 1 i fe.

Mater ia ls , i n c l u d i n g rad ionuc l ides , i n concentrat ions o r combinations which are t o x i c o r whi ch produce undesi r a b l e phys io log ica l responses i n human, f i s h and o the r p l a n t l i f e .

NOTE: A l l sur face waters should c o n t r i b u t e t o the support o f l i f e forms o f a e s t h e t i c value, such as f ishes, waterfowl , aquat ic animals .

TABLE 2-3

Water Qua1 i t y Ob j e c t i ves For D i r e c t C o n t ~ c t Recreat ion

(Concentrat ion i n whole (Un f i 1 te red) water)

No

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

18

19 20 21

Parameter

Ammonia (as N) mg/l Arsenic mg/l Barium mg/l Boron mg/l Cadmium mg/l Chromium, t o t a l mg/l C l a r i ty-Secchi d i sc

V i s i b i l i t y m Col i forms-fecal medi uni

Co lo r - t rue Pt-Co sca le Copper mg/l Cyanide mg/l F luo r i de mg/l F loa tab le So l ids Foaming Agents (as MBAS) mg/l Lead mg 11 Manganese mg/l Mercury mg/l

Nu t r i en ts (phosphate as P) mg/l

Odour O i 1 and Grease Pes ti c i des and Herbicides

Not t o exceed L i m i t

0.05 (note11 0.10 '1 .O 5.0 (note 2: 0.01 0.05

>1.2 90% (200/100 m l

(note 3: 100.0 (note 4:

1.0 (note 5) 0.2 1.0 V. F. 0.5 (note 6) 0.05 0.05 (no te71 0.002

(note 8: 0.025 & 0.10

( n o t e 9 : V. F. V. F. See Tables

22 23

24 25 26 27

28 29 30

1.

L i t e r a t u r e Reference

3, 9, 15 3, 9 3, 9 3, 5, 9, 15 3 , 9 3, 9

4, 6

1, 4, 5, 6 4, 5, 6 3, 5, 9, 15 3, 9 3, 9 4, 5, 6 4, 5 3, 9 3 , 9

4, 5

4 , 6 4, 5, 6 4, 6

3-+ and 3-2

undesi rab le e f f ec t s o f the cons t i t uen t b u t n o t necessar i l y freedom from the c o n s t i t u e n t i t s e l f .

2. 1.1. - I n s u f f i c i e n t In fo rmat ion - due t o the l ack o f data, s c i e n t i f i c a l l y de fens ib le ob jec t i ves cannot be s e t a t t h i s t ime.

I pH u n i t s 6.5 t o 9.0 4, 5, 6 Phenol i c Compounds "'111 1 0.001

(note 10 5, 6 Radi oac t i v i t y See Table 3-3 Selenium mg/l S i l v e r mg/l S u l f i d e (as H2S) mg/l

Temperature c0 (FO) Viruses Zinc mg/l

V. F. - V i r t u a l l y Free - imp1 i e s t he concept o f freedom from the

0.01 0.05 0.05

(note 11: 30 (864

1.1. 5.0

3, 9 3 , 9

15 4, 5, 6

3, 9 --

Notes to TABLE 2-3

1. Ammonia - Ammonia in surface waters i n concentrations higher

than 0.10 mg/l as ammonia nitrogen i s usually indicative of

sewage o r industr ia l contamination. I t s odour threshold has

been reported as 0.04 mg/l . The solution of ammoni a sal t s in

water can resu l t in a decrease of pH.

Ammonia i s a lso a potential algal and microbial nutrient i n

surface waters through i t s biochemi cal oxi dation t o ni t r i t e

and n i t r a t e .

The generally accepted 1 imi t of f ree amonia f o r sanitary

purity of waters i s between 0.05 and 0.10 mg/l . 2 . Boron - The ingestion of boron i s n o t toxic to humans, except

i n doses in excess of 5 grams. However, the protracted ingestion

of boron may a f fec t the central nervous system. I t i s because

of t h i s long term ef fec t t ha t the not t o exceed l im i t on boron

has been s e t a t 5.0 mg/l.

Boron, although an essential element o f higher plants , i s

deleterious to cer ta in aquatic plants in excessive amounts.

3. Col iforms - Fecal coliforms are recommended fo r the detection of

disease-causing organisms i n water because ( a ) they r e f l ec t the

presence of fecal contamination which i s the most 1 i kely source

of pathogenic microorganisms and (b) present procedures fo r the

detection of other disease-causi ng bacter ia , vi ruses , protoza, worms

and fungi are more complex and time-consuming and, therefore,

I I not suitable for monitoring purposes.

The recommendation that 90 per cent of the samples are not to I I exceed a fecal col iform content of 200 per 100 ml of water i s

based on the results of numerous studies carried out in North

America which showed a sharp increase in the frequency of

Salmonel 1 a detection when fecal col i form densities were

greater that 200 per 100 ml.

4. Colour - The recomnendation i s based on the colour of water,

as measured on the Pt-Co scale , free of set t leable and suspended

1 sol ids.

The natural colour of water usually results from substances of

mineral or organic origin. Man induced colour id water generally

results from inorganic or organic soluble wastes.

5. Copper - Copper i s not considered to be an accumulative systemic

poison. Many authorities believe that only doses in excess of

I 100 mg. are l ikely to be injurious to man.

The limiting factor in recreational waters i s tas te . Threshold

concentrations for tas te have been reported in the range of

1.0 - 2.0 mg/l of copper.

6. Foaming Agents - The most common of these synthetic anionic

surfactants found in water i s l inear a1 kyl benzene sulfonate

I (LAS) . I t i s used as a base for synthetic detergents. I t s

objectionable property i s i t s foaming capacity which can produce

1 unsightly masses of foam in water bodies. I t i s also resis tant to bi 01 ogi cal metabolism. These agents are commonly determined

by means o f t h e i r reac t i on w i t h methylene b lue dye. Concentrations

of l ess than 0.5 mg/l, as methylene b lue a c t i v e substances (MBAS),

do n o t cause foaming and are w e l l helow the i n f e r r e d l i m i t

(700 mg/l ) o f t o x i c i t y t o humans.

7. Manganese - It i s undesirable i n rec rea t i ona l waters because

o f i t s m e t a l l i c t as te i n concentrat ions greater than 0.5 mg/l ,

and because i t s ta ins and d iscolours c lothes. I t i s no t

considered t o x i c i n concentrat ions normal ly found i n na tura l

waters.

8. Mercury - A l l f o m s o f mercury found i n water are extremely

I t o x i c t o man, and the a1 k y l form o f mercury i s , by f a r , the I most t o x i c . I t has been est imated t h a t o f the t o t a l mercury

ingested, more than 90 per cent i s absorbed when i n the form

o f methyl mercury, as compared t o on ly two per cent absorpt ion

when i n the form o f mercur ic ion . Based on the issumption

t h a t the major p o r t i o n o f the t o t a l mercury content present

i n water i s i n the a l k y l form, a l i m i t o f 0.002 mg/l i s

recommended on t he basis o f phys io log ica l e f f e c t s .

9. Nut r i en ts (Phosphate) - Reducing the n u t r i e n t , phosphate, i n

water bodies i s the s i n g l e most important step t h a t can be taken

i n the con t ro l of nuisance p lan ts . The recommendation i s based

on present knowledge where i t i s be l ieved t h a t the fo l l ow ing

l i m i t s f o r t o t a l phosphate (as P), when i t i s a l i m i t i n g

cons t i t uen t f o r nuisance aquat ic p l a n t growths, are acceptable.

1. Lakes, reservoi r s and impoundments .025 rhg/l

2. Entry p o i n t o f stream i n t o a lake, reservoi r o r impoundment 0.050 mg/l

3. Flowing stream 0.10 mg/l

16. Phenol ic Compounds - The l i m i t reconnnended f o r these

substances i s based on (1) the prevent ion o f the occurence

o f undesirable tastes and odours i n recreat iona l waters,

and (2) the 1 ack o f sensi ti ve a n a l y t i ca l techniques f o r

t he detec t ion o f some o f the more odourous compounds.

11. S u l f i d e (as H,S) ,- - This recommendation i s based on the

minimum concentrat ion o f hydrogen s u l f i d e detectable by

tas te i n water. The thresholds o f t as te and smell have

been reported t o be 0.2 mg/l f o r s u l f i d e s i n pu lp -m i l l wastes.

Aquatic L i f e and W i l d l i f e

General

The preservat ion o f f i s h , o ther aquat ic l i f e and w i l d l i f e

represents a water use i n s i g n i f i c a n t c o n f l i c t w i t h most o the r uses

o f the resource by man. This sec t ion presents ob jec t ives f o r c e r t a i n

physical and chemical p o l l u t a n t s f o r the p r o t e c t i o n o f the b i o t i c ~ segment o f the ecosystem. The ob jec t ives f o r b ioc ides are presented

i n the I1Speci a1 Considerations f o r Water Use Object ives" sect ion.

