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1999 Report of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development
Exhibit 3.1—Selected Listing of Toxic Substances, Their Sources of Release and Related Health Concerns
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Toxic Substances
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Sources of Release
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Potential Human Health
Concerns
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Heavy Metals (and Related
Compounds):
Lead, Cadmium,
Mercury
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Mining, hydro-reservoirs,
coal-fired emissions, industrial
chemicals, batteries, paint,
ceramics, plumbing, electrical
supplies
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Behavior and neurological
disorders, brain and kidney
damage and bone disease
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Contaminants and
By-Products:
PCBs,
Chlorinated Dioxins and Furans,
Chlorinated Naphthalenes
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Pulp and paper, incineration,
manufacturing, electrical
insulation
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Decreased fertility, prostate and
testicular cancer, reproductive
disorders, breast cancer, acute
toxicity, hormone disruption,
chloracne, liver damage
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Poly-Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs):
Benzo[a]pyrene and related compounds
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Incomplete combustion of fossil
fuels, vehicle emissions,
incineration of organic matter
(wood smoke) or garbage, coke
production
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Bronchitis, dermatitis, lung and
skin cancer
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Trihalomethanes
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Chlorination of drinking water
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Associated with bladder and
possibly colon cancer
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Pesticides:
DDE*, DDT*,
Hexachlorobenzene*,
Toxaphene*, Aldrin*, Dieldrin*,
Endrin*, Chlordane*, Lindane,
Chlorophenoxy Herbicides
(2,4-D)
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Agriculture, agri-food, forestry,
residential and municipal use
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Cancer, reproductive disorders,
irritations of skin, membrane and
respiratory tract, acute toxicity
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Common Air Pollutants:
Respirable particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5) Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), Nitrogen Oxides (NOx), Ground-level Ozone, Sulphur Dioxide (SO2)
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Vehicle emissions, incineration,
industrial processes,
construction, smelting, power
plant emissions
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Bronchitis, dermatitis, respiratory
disease, decreased lung and
pulmonary function
(cardiovascular challenge),
inflammation and irritation of
respiratory tract, induced
asthmatic attacks
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Other Toxic Substances:
Benzene
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Vehicle emissions, chemical
manufacturing
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Cancer, liver damage, central
nervous system damage,
degenerative bone changes
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Perchloroethylene/PCE/
Tetrachloroethylene
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Dry cleaning
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Vinyl chloride/Polyvinyl chloride
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Manufacturing of plastics
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* Denotes pesticides that are no longer used in Canada but are still present in the environment.
Note: Many of the above health concerns were initially observed in wildlife (including fish). In addition to sharing many of the potential human health endpoints (like cancer), wildlife populations are also vulnerable to other endpoints, including wasting, failure to thrive, eggshell thinning, skewed sex ratios, alterations in recruitment to breeding populations and population decline.