The object ives, summarized i n Table 2-4, have been presented

I i n two columns corresponding to ' d i f f e r e n t degrees o f p ro tec t i on

f o r the b io ta . The ob jec t ives presented i n the column headed

"Desirable Level" are those which o f f e r the maximum degree o f p ro tec t i on

t o the b i o t a compatible w i t h the use o f the water resource f o r o ther

I purposes. Achievement o f t h i s l e v e l o f p r o t e c t i o n would permi t the

reproduct ion, development and growth o f aquat ic 1 i f e t o cont inue

unimpaired. The ob jec t ives presented i n the column headed "Not t o

exceed l i m i t " o f f e r the minimum acceptable margin of sa fe t y f o r pre-

vent ing the death o f s e n s i t i v e members o f the community. The long-

t e r n continuance o f the l e v e l o f degredation l i s t e d i n t h i s column

would sometimes prevent the successful completion o f a 1 i f e cyc le

o f s e n s i t i v e species. For t h i s reason management o f the water

resource should have the achievement o f t he more s t r i n g e n t ob jec t ives

as i t s long-term goal . Most o f the ob jec t ives are based on s c i e n t i f i c in fo rmat ion

r e l a t i n g t o the t o x i c i t y o f var ious compounds t o salmonoid f i s h . I n

cases where in fo rmat ion was ava i l ab le f o r o t h e r organisms, the number

r e l a t i n g t o the most s e n s i t i v e species was chosen as the ob jec t i ve ,

w i t h the ove r r i d ing considerat ion t h a t the water should a t a l l t imes

be s u i t a b l e f o r the maintenance o f salmonoids . Informat ion on the

"desi rable l e v e l " o f c e r t a i n contaminants, p a r t i c u l a r l y metals, i s

o f t e n lack ing, and i t i s recommended t h a t f u r t h e r research i n the

f i e l d o f sub le tha l and chronic t o x i c i t y be g iven every encouragement

by regu la tory agencies.

I n several instances dur ing the fo rmula t ion o f Table 2-4

d i f fe rences were noted between the d r a f t American and Canadian c r i t e r i a ,

w i t h the American c r i t e r i a usual l y being the more s t r i n g e n t . Except

where noted, these d i f fe rences were resolved by spec i f y i ng the s t r i c t e r

requirement r a t h e r than the more l e n i e n t , o r by p lac ing the s t r i c t e r

requirement i n the f i r s t column and the more l e n i e n t one i n the second,

whi chever method was more appropr iate. The d i f fe rences usual l y arose

because o f the adoption o f d i f f e r e n t app l i ca t i on fac to rs by the

d i f f e r e n t regu la to ry agencies . The Canadian c r i t e r i a f o r t he f i r s t

column are based on permissable increments above the background l e v e l ,

and f o r the second column e i t h e r on a f a c t o r o f 0.1 app l ied t o the

96-hour LC50 o r on the zero-e f fec t l e v e l . The American c r i t e r i a are

usua l l y based on an app l i ca t i on f a c t o r from 0.005 t o 0.10. I n instances

where the s p e c i f i c a t i o n o f the more s t r i n g e n t c r i t e r i a would have l e d

t o an o b j e c t i v e lower than the measured background l e v e l , e.g. f o r z inc ,

the more l e n i e n t o b j e c t i v e has been given.

Cer ta in categories o f p o l l u t a n t are o f s i gn i f i cance p r i m a r i l y

because they reduce the pal a t i b i li t y o f aquat ic organisms. Some o f

these have been inc luded i n Table 2-5.

TABLE 2-4

Water Q u a l i t y Objectives For Aquatic L i f e and M i l d l i f e

(Concentrations i n Whole (Unfi 1 tered) water) 1

L i t e ra tu re Reference

5, 6 4, 15

I 4, 10 4, 15 5, 6 15 15 2, 14 5, 6 4, 11

4, 11, 16 5, 6 6 4, 11, 16 4, 15 6 4, 6

5 4, 15 5

4, 5, 6

Not t o exceed L i m i t

1.1. 1

0.10 0.20 (note 2 I. I. 0.003

20.0 1500.0

0.01 0.05 ,l .O

0.005 (note 4)

0.005 110 (note 5) )5.8 (note 6)

0.23 0.20 0.10 0.0002

0.40 (note 8) (note 9) V.F.

(note 10

Desirable Level

1.1. (note 1 I 1.1. 0.02 (note 2 ) 1.1. 0.0004

12.0 1500.0

0.002 1.1.

)1.2 (note 3) 1.1.

V. F. 1.1.

>7.7 (note 6) 1.1. 1.1. 0.03 0.00005

( i iote 7) 1.1. (note 8) (note 9) V. F.Z

(note 10'

Parameter

A1 k a l i n i t y (as CaC03) mg/l A1 umi nun mg/l Ammonia (as NH3) mg/l Bari um mg/l Cadmi urn mg/l Carbon d i ox i de ( f r ee ) mg/l Ch 1 o r i de mg/l Chlorine residual (as f r ee C12) mg/l Chromi um mg/l C l a r i t y (Secchi d i sc v i s i b i l i t y ) m Copper mg/l

Cyani de mg /l Dissolved gases %Sat D i ssol ved oxygen mg/1 F1 uor i de mg/l Foaming agents (as MBAS) mg/l Lead mg/l Mercury mg/l

M i ckel mg/l N i t r a t e (as N) mg/l N i tri l o t r i acetate (NTA) mg/l

1 O i 1 and Grease

i

-,

I IU U-I I

No

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11

12 13 14 15 16 17 18

19 20 2 1

22

TABLE 2-4 (Cont 'd)

I

1. I. I. - I n s u f f i c i e n t in format ion - due t o l ack of data, s c i e n t i f i c a l l y de fens ib le ob jec t i ves cannot be s e t a t t h i s t ime.

2. V.F. - V i r t u a l l y f r e e - imp1 i e s the concept o f freedom from the undesi rable e f fec ts o f t he c o n s t i t u e n t b u t n o t necessar i l y freedom from the cons ti t u e n t i t s e l f.

- -

I

4, 5, 6 5, 6

4, 6

6 6

4, 15 6, 15 4, 5, 6 4, 5, 6

4, 5, 6 4, 16

6.0-9.0 0.10

(note 12) 0.10

(note 13) 0.0003 0.000002

(note 14) 0.20 0.10

80.0 Amb+2.0 i f TK 23

(note 15) (note 16) 0.075

6.5-9.0 (note 111 1.1.

0.025 (note 13)

I. I. 0.00001)1

1.1. 0.002 background

AmbkO.5 if TC17.5 (note 15) (note 16) 0.05

(note 17)

2 3 2 4

25

26 27

2 8 2 9 30 3 1

32 3 3

PH u n i t s Phenol i cs mg / 1

Phosphate (as P) mg/l

Phthalate esters mg/l Po lych lo r ina ted b i phenyl s mg/l

Sel eni um mg/l S u l f i d e (as H2S) mg/ 1 Suspended so l i ds mg/l Temperature Co

Toxi c i t y Z inc mg/l

Notes t o TABLE 2-4

1. A l k a l i n i t y i s r e l a t e d chemical ly t o hardness and pH, and i s a

c o n t r o l l i n g f a c t o r i n the complexation o f t o x i c metal ions .

Decreases i n a1 ka l i n i t y can po ten t i a te the t o x i c i t y o f r i v e r

water. The na tu ra l background l e v e l should n o t be a l t e r e d by

more than 25 per cent.

Background l e v e l s must be s p e c i f i e d on

are sub jec t t o seasonal v a r i a t i o n .

2. The t o x i c form o f ammonia i s the molec

I v i r t u a l l y absent i n na tura l waters.

a s t a t i s t i c a l basis and

, u l a r species, which i s

3. This f i g u r e i s der ived from the Canadian c r i t e r i o n f o r lakes and

I the transmittances o f the water a t C l a i r ,

4. Data ava i l ab le f o r 1973 i n d i c a t e t h a t the median copper con-

I cen t ra t i on a t C l a i r l i e s between 0.01 and 0.02 mg/l, a concen-

t r a t i o n which i s h igher than the most l e n i e n t o b j e c t i v e ava i l ab le

( the Canadian c r i t e r i a o f 0.1 o f the 96-hour LC50). I n t h i s case,

no increase over the background l e v e l should be permi t ted. It

should be noted, however, t h a t there i s a wide range o f na tu ra l

and in t roduced complexing agents which can g r e a t l y reduce the

t o x i c i t y o f copper.

5. The purpose o f t h i s f i g u r e i s t o r e s t r i c t the occurence o f gas

bubble disease i n f i s h , usua l l y due t o the discharge o f water

under pressure. The disease i s caused by supersaturated n i t rogen

l e v e l s , such as are commonly found below tu rb ine penstocks and i s

associated as we1 1 w i t h temperature changes. Present ly , there

i s no p r a c t i c a l way t o measure d issolved n i t rogen i n the f i e l d .

The d isso lved oxygen l e v e l coirld be used as an i n d i c a t o r o f

supersaturat ion, bu t would tend t o underestimate the degree

because o f i t s b i 01 ogi ca l and chemical r e a c t i v i t y . 6. The l e v e l s have been obtained from the graphical d isso lved oxygen

standards presented as the Canadian c r i t e r i a , us ing as a base the

seasonal minimum measured a t C l a i r dur ing the summer. They are

a lso i d e n t i c a l w i t h the EPA c r i t e r i a f o r water w i t h a maximum

temperature exceeding 27.5'~.

7. The r e l i a b l e achievement o f t h i s l e v e l o f s e n s i t i v i t y requ i res

scrupulous sample c o l l e c t i o n and analys is procedures. Up t o

0.5 mg/l can be t o l e r a t e d i n organisms dest ined f o r human

consumpti on.

8. The NAS standard f o r inorgan ic n i t rogen invo lves the maintenance

of the r a t i o s o f n i t rogen t o phosphorus and amrnoni a t o phosphorus,

wh i l e the Canadian gu ide l ines are i n terms o f load ing ra tes .

Since eut roph ica t ion may be b e t t e r con t ro l l e d by the regu l a t i o n

of phosphorus r a t h e r than n i t rogen l e v e l s , the maintenance o f

the background n i t rogen' t o phosphorus r a t i o i s recommended.

9. There i s i n s u f f i c i e n t in fo rmat ion ava i l ab le t o s e t an o b j e c t i v e

f o r NTA. I t i s an important chel a t o r o f t o x i c metals, and has

the abi 1 i t y t o t ranspor t them from one l o c a t i o n t o another i n

the bound form and re lease them on deqredation o f t he hydrogen

bonds. NTA i s a lso d i r e c t l y t ox i c ; concentrat ions h igher than

25 mg/l have been found t o a f f e c t the fecund i ty o f s n a i l s .

10. The water should be f r e e from a v i s i b l e s l i c k o f o i l . The l e v e l

a t which o i l forms a v i s i b l e s l i c k on water i s about 15 mg/l

depending on the weight and type o f o i 1.

11. I n add i t i on t o being d i r e c t l y t o x i c a t extreme values, changes i n

pH can cause synergism w i t h o ther tox icants and can a f f e c t the

physiology o f f i s h and inver tebra tes a t sub le tha l l eve l s . The

Canadian c r i t e r i a document spec i f i es t h a t the pH should n o t be

var ied by more than two u n i t s w i t h i n the acceptable range o f 6-9.

12. EPA has repor ted t h a t c e r t a i n phenol ic compounds t a i n t f i s h f l e s h

and o ther aquat ic organisms a t concentrat ions o f l ess than 0.1 mg/l . I n add i t ion , po lych lor ina ted phenols may cause t o x i c i t y a t lower

l eve l s .

13. Because o f the n u t r i t i v e e f f e c t s o f phosphates and the p o t e n t i a l

f o r n u t r i e n t c y c l i n g i n the environment, i t i s necessary t o s e t

more s t r i n g e n t ob jec t ives f o r standing water than f o r running

water. The EPA gu ide l ine i s t h a t t he phosphate concentrat ion

should n o t exceed:

0.025 mg/l i n a lake, and

0.100 mg/l i n a r i v e r .

The Canadian gu ide l ines apply on ly t o lakes, where the maximum

permissable phosphate concentrat ion i s 0.1 mg/l . S t r i c t l y

speaking, the headponds o f the Sa in t John River are n o t lakes

bu t impoundments, because o f t h e i r r a p i d f l u s h i n g r a t e , so t h a t

the o b j e c t i v e o f 0.025 mg/l as a des i rab le l e v e l i s a conservat ive I

14. ~ o l ~ c h l o r i n a t e d biphenyls are concentrated by the food chain,

and the low l i m i t s e t al lows a considerable sa fe ty margin f o r

accumulation. The maximum acceptable l e v e l o f residues i n

general body t i ssues of any aquat ic organism i s 0.00005 mg/l.

15. The American temperature requirements f o r aquat ic 1 i f e are

based on considerat ions o f p r o d u c t i v i t y , surv i va l , accl irnation

and reproduct ion. They s t a t e t h a t the c r i t e r i a must be r e l a t e d

t o des i rab le species and t o the water body i n quest ion.

The Canadian standards o f f e r a b lanket attempt a t p r o t e c t i o n by

spec i f y i ng a permissable a l t e r a t i o n from background l e v e l s . The

ob jec t ives o f f e r e d here are e s s e n t i a l l y a combination o f the two

approaches whi ch i s designed t o p r o t e c t salmonoi ds . I f the ambient water temperature exceeds 23O~, then no a c t i v i t y

which causes an increase i n the temperature should be permi t ted.

I n add i t i on , no a c t i v i t y which would r a i s e the water temperature

above 1 8 . 0 ~ ~ should be permi t ted i n a spawning area dur ing the

salmonoid spawning seasons.

16. For unspeci f i ed parameters, the t o x i c i t y c r i t e r i a should prov ide

the degree o f ecosys tern p r o t e c t i o n discussed i n the i n t roduc t i on .

17. The 90th p e r c e n t i l e z inc concentrat ion i n the main stem a t C l a i r

i s about 0.15 mg/l , a concentrat ion which i s h igher than t h a t

corresponding t o the most l e n i e n t ob jec t i ves ava i l ab le ( t he

Canadian c r i t e r i o n o f 0.1 t o x i c u n i t s ) . I n instances where the

background l e v e l exceeds 0.1 t o x i c u n i t s , no increase i n z i n c

concentrat ion should be permi t ted.

TABLE 2-5 .-- -

Concentrations o f Chemical Compounds i n Water t h a t Can

Cause Ta in t i ng o f the Flesh o f Fish and Other Aquatic Organisms

Chemi ca l c acetophenone a c r y l oni tri l e cvesol m-cresol 0-cresol p-cresol c resy l i c a c i d (meta para) N-butylmercaptan o-sec, b u t y l phenol p - t e r t , b u t y l phenol o-chlorophenol p-chl orophenol 2,3-di ch 1 orophenol 2,4-di ch 1 orophenol 2,5-di ch l orophenol 2,6 ,-di ch1 orophenol 2-methyl , 4-chlorophenol 2, methyl, 6-chlorophenol o-phenyl phenol 2,4,6,-tr i chlorophenol phenol phenols i n p o l l u t e d r i v e r d i phenyl ox i de ~ . ~ - d i ch lo rod ie thy l e the r o-di chl orobenzene e thy l benzene ethaneth i 01 e t h y l a c r y l a te formaldehyde kerosene kerosene p l us k a o l i n i sop ropy 1 benzene naphtha naphthalene naphthol 2-naph tho1 dimethyl ami ne

oC -me thy 1 styrene o i l , emu ls i f i ab le py ri d i ne py rocatecho 1 pyroga 1 1 01 qu ino l i ne p-quinone s t y rene

Estimated t h res ho l d l e v e l (mg/l )

95.0 (note 1) 0.1

L i t e r a t u r e Reference

5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

TABLE 2-5 (Cont 'd)

Notes t o TABLE 2-5

1. Th is l e v e l may exceed t he l e t h a l l e v e l f o r some species o f f i s h .

v Est imated t h reshol d l e v e l (mg l l )

0.25

2.6 ga l /ac re f o o t 0.082

L i t e r a t u r e Reference

5

5 5

No

46 47

48

Parameters

t o1 uene outboard motor f u e l , as

exhaust guai aco l

Agr i cu l t u r e

General

The main a g r i c u l t u r a l uses f o r wa te r i n t h e S a i n t John R i ve r

Basin are f o r l i v e s t o c k wate r ing and i r r i g a t i o n . The S a i n t John

R i ve r Basin Board r e p o r t on A g r i c u l t u r e and Water Management r epo r ted

t h a t as o f 1971 o n l y 938 acres were i r r i g a t e d w i t h t he main crops

be ing s t r awbe r r i es and potatoes. Water qua1 i ty c r i t e r i a have been

proposed by t he U.S. E.P.A. ( 6 ) f o r bo th i r r i g a t i o n and l i v e s t o c k

wate r ing requirements. Since i r r i g a t i o n i s p r e s e n t l y a minor use

f o r the S a i n t John R i v e r water and i s n o t used con t inuous ly , i t i s

considered t h a t t h e o b j e c t i v e s t o p r o t e c t wa te r f o r l i v e s t o c k usage

would a l s o p r o t e c t i t f o r i r r i g a t i o n . The f o u r except ions t o t h i s

are f o r b e r y l li um, boron, pH, and sodi um balance where the requirements

f o r i r r i g a t i o n a re considered impor tan t .

Table 2-6

Water Q u a l i t y Object ives f o r A g r i c u l t u r e

(Concentrat ions i n whole (Unf i 1 te red) water)

I n a d d i t i o n t o the above parameters, there should be no heavy growth o f blue-green algae i n waters t o be used f o r l i v e s t o c k water ing.

Notes t o Table 2-6

No

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 '8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

C

1 . Sodi um balance i s de f ined as': Percent Sodi um = 100 Na

Ca + MCJ + Na + K

Not t o exceed Limi t

5.0 0.2 0.5 2.0 0.05 1 .O 1 .O 0.5 2.0 0.1 0.002 0.01

100.0 10.0

4.5-9.0 3000.0

0.05 60 (note 1 )

0.1 25 .O

Parameter

Aluminum mg /l Arsenic mg/l Be ry l l i um mg/l Boron mg/l Cadmium mg/l Chromi um mg/l Cobalt mg/l Copper mg/l F luo r i de mg/l Lead mg/l Mercury mg/l Molybdemum mg/l N i t r a t e n i t r o g e n mg /I N i t r i t e n i t r o g e n mg/l pH Uni t s S a l i n i t y mg/l Selenium mg/l Sodium Balance % Vanadium mg/l Zinc mg /I

L i t e r a t u r e Reference

6 6 5 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 5 6 6 4, 6 6 6 13 6 6

SECTION 3 i

Speci a1 Considerations for Water Use Objectives

Radi onucl i des .

Industry

General

Each industry has i t s own requirements for process water

and i t i s therefore not practical t o set out a l i s t of objectives

for all industries that might require Saint John River water. The

following general i zations , however, can be made: I 1 ) Most industries t rea t water as standard procedure to

produce the desi red purity.

2) The constancy of water quality rather than the

level of quality i s important t o industrial water

treatment processes.

3) The present resource base of the area adjacent t o

the international section of the Saint John River

i s forestry and agriculture. Speci a1 consideration

should be gi ven t o water qua1 i ty necessary for

processing these resources. I

4) Food processing water should be of drinking water I

SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR WATER USE OBJECTIVES

In t roduc t i on

I n view o f the complexity i n es tab l i sh ing water q u a l i t y

ob jec t i ves f o r (1) the l a rge number o f s y n t h e t i c organic compounds

being developed, under the general term bioc ides , f o r t he con t ro l

o f p l a n t , i nsec t , and animal l i f e considered adverse t o human

hea l th and t o aquat ic l i f e and ( 2 ) the increase i n concentrat ion

o f r a d i o a c t i v i t y i n water suppl ies due t o e f f l u e n t s from nuc lear

power p lan ts considered adverse t o human heal th, the subcornmi t t e e

concluded these mater i a1 s mer i ted spec ia l cons idera t ion i n t h i s

repo r t .

The f i r s t p a r t o f t h i s sec t ion o f the repor t , deals

s p e c i f i c a l l y w i t h b ioc ides , the term used t o inc lude a l l organic

compounds employed f o r the con t ro l o f pests, disease vectors and

nuisance organisms on land and i n water. The f o u r major groups o f

b ioc ides considered t o be important i n water q u a l i t y eva lua t i on are:

(1 ) ch lo r i na ted hydrocarbons and t h e i r de r i va t i ves , ( 2 ) t he chol i nesterase-

i n h i b i t i n g compounds which i n c l ude the organophosphorus chemi ca l s and

carbamates , (3) herb ic ides , fungic ides and defo l i ants, and ( 4 ) botan ica ls .

B i o c i des d i f f e r widely i n chemical and t o x i c o l o g i c a l

charac ter i s t i cs. Some are accumul ated i n body t i ssues and organs

wh i l e o thers are metabolized. I n add i t ion , the b iochemist ry o f the

b ioc ides has no t y e t been completely inves t iga ted .

Because o f the var iab i 1 i t y i n t o x i c i t y o f b ioc ides t o man

and the aquat ic b i o t a and t h e i r wide range o f b iodegradab i l i t y , t he

d i f f e r e n t groups o f b ioc ides are considered separately i n the water

qua1 i ty o b j e c t i ves.

The second p a r t o f t h i s sec t ion o f the repor t deals w i t h

~ the complexi t y o f rad io log i ca l p roper t ies o f the various nucl ides

I and the problem o f assigning l i m i t s t o i n d i v i d u a l nucl ides f o r the I

p ro tec t i on o f human heal th.

There are a l a rge number o f rad ioac t ive isotopes t h a t

could be considered, po ten t i a1 l y several hundred, and t h e i r heal t h

e f f e c t s d i f f e r g reat ly . So t h a t i t w i l l no t be necessary t o analyse

f o r a l l poss ib le nucl ides t h a t could be present i n water, t h e gross

r a d i a t i o n approach i s used t o provide the means o f eva luat ing exposure

hazards o f water t o heal th.

Bi o c i des

General

Biocides are used f o r a wide v a r i e t y o f b e n e f i c i a l purposes.

Farmers apply b ioc ides t o con t ro l unwanted pests and weeds as a

necessary f a c t o r i n ob ta in ing h igh product ion y i e l d s . They are a lso

used t o cont ro l disease ca r ry ing pests o r t o p r o t e c t f o r e s t lands

from insec ts t h a t can cause d e f o l i a t i o n .

Biocides are genera l l y extremely t o x i c t o aquat ic and

h igher forms o f 1 i f e i n c l u d i n g man. Organochlorine pes t i c i des genera l l y

p e r s i s t i n the environment f o r long per iods o f t ime, measured i n

years, and have caused adverse e f f e c t s t o aquat ic 1 i f e and w i l d l i f e .

Organophosphate and carbamate pes t i c i des are a1 so t o x i c , b u t

genera l l y degrade i n a sho r t pe r iod o f time. With proper app l i ca t i on

and moni t o r i n g techniques, and con t ro l over storage and disposal ,

t h e i r e f f e c t s on the environment and des i rab le forms o f l i f e can

be minimal.

Appl i ca t ion

The c h i e f use o f b ioc ides i n t he i n t e r n a t i o n a l po r t i ons

o f the S t . John R iver Basin i s f o r a g r i c u l t u r a l spraying, p a r t i c u l a r l y

f o r the l a r g e pota to crop. Bioc ide app l i ca t i on may a l so be heavy

on apple orchards and f o r o ther crops, b u t the t o t a l acreage o f these

crops i n the area i s minor. Forest spray ing and nonagr icu l t u r a l use

o f b ioc ides a lso occur, b u t again on a small scale when compared t o

po ta to crop usage.

- 38-

P r i o r t o 1970 organochlor ine i nsec t i c i des , c h i e f l y DDT

and endr in were used q u i t e ex tens ive ly by the Maine po ta to farmers.

Because o f the long 1 i f e o f these i nsec t i c i des , res idua ls may s t i 11

be found i n the Sa in t John River waters and rou t i ne mon i to r ing should

be continued. Since 1970, i n s e c t i c i d e usage f o r the po ta to crop has

been organophosphates and carbamates . I n 1974, the major i n s e c t i c i des

used by potato farmers i n Maine were D isu l fo ton a t p lan t i ng ,

Azinphosmethyl (Guthion) a t emergence, and Oxydemeton Methyl and

Manebs du r ing the growing season. Herbicides t o con t ro l weeds used

i n Maine i n 1974 were c h i e f l y Premerge o r Sinox PE, and a l so Eptam 6E

on a l i m i t e d scale. Because there are a vast number o f i n s e c t i c i d e s

p resen t l y i n use and because those app l ied may change from year t o

year, i t i s important t o determine the i nsec t i c i des being used when

i n i t i a t i n g moni tor ing programs.

The use o f organochlor ine i nsec t i c i des has n o t ceased i n

New Brunswi ck, a1 though i t has decl ined considerably dur ing the 1 a s t

few years, main ly due t o the u n a v a i l a b i l i t y o f most compounds.

DDT has no t been used i n the Canadian p o r t i o n o f the basin s ince

before 1969, a1 though i t s use i s s t i 11 recommended f o r some crops

(e.g. s t rawber r ies) .

During 1974, t he p r i n c i p a l chemicals used by New Brunswick

potato farmers were general d i t h i ocarbamate b i o c i des f o r disease

cont ro l , Disyston and Cur i tan and the sprays Methoxychlor and Systox,

f o r i nsec t con t ro l , the herb ic ides, Premerge and Synklor, and d i t t r io -

Water Qua1 i t y Ob jec t i ves

The ob jec t i ves f o r the p r o t e c t i o n o f aquat ic l i f e and w i l d -

l i f e from bioc ides are presented i n Table 3-1. The b ioc ide l i m i t s

I f o r p r o t e c t i o n o f freshwater aquat ic l i f e are genera l l y based on I I an a p p l i c a t i o n f a c t o r of 0.01 of the acute t o x i c i t y values f o r t he I I most s e n s i t i v e important f i s h species. For many o f the b ioc ides, I

there was i n s u f f i c i e n t data t o determine a safe concentrat ion.

L i m i t s f o r these should be based on 0.01 o f the 96 hour LC50 value

I determined us ing the S t . John River as the rece i v ing water and the I most s e n s i t i v e important f i s h species i n the area as the t e s t

organism. I f the bioassay procedure i s n o t p rac t i cab le and no

o b j e c t i v e has been s e t f o r a p a r t i c u l a r b ioc ide , the most s t r i n g e n t

I o b j e c t i v e f o r the b ioc ide c lass should be used.

I The ob jec t ives fo r b ioc ides i n water used f o r pub1 i c water I supply, 1 i vestock water ing and water contact rec rea t i on are presented

i n Table 3-2. These l i m i t s r e f l e c t the amounts t h a t can be ingested

I w i thou t harm t o the hea l th o f the consumer. They are meant t o I serve on l y i n the event t h a t these chemicals are i nadve r ten t l y

present i n the water and do n o t imply t h a t t h e i r de l i be ra te add i t i on

i s acceptable.

Sampl i n g and a n a l y t i ca l procedures fo r measuring b ioc ides

are discussed i n the sec t ion on methodology.

Water Qua1 i t y O b j e c t i v e s f o r B i o c i des - Freshwater Aauat i c 1 i f e and W i l d l i f e

(Concen t ra t ion i n whole (Unf i 1 t e r e d ) w a t e r )

Orqanophosphates

Feni t r o t h i o n

Chl orobromuron (Ma1 oran) pg/l

I

- 42 -

TABLE 3-1 (.Contl d )

Notes t o Table 3-1

1. B i oc i de l i m i t s t o p r o t e c t f reshwater aqua t i c 1 i f e were g e n e r a l l y based on m u l t i p l y i n g the acute t o x i c i t y values f o r t he most s e n s i t i v e impo r tan t f i s h species by an a p p l i c a t i o n f a c t o r o f 0.01.

2. I n s u f f i c i e n t In fo rmat ion (1 .1 . ) - Due t o a genera l l a c k o f data, s c i e n t i f i c a l l y de fens ib l e ob jec t i ves cannot be s e t a t t he t ime. The b i oc i des l i n i t s t o p r o t e c t aqua t i c l i f e shou ld be based on 0.01 of the 96-hour LC50 value determined us i ng the r e c e i v i n g wa te r i n ques t ion and t he most s e n s i t i v e impo r tan t f i s h spec ies i n t he area as t e s t organism.

TABLE 3-2 'dater Q u a l i t y ob jec t i ves f o r B ioc ides - P u b l i c Water Supply

L i ves tock Water ing and Water Contact Recreat ion

(Concentrat ion i n Whole (Unf i 1 t e red ) Water)

Radionucl ides

General

Radionucl ides em i t i o n i z i n g r a d i a t i o n which presents a

hazard t o t he human popu la t ion . Exposure t o r a d i a t i o n can r e s u l t

i n i n j u r i e s t h a t man i f es t themsel ves i n t h e exposed i n d i v i d u a l s

(somatic e f f e c t s ) and i n t h e i r descendants; ( gene t i c e f f e c t s ) .

D i f f e r e n t rad ionuc l i des have d i f f e r e n t p h y s i o l o g i c a l

p rope r t i es . Some pass through the body q u i c k l y w h i l e o the rs

have a p ropens i t y f o r becoming i nco rpo ra ted i n t o body t i s s u e .

Add t o t h i s t he d i f f e r i n g r a d i o l o g i c a l p r o p e r t i e s o f va r ious n u c l i d e s

and t he problem o f ass ign ing l i m i t s t o i n d i v i d u a l nuc l i des becomes

an extreme1 ty compl i cated and speci a1 i z e d task. Th is problem has

been s tud ied by a number o f o rgan i za t i ons i n c l u d i n g t h e I n t e r n a t i o n a l

Commission on Rad io log ica l P r o t e c t i o n (ICRP) . This o rgan i za t i on has

publ i s hed a s e t o f maximum pe rm iss ib l e concen t ra t ions f o r r ad io -

nuc l i des i n water. Th is t a b u l a t i o n has been developed as a Maximum

Permi s s i b l e Concentrat ion (MPC) f o r occupat ional exposure f o r a 40

hour week and a 168 hour week. The ICRP a l s o recommends t h a t t he

annual dose f o r t h e general publ i c be 1/10 annual occupat iona l MPC.

Water Qua1 i ty Ob jec t i ves

There are var ious approaches which may be taken i n p r o t e c t i n g

the publ i c f rom r a d i a t i o n i n d r i n k i n g water . D i f f e r e n t o rgan i za t i ons

have i n the p a s t s e t the f o l l o w i n g :

1. Concentrat ion l i m i t on each rad ionuc l i de (ICRP

approach).

2 . Upper l i m i t t o the gross a c t i v i t y i n d r i n k i n g

water; u s u a l l y broken down as gross a lpha a c t i v i t y

and gross be ta a c t i v i t y w i t h t r i t i u m being g iven

an i n d i v i dual consi d e r a t i on (U. S. Water Qua1 i ty

C r i t e r i a 1972).

3. A l i m i t s e t on t h e c r i t i c a l dose rece ived by

c r i t i c a l organs f rom the consumption o f water.

(Approach taken by t he Canadian Members o f Great

Lakes Commi t t e e ) . A g i ven l e v e l o f p r o t e c t i o n may be expressed by any one

o f these approaches and i t i s poss ib l e t o some e x t e n t t o r e l a t e them

and use them in terchangeably . For example, the ICRP concent ra t ion

1 i m i t s f o r var ious rad ionuc l ides are based on a whole body dose o f

5 rem/year o r a c r i t i c a l organ dose o f 15 o r 30 remlyear f o r a

"s tandard man" consuming an average o f 2200 m l o f water d a i l y . For

I a l e v e l o f p r o t e c t i o n o f 500 m i l 1 i r em p e r year , one need o n l y t ake

1/10 o f t he recommended ICRP concent ra t ion .

The gross r a d i a t i o n approach p rov ides a means o f e v a l u a t i n g

exposure hazard o f water w i t hou t ana lyz ing f o r a l l p o s s i b l e nuc l i des

present . I t t h e r e f o r e i s a p r a c t i c a l l i m i t t o s e t i n a water q u a l i t y

o b j e c t i v e . I n o rde r t o r e l a t e gross a lpha and be ta a c t i v i t y t o I C R P

choice o f the c r i t i c a l i so tope l i k e l y t o be produc ing a lpha o r be ta

r a d i a t i o n . The alpha e m i t t e r chosen was ~a~~~ and t h e be ta e m i t t e r

chosen was srgO. ~a~~~ and srgO are considered t o be t he most hazardous

i so topes l i k e l y t o be p resen t and t h e r e f o r e p rov ide a conserva t i ve

choice. The "no t t o exceed" l i m i t s were chosen as 1/10 ICRP values,

I i . e. , corresponding t o a dose r a t e o f 500 mremlyear. Th is i s I c ons i s tan t w i t h the ICRP recommendations f o r pub1 i c exposure.

The d e s i r a b l e l i m i t s were chosen as 1/200 o f the ICRP values o r a

dose r a t e o f 25 mrem/year. Th is l i m i t corresponds t o t h e U.S.

Water Q u a l i t y C r i t e r i a . The o b j e c t i v e f o r t r i t i u m i s more d i f f i c u l t

I t o s e t and i s u s u a l l y chosen more conse rva t i ve l y because o f t he

u n c e r t a i n t y of gene t i c e f fec ts . A va lue o f 3000 p C i / l i t r e o f t r i t i u m

has been s e t i n t h e U.5. Water Qua1 i t y C r i t e r i a . Th is corresponds I

t o a whole body dose r a t e of 0.5 mremlyear. Due t o t he u n c e r t a i n t y

i n s e t t i n g l e v e l s f o r t r i t i u m , i t was n o t deemed f e a s i b l e t o s e t

a "no t t o exceed" o b j e c t i v e a t t h i s t ime.

TABLE 3-3

Speci f i c Water Qua1 i t y Ob jec t i ves f o r Radioact i v i t y

I . I . - I n s u f f i c i e n t i n f o r m a t i o n - due t o l a c k o f data, s c i e n t i f i ca l l y de fens ib l e ob jec t i ves cannot be s e t a t t h i s t ime.

SECTION 4

Mu1 ti p l e Purpose Water Use Objectives

MULTIPLE PURPOSE WATER USE OBJECTIVES

This sec t ion o f the r e p o r t presents m u l t i p l e use water

qua1 i t y ' o b j e c t i ves f o r the i n t e r n a t i o n a l po r t i ons o f the Sa in t John

River whose water uses have been designated as pub1 i c water supply,

aes t h e t i cs and recreat ion , aquati c 1 i f e and w i 1 d l i f e , a g r i c u l t u r e ,

and indus t ry . I t a lso presents a non-degradation o b j e c t i v e and

in t roduces an approach f o r recogniz ing areas o f the r i v e r i n which

the water q u a l i t y w i l l no t conform t o the es tab l ished water q u a l i t y

ob jec t ives .

Mu1 t i p l e Use

Water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives f o r t h e mu1 t i p l e use water manage-

ment approach must i nvo l ve the se lec t i on o f the most s t r i n g e n t

o b j e c t i v e i n each use category as the requirement t h a t w i l l p r o t e c t

these waters f o r t h e i r intended use. Such ob jec t i ves w i l l prov ide

a s u i t a b l e q u a l i t y which w i l l enable the manager t o determine whether

o r no t t he i n t r o d u c t i o n i n t o , o r presence o f any ma te r ia l i n t h i s

r i v e r i n t e r f e r e s w i th , a l t e r s o r destroys i t s intended use.

This gu ide l ine can a lso be app l ied t o the waters o f the

t r i b u t a r y streams o f the Sa in t John River , o f i n t e r n a t i o n a l s ign i f i cance ,

as soon as management decis ions are made f o r t h e i r intended use.

Applying t h i s gu ide l i ne t o the waters o f the Sa in t John River,

mu1 ti-purpose water qual i ty objectives were established as detailed

in Table 4-1.

1 Non-Degradati on

All reasonable and practicable measures should be taken to

maintain the levels of water quality presently existing in these

waters where such levels are better than the specific water quality I

objectives. I

Non-Conformance Areas

The Subcommittee recognizes that there are areas of the

Saint John River sys tern where the recommended water qual i ty objectives

I will not be met, as a result of inputs from point and diffuse sources.

These inputs are themselves caused e i ther by man, in the form of waste

I discharges or surface runoff associated with land use practices, or

I by the natural inf l uences of erosion and geochemical phenomena.

In order to provide agencies with a common base for designating

and reporting on these areas, the Subcommittee recommends a procedure

based on the f ive recognized existing and potential uses of the water

resource. An area of the basin in which the level of one or more

parameters exceeds the recommended level for a particular use should

be designated as being unsuitable for t h a t particular use.

The in i t ia t ion of remedial programs in these areas should

depend on the relat ive pr ior i ty of each use affected in the plannirig

TABLE 4-1

Mu1 t i p l e Purpose Water Qua1 i t y Object ives f o r t h e

S a i n t John R i v e r

(Concent ra t ion i n whole (Un f i 1 t e red ) wa te r ) I

I

I

i Des i rab le I* Not t o exceed i No Parameter Le ve 1 L i mi t

1 A1 k a l i n i t y (as CaC03) mg/l 1.1. 2 1.1. I 2 A1 uini n i urn mg/l 1.1. 0.10 I

I 3 Ammonia (as NH3) mg/l 0.02 0.20 ~ 4 Ammonia (as N) mg/l 1.1. 0.05 5 Arseni c, t o t a l mg /I I. I. 0.05 6 Bar i um mg/l 1.1. 1 .O

~ 7 B e r y l l i u m mg/l I .I. 0.05 8 Boron mg /l 1.1. 1 .O 9 Cadmi um mg/l 0.0004 0.003

Carbon d iox ide , f r e e

Ch romi um, t o t a l C l a r i t y (Secch i d i s c )

Disso lved oxygen Disso lved So l i ds (TOS) Fl oatab le s o l i d s

Odour and Taste O i l and Grease

I I

- 52 -

TABLE 4-1 (Cont.'dr

U n i t 6.5-9.0

These l eve l s and l i m i t s , as presented, invo lved the s e l e c t i o n o f the most s t r i n g e n t ob jec t i ve i n each use category as the o b j e c t i v e t h a t w i 11 p r o t e c t these water f o r t h e i r intended mu1 ti p l e purpose use.

*. I. I. - I n s u f f i c i e n t in fo rmat ion t o s e t s c i e n t i f i c a l l y de fens ib le I

ob jec t ives a t t h i s time.

V. F. - V i r t u a l l y f ree which imp l ies theconcept o f freedom from the undesirable e f f e c t s o f the cons t i t uen t b u t n o t necessar i l y freedom from the cons ti tuent i t s e l f.

SECTION 5

Methodologies ~ Sampl ing and Preservation o f Samples. I

Analyti cal .

METHODOLOGI ES

I n t r o d u c t i o n

The composit ion o f n a t u r a l water must be determined by

phys i c a l , chemi ca l and b i o l o g i ca l means, usual l y by co l l e c t i o n

and examinat ion o f samples. The s tandard p r a c t i c e o f c o l l e c t i o n

o f samples and l a t e r ana l ys i s i n the l a b o r a t o r y i s changing

cons iderably i n response t o t he growing demand f o r more e f f i c i e n t

methods o f c o l l e c t i o n and ana lys ing samples t o meet p o l l u t i o n

c o n t r o l need.

As more and more i s lea rned o f t he c a u s e l e f f e c t r e l a t i o n -

sh ips o f p o l l u t a n t s i n the water environment, t he g r e a t e r becomes

the demand f o r lower l e v e l s o f de tec t i on o f p o l l u t a n t s which i n

t u r n p laces emphasi s on b e t t e r sampl i n g and p rese rva t i on techniques

and f a s t e r methods f o r producing r e l i a b l e r e s u l t s .

The subcommi t t e e i s concerned w i t h t he p roduc t i on o f

r e l i a b l e and comparable a n a l y t i c a l r e s u l t s i n t he a p p l i c a t i o n o f

t he o b j e c t i v e s .

Sampling - and P rese rva t i on o f Samples

Sampl i n g

The r e s u l t s o f an ana l ys i s of a wate r sample a re o n l y

as good as the water sample rece ived f o r t h a t ana lys is . Th is

f a c t i s n o t w e l l enough recognized and must be con t inuous ly

emphasi zed by water qua1 i ty managers.

Sampling i s perhaps the major source o f e r r o r i n the

whole process o f o b t a i n i n g water q u a l i t y i n f o rma t i on . The e x t e n t

t o which a sample may be r e l i a b l y considered t o be rep resen ta t i ve

o f a 1 arge volume o f water depends on t he homogeneity o f t h e water ,

t he number o f samples, the manner o f co l l e c t i on, and t h e s i z e of

the i n d i v i d u a l samples.

A sample i n t e g r a t e d by t a k i n g small p o r t i o n s o f t h e

water a t s y s t e m a t i c a l l y d i s t r i b u t e d p o i n t s over t he whole wate r

body represents t he water b e t t e r than a sample c o l l e c t e d f rom a

s i n g l e p o i n t . The more p o r t i o n s taken, the more n e a r l y t h e sample

represents the o r i g i n a l . But f o r obvious reasons t he method o f

decreasing sampl i n g e r r o r i s n o t p r a c t i c a l . It, the re fo re , i s impor tan t i n des ign ing a sampling

program t h a t the sampling comes as c lose as economical ly f e a s i b l e

t o the i d e a l t h a t a sample represen t ing t h e instantaneous average

composit ion o f a stream should be ob ta ined by combining depth-

i n t e g r a t e d samples of equal volume taken a t places represen t ing

equal f l o w a t severa l p o i n t s across t he stream.

Preserva t ion o f SamplesS - ---- -

I n e v i t a b l y t he re w i l l be a de lay f rom the t ime a sample

i s c o l l e c t e d i n the f i e l d u n t i l i t i s a c t u a l l y processed i n t he

I , 1 aboratory . Th is de lay cou ld be from a few hours t o a few days l

o r even t o severa l weeks.

From the moment a sample i s contained, phys i ca l , chemical

and b i o l o g i c a l r eac t i ons commence t h a t may change i t s qual i ty.

Therefore, i t i s most impor tan t t h a t samples be preserved, where

poss ib l e , t o prevent such reac t i ons from occur r ing . Th is may be

accomplished by adding chemical p rese rva t i ves , o r by l owe r i ng t he

temperature t o r e t a r d r e a c t i o n , o r by f r eez ing , o r by any combi-

n a t i o n o f these methods. The method o f p rese rva t i on used w i l l

depend on t he parameters t h a t are t o be measured.

Table 5-1 presents methods f o r p rese rv i ng many o f the

parameters es tab l i shed by the water qual i ty o b j e c t i v e s i n c l u d i n g

the type o f con ta iners t h a t should be used i n sampling.

The es tab l i shed method f o r sampl ing f o r p e s t i c i d e s i s

t o c o l l e c t t he water sample i n a t e f l o n stoppered g lass b o t t l e .

Nevertheless, because of the s t r ong tendency f o r most o f these

m a t e r i a l s t o adsorb t o p a r t i c l e s o f c l a y and humus, t h e r e s u l t s

o f determinat ions on water samples are s t r o n g l y i n f l u e n c e d by t he

amount o f suspended ma t te r i n t he sample. By f a r the l a r g e s t

f r a c t i o n o f t he p e s t i c i d e res idues a v a i l a b l e t o aqua t i c ecosystems

i s bound up i n stream sediments, and t h e i r concen t ra t ions i n water

are p a r t i a l l y c o n t r o l l e d by complex sediment-water e q u i l i b r i a .

Other methods of p e s t i c i d e sampling have been repo r ted

i n the l i t e r a t u r e , and i n p a r t i c u l a r t h a t c lass of method which 1

concentrates t h e p e s t i c i d e from water i n s i t u by presen t ing a I hydrophobic sur face t o t h e water should be i n v e s t i g a t e d f u r t h e r .

TABLE 5-1

Summary of Sampling and Preservation Techniques

NUMSER PARAMETER CONTAINER; PRESERVATIVE; HANDLING REFERENCE

A1 kalini ty ( to ta l ) polyethylene bottle; no preservative; same day analysis

Aluminum (total extractable) polyethylene bottle('); 2 m1 HN03/l

Ammoni a polyethylene bottle; pH 2 with H2S04; same day analysis

Arsenic ( to ta l ) polyethylene bottle (1)

5. Bari urn ( total ) polyethylene bottle( '); 2 in1 HN03/l 1. 3-5

6. Beryllium ( total extractable) polyethylene bottle; 2 ml HN03/1 1. 4 , 5

7. Boron polyethylene bottle (1 ) 1 , 3-5

Carbon dioxide (free)

Cadmi um ( total extractable)

Chloride

Chlorine residual ( to ta l )

Chromi um ( total extractable)

Cobalt ( total extractable)

Col our

Copper ( total extractable)

polyethelene bot t le f i l l ed to over flowing, t ightly capped, same day analysis

polyethylene bot t le( ' ) ; 2 m1 HE103/1

polyethylene bot t le

polyethylene bottle; same day analysis

polyethylene bottle('); 2 m1 HN03/1

polyethylene bot t le ; 2 ml HN03/1

polyethylene bot t le

polyethylene bottle('); 2 m1 HN03/l

Cyanide polyethylene bottle; 2 gm NaOH/l, freeze 1-5

Dissolved gases (2)

Di ssol ved oxygen BOD bottle; same day analysis 1, 3-5

Fecal col i fonn s t e r i l e sample bottle; same day analysis 1

Fi 1 terabl e res i due polyethylene bottle; freeze

Fl uori de polyethylene bot t le 1-5

Hardness ( total ) polyethylene bot t le 1-5

polyethylene bot t le ( I ) ; 2 m1 HN03/l 1-5 Imn ( total extractable)

TBLE 5-1 (Cont'd)

Summary of Sampl i ng and P resel-vati on Techniques

NUr'3ER PARAMETER CONTAINER; PRESERVATIVE; HANDLING REFEREXCE

24. Lead ( t o t a l ext rac table) polyethylene b o t t l e ( ' ) ; 2 ml HN03/l 1-5

25. MEAS (anionic surfac tants) polyethylene b o t t l e 1 , 3. 4

26. Magnesium ( t o t a l extractable) polyethylene bo t t l e ; 2 ml HN03/1

27. Manganese ( t o t a l extractable) polyethylene bo t t l e ( ' ) ; 2 m1 Hii03/1

28. Mercury ( t o t a l )

29. Molybdenum

Ni t ra te-ni trogen

Ni t r i te-ni trogen

Ni trogen ( t o t a l inorganic)

Nickel ( t o t a l extractable)

Non-fi 1 terable residile

Oil and grease

PH

polyethylene bot t le( ' I ; 1 m1 H ~ s D ~ / I ( ~ )

polyethylene bo t t l e ; 2 ml HN03/1

polyethylene bo t t l e ; cool t o 4 ' ~

polyethylene bo t t l e ; cool t o 4 ' ~

polyethylene bot t le( ' ) ; 2 m1 HN03/l

polyethylene bo t t l e ; freeze

glass bo t t l e ; c h i l l

polyethylene bo t t l e ; same day analysis

37. Phenol i cs g3ass bot t le ; 1 gm CuS04/1, pH 4 with H3P04; same day analysis 1-5

38. Phosphate ( to t a l inorganic) polyethylene bo t t l e ; cool t o 4 ' ~ 1-5

39. Radioactivity (gross) 1 , 4

40. Selenium ( t o t a l ) polyethylene bot t le" ); 2 m1 HNOQ/l 1-5

41. S i l i c a polyethylene bo t t l e ; freeze

42. S i l v e r ( t o t a l ext rac table) polyethylene bot t le ' ' ) ; 4 gms dry disodium s a l t of EDTA/l

Sodi urn

Sulfa te ( t o t a l )

Sulfide as H2S

polyethylene b o t t l e

polyethylene bo t t l e ;

polyethylene bo t t l e ; 40 gm NaOH/l; immediate analysis

polyethylene bo t t l e ; same dqy analysis

-59-

TABLE 5-1 (Cont'd)

Summary of Sampling and Preservation Techniques

NU!43ER PARAMETER CONTAINER; PRESERVATIVE; HANDLING RE FERENCE

47. Urani um polyethylene b o t t l e 4

48. Vanadi urn polyethylene bo t t l e ; 2 m l HN03/1 5 - 49. Zinc ( t o t a l extractable) polyethylene bott le"); 2 m1 HNOS/l 1-5

Notes t o TABLE 5-1

( 1 ) Bottles a r e detergent washed, tap water r insed, (1:l with d i s t i l l e d deionized water) n i t r i c acid rinsed, and f i n a l l y r insed with d i s t i l led deionized water.

( 2 ) Dissolved gases can be determined by gas-liquid o r gas s o l i d chromatography i f analyses can be carried out on the spot o r i f samples can be sealed in a gas t igh t ampoule f o r t ranspor t t o the laboratory.

I

i (3) Preserved samples are prepared f o r analysis by digestion with KMnO and K S 0 . See Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Pa r t 23. Water; Atmospheric Analysis. American Society f o r Testing and Mate$ials, ?h?18delphia Pa. 1973.

Analytical

General

There i s a wide variety of analytical methods currently

used in water and waste water analysis. These vary i n scope,

sensi t ivi ty and the l ike. I t i s imperative that the analytical

methods selected be compatible with the agencies of the two countries

i nvol ved. This can be achieved by close cooperation between 1 aboratories

engaged in envi ronmental pol 1 ution control a t the working level . Exchange of ideas between the analysts working in different laboratories

b u t involved in similar work will produce meaningful analytical

data. Standardization of methodology and inter1 aboratory qual i ty

control programs wi 11 provide the basis for comparison of the analytical

data generated by various 1 aboratories.

I t i s well known that the analysis of environmental samples

i s n o t an easy task. Some of the factors contributing to t h i s

d i f f icu l ty are low levels of pol 1 utants/contaminants , i n t e r f e r e ~ c e s ,

1 ack of background information, deterioration of samples with time,

sample preservation and the re1 atively short time avail able to process

a 1 arge number of samples. By frequent personal contacts between

analysts of various laboratories, broader scale problems can be

identified and an e f fo r t made to solve them or a t leas t recognize

the 1 imitations involved.

In order to meet the water qual i ty objectives, mutually

agreed specifications must be la id down for analysing samples.

Table 5-2 l i s t s suggested methods f o r the analys is o f water samples

f o r t he inorgan ic and some o f the organic substances i d e n t i f i e d

by the water q u a l i t y ob jec t ives . The methodology f o r the analys is

o f pes t ic ides and most o the r t o x i c organic compounds i s no t amenable

t o presentat ion i n summary form.

The a n a l y t i c a l method f o r i n d i v i d u a l pes t ic ides i n v a r i a b l y

invo lves chromatography, the suggested procedure being gas-1 i q u i d

chromatography, w i t h o r w i thout a mass spectrometry step. A clean-up

step may be required before analys is , depending on the concentrat ion

o f pes t i c ide i n the sample and on the presence and concentrat ion

o f possi b l y i n t e r f e r i n g compounds. The method o f choice by i n d i v i d u a l

1 aborator ies w i l l a l so depend, t o a c e r t a i n extent, on the type o f

equipment i n use.

Laborator ies i nvol ved i n p e s t i c i de analyses w i t h respect

t o these c r i t e r i a should e i t h e r choose a referenced method, (6), ( 7 ) ,

(8) & (9), o r use an equivalent method selected from the recent

TABLE 5 - 2

Summary of Analyti ca1 Pethods

(Concentrations in ma/l)

~ NUMBER PARAMETER METHOD PRECISION ACCURACY REFEREKE

. 1- Alkalinity (CaC03) Potentiometri c t i t ra t ion t o pH 4.3; 21.5% @ 33 23.0% @ 10 1-5 manual o r automate6 method- 20.6% @ 500 me thy 1 orange.

2. Aluminum ( to ta l Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS) extractable) (1 ) a f t e r complexation E 8-quinolinol

and extraction i n t o CHC13.

Specific ion electrode a f t e r d i s t ' n 6 .8% @2.50 -+2.5% @ 2.50 1-5 o r nesslerization a f t e r d is t 'n .

Arsenic ( to ta l ) Colourimetric w i t h s i l v e r diethyl di thiocarbamate; AAS.

Bari lrm ( t o t a l )

Beryl 1 i urn ( to ta l extractable)

AAS - d i r e c t AAS - solvent extraction (8-quinolinol -chloroform)

Boron

Carbon Dioxide ( f ree)

Cadmi urn ( to ta l )

Chl ori de

Colourimetri c wi t h curcumin

Ti t r imetr ic

AAS

Automated col ourirnetri c- f e r r i cyani de; mercuri c n i t r a t e ; s i l v e r n i t r a t e

Chlorine residual ( t o t a l )

Ch romi um ( to ta l )

Amperometri c iodide t i t r a t i on

AAS

Cobalt ( to ta l extractable)

AAS - d i rec t AAS - solvent extraction (APDC - MIBK)

14. Colour

15. Copper ( t o t a l )

Visual comparison

AAS

m 5 - 2 0

S m a r y of Analyti ca1 Methods

I- 1 n mgLl . . 1

NUM3ER PARMETER METHOD PRECISION ACCURACY R E E E X C E

16. Cyanide Disti 11 ation-speci f i c ion electrode; & % @ I & 1 0 22% @ 10; 1-5 colourimetric pyrazol one o r s i lver +20% @ 1 n i t r a t e t i t ra t ion.

17. Dissolved gases

18. Dissolved oxygen Modified Winkler o r Probe. 21.8% @ 4.1 function of in- 1 , 3-5

(2) terfer ing substances 19. Fecal coli form Mu1 t i p l e tube fermentation; mernbrane f i l t e r .

1

20. Fil terable Residue

Fl uori de

22. Hardness ( total )

23. Iron ( t o t a l )

24. Lead ( t o t a l )

25. MSAS (anionic surfactants)

26. Magnesi urn ( t o t a l )

27. Manganese ( to ta l )

28. Mercury ( to ta l )

29. Molybdenum ( to ta l extractable)

30. Nitrate

31 . N i t r i t e

32. Nitrogen ( to ta l inorganic)

Specific ion electrode; dis t i 11 a t i on-SPADNS

AAS; EDTA t i t r a t i o n 20.65% @ 52 t2% @ 1.00 1-5

AAS 26.8% @ 1 . lo8 211% @ ,018 1-5

AAS 22.2% @ .010 +I% @ .092 1-5

Methylene blue col ourimetri c 210% @ 1.00 not avai 1 able 1 , 3 , 4

AAS - di rec t 210.5% @ 0.200 26-3% @ 0.200 1-5 emission spectroscopy 20.5% @ 2.0

AAS 24% @ .010 23% @ .096 7-5

Fl ame 1 ess AAS &5% @ 0.0003 t l % @ -030 1-5

AAS - d i r e c t AAS - solvent extraction (benzoin dioxime-n-butyl acetate)

Cadmi um reduction; brucine 21.6% @ 0.050 22% @ 0.18 1-5 sulfa te ; automated cadmi urn o r hydrazi ne reduction.

Manual o r automated colourirnetric 21.6% @ 0.25 276% @ 0.25 1-5 di azoti zation

sum of 3 + 30 ' 31

TABLE 5-2 (Cont'd)

Summary of Analytical Methods

(Concentrations in mq/l )

34. Non-fi l t e rab le residue Glass-fiber f i 1trat:on 100-105'~- +7% @ 580 mgl-' unavai 1 able 1s 2s 4, . J

35. Oil and grease Hexane ext rac t ion; t r i chlorot r i - unavailable . unavai 1 able 1-4 fluoro-ethane ext rac t ion. -.

36. PH Potentiometri c 2.02 pH u n i t 2.05 pH uni t 1-3

37 Phenolics Colourimetric with 4- ami noanti pyri ne.

38. Phosphate ( to t a l Colourimetric with ascorbic inorganic ) acid (automated).

39. Radioactivity Proportional counter; (gross) (3) s c i n t i l l a t i o n counter

40. Residue non-fi l terable Gravimetri c +14% 0 5.0 r8% @ 5.0 1-5

41. Sel eni um AAS: colourimetri c c di aminobenzi dene. 220% @ eo20 +5% @ .020 1-5

S i l i c a

Si 1 ver

45. Sulfa te ( to t a l )

46. Sulfide

Colourimetri c-molybdosi 1i cate Colourimetri c-heteropoly blue A AS

AAS-di r e c t flame photometry

Gravimetric; turbidimetric; automated colourimetri c; t i t r imetr i c.

Speci f ic ion electrode; t i t r imetric-iodine.

+17% (3 19.9 24.04: e 19.9 1-5 +0.67% @ 12 +3% @ .025 unavai Table 1-5

47. Turbi di ty (4) Turbi dimeter data unavai 1 able 1 -5

48. Urani urn F1 uorometry data unavailable 4 49. Vanadi um AAS - d i rec t

AAS - solvent ext rac t ion (cupferron - butyl acetate)

50. Zinc ( t o t a l ) AAS '1.4% @ 0.010 20% @ 0.079 1-5 - __C-- - - .-.- -- ---

SECTION 6,

Literature.

Methodology.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

L i t e r a t u r e

1 . Ameri can Publ i c Weal t h Associat ion ( 1 970). Control o f Communicable Diseases i n Man. O f f i c i a l Report o f t he American Pub l i c Hea l th Associat ion. 11 Ed.

2. Brungs, W.A. (1973). E f f e c t s o f Residual Chlor ine on Aquat ic L i f e . J. Water P o l l . Centr. Fed. 43 (10) : 2180-2195.

3. Department o f Nat ional Heal th and Welfare (1968). Canadi an D r i n k i ng Water Standards and Object ives . J o i n t Committee on Dr ink ing Water Standard o f t he Advisory Commi t t e e on Publ i c Heal t h Engineering and the Canadian Publ i c Heal t h Associat ion r e p o r t . Department o f Nat ional Heal th and We1 fa re , Ottawa, Canada.

4. Department o f t he Environment 1972. Guide1 ines f o r Water Qual i t y Object ives and Standards. Working Group on Water Qual i t y C r i t e r i a o f t he subcornmi t t e e on Water Qual i ty. Interdepar tmenta l Committee on Water, p re l im ina ry repo r t . Tech. Bul . No. 67, I n l and Waters Branch, Dept. o f t he Environment, Ottawa, Canada. KIA OE7.

5. Envi ronm'ental P ro tec t i on Agency (1973). Water Qual i ty C r i t e r i a 1972. Nat ional Academy o f Sciences- Nat ional Academy o f Engineering repo r t . Pub. No. EPA-R3-73-033, March 1973. U.S. Environmental P ro tec t i on Agency, Washington, D.C. 20460.

6. Envi ronmental P ro tec t i on Agency ( 1 973). Proposed C r i t e r i a f o r Water Q u a l i t y , Volume 1. U.S. E n v ~ r o n - mental P ro tec t i on Agency, Washington, D.C. , 20460, (Under rev iew) .

6a Envi ronmental P ro tec t i on Agency (1 975. Proposed C r i t e r i a f o r Water Qual i ty , Vol ume 1 . U.S. Envi ron- mental P ro tec t i on Agency, Washington, D. C. 20460, (Unpubl ished) .

7. Envi ronmental P r o t e c t i on Agency (1 974). -- Manual f o r Eva lua t ion P u b l i c D r i nk i ng Water Suppl ies. U.S. EPA, Washington, D.C., 20460.

8. Environmental P r o t e c t i o n Agency, 1974. Statement on Current S ta tus o f Organics - Carbon Absorbable Test. U.S. EPA, Washington, D.C., 20460.

9. Envi ronmental P r o t e c t i o n Agency, 1975. Proposed I n t e r i m Primary D r i nk i ng Water Standards. U.S. EPA, Washington, D.C., 20460.

10. European I n 1 and F i she r i es Advisory Commission (1973). water Q u a l i t y C r i t e r i a f o r ~ u r o p e a n Freshwater ish hi R e ~ o r t on Ammonia and I n l a n d F i she r i es . Water Res. 7:

11. F i she r i es and Marine Serv ice (1974). Unpublished Survey Data. F i she r i es and Marine Serv ice, Dept. o f t he Envi ronment , Hal i fax , N .S.

12. I n t e r n a t i o n a l Commission on Radio loq i ca l P ro tec t i on , 1964. Recommendations as amended 1959 and r e v i s e d 1962. I .C.R. D. P u b l i c a t i o n 6, Pergamon Press.

13. I s r e a l sen, Orson, W . 1955. I r r i g a t i o n p r i n c i p l e s and p r a c t i c e s (2nd. Ed). John Wiley and Sons I n c .

14. Martens. D.W. and J.A. Sewizi (1974). Acute T o x i c i t v . .

o f ~ u n i c i p a l Sewage t o ~ i n ~ e r l i n g salmon. ~ n t e r n a t i b a l P a c i f i c Salmon F i she r i es Commission Progress Report No. 27.

15. McKee, T.E. and Wolf, H.W. C r i t e r i a . Pub. No. 3A ( r e p r i n t S ta te Water Resources Contro l Board, 2nd Ed. Sacramento Cal i f o r n i a.

16. Montreal Engineer ing Co. L td . (1974) A P re l im ina ry Assessment o f Water Q u a l i t y Data i n t h e S a i n t John R i ve r . Montreal Engineer ing Co. L td . , Freder ic ton , N. B. Canada.

17. Na t iona l Research Counci 1 o f Canada, 1974. P i cloram: the E f f e c t s of i t s Use as a Herb ic ide on Environmental Q u a l i t y . NRCC No. 13684, Ottawa.

Methodology

1. Standard Methods fo r the Examination of Water and Waste Water, 13th Ed i t i on , American Pub1 i c Heal th Associat ion, Washington D.C., 1971.

2. Methods f o r Chemical Analysis of Water and Wastewater, Survei 11 ance Report EPS 5-AR-73-12, Environmental Pro tec t ion Service, At1 a n t i c Region, Department o f the Environment, 1973.

3. Methods f o r Chemical Analysis of Water and Wastes 1971, Envi ronmental Pro tec t ion Ayency , Nat ional Envi ronmental Research Center, Ana ly t i ca l Qual i ty Control Laboratory, C inc inna t i , Ohio.

4. Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Pa r t 23, Water; Atmospheric Analysis, American Society fo r Test ing and Mater i a1 s , Phi 1 adel ph i a, D3

5. Ana ly t i ca l Methods Manual , In1 and Waters Di rec to ra te , Water Qual i ty Branch, Ottawa, 1974.

6. Methods f o r organic pes t i c i des i n water and waste-water. 1971 EPA Nat ional Environmental Research Center, C inc inna t i , Ohio, 45268. USA.

I

7. Analys is of p e s t i c i d e residues i n human and environmental samples. J . F. Thompson (ed.) . Pest ic ides and Toxic Substances E f f e c t s Laboratory, Nat ional Envi ronmental Research Center, Research Tr iang le Park, N. C. , U.S.A., Revised, November 1972.

8. O f f i c i a l Methods o f Analysis of the Associat ion o f O f f i c i a l A n a l y t i c a l Chemists. W. Horwi t z (ed.) Associat ion o f O f f i c i a1 Ana ly t i ca l Chemists, Washington D.C. 1 l t h ed. , 1970.

Analys is o f Chlor inated Hydrocarbon Pest ic ides i n Waters and Wastewaters. A.S.Y. Chau (ed,) I n land Waters Branch, Environment Canada, Ottawa, 1972.