Parameter Viewer

Document ID ca-gcdwqgtd-2010-06-23-2 Title Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality: Guideline Technical Document – Haloacetic Acids URL https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/publications/healthy-living/guidelines-canadian-drinking-water-quality-guideline-technical-document-haloacetic-acids/page-3-guidelines-canadian-drinking-water-quality-guideline-technical-document-haloacetic-acids.html Jurisdiction /ca Subdomain(s) Drinking water Language en Status completed Analyzed at 2026-03-18 14:27:16.477585+00:00 Relevance Technical document supporting Canadian drinking water quality standards for HAAs.

9 Qualitative 48 Quantitative 36 Definitions

Q Qualitative Requirements (9)

Req ID	Category	Intent	Legal Status	Name	Subdomain(s)	Context	Conditions	Confidence
#Q001	monitoring	operational	recommended	HAA5 Monitoring Locations	drinking water	Since HAA5 concentrations vary within and between distribution systems, depending on different factors, including water quality characteristics (e.g., HAA precursors, pH, season, temperature) and treatment conditions (e.g., disinfectant type, disinfectant dose, contact time), it is recommended that monitoring samples be taken at the water treatment plant and at points in the distribution system where historical data show the highest HAA concentrations.	When monitoring for HAA5 in distribution systems.	high
#Q002	treatment	treatment	guidance	Source Water Characterization for Precursor Removal	drinking water	In order to reduce HAA levels in the finished water, it is important to characterize the source water to ensure that the treatment process is optimized for precursor removal.	When aiming to reduce HAA levels in finished water.	high
#Q003	treatment	treatment	mandatory	Secondary Disinfectant Requirement for Ozone or UV	drinking water	Neither ozone nor UV disinfection leaves a residual disinfectant, and both must therefore be used in combination with a secondary disinfectant to maintain a residual in the distribution system.	When using ozone or UV disinfection as primary disinfection.	high
#Q004	monitoring	health	recommended	Lead Monitoring upon Disinfectant Change	drinking water	It is recommended that any change made to the treatment process, particularly when changing the disinfectant, be accompanied by close monitoring of lead levels in the distributed water.	When changing the treatment process, particularly the disinfectant.	high
#Q005	operational	operational	recommended	Consumer Device Maintenance	drinking water	Consumers should verify the expected longevity of the adsorption media or membrane in their treatment device as per the manufacturer's recommendations and service it when required.	For consumers using residential-scale point-of-entry or point-of-use treatment technologies.	high
#Q006	administrative	health	recommended	Consumer Device Certification Recommendation	drinking water	Health Canada does not recommend specific brands of drinking water treatment devices, but it strongly recommends that consumers look for a mark or label indicating that the device has been certified by an accredited certification body as meeting the appropriate NSF/American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards.	When consumers select a drinking water treatment device.	high
#Q007	administrative	operational	mandatory	Certification Organization Accreditation	drinking water	Certification organizations provide assurance that a product conforms to applicable standards and must be accredited by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC).	For organizations certifying drinking water treatment devices and materials in Canada.	high
#Q008	design	treatment	guidance	Preozonation Feasibility Constraints	drinking water	Preozonation is feasible for water sources that have turbidity levels below 10 nephelometric turbidity units (NTU) and bromide concentrations below 0.01 mg/L, to minimize the formation of bromate.	When considering preozonation to minimize bromate formation.	high
#Q009	design	treatment	mandatory	UV Disinfection Design Considerations	drinking water	Since UV disinfection is dependent on light transmission to the microbes, water quality characteristics affecting UV transmittance must be considered in the design of the system.	When designing UV disinfection systems.	high

P Quantitative Requirements (48)

Req ID	Category	Intent	Legal Status	Name	Subdomain(s)	Limit Type	Limit Value	Context	Conditions	Confidence
#P001	physical	treatment	guidance	turbidity levels	drinking water	OG	< 10 NTU	Preozonation is feasible for water sources that have turbidity levels below 10 nephelometric turbidity units (NTU)	When preozonation is used to minimize the formation of bromate	high
#P002	chemical	treatment	guidance	bromide concentrations	drinking water	OG	< 0.01 mg/L	and bromide concentrations below 0.01 mg/L, to minimize the formation of bromate	When preozonation is used	high
#P003	chemical	health	guideline	contribution of drinking water to total daily intake	drinking water	unknown	20 %	a default value of 20% can be used to describe the contribution of drinking water to total daily intake	Selected as a default relative source contribution for MCA and TCA	medium
#P004	chemical	health	guideline	HAA5 concentration benchmark	drinking water	MAC	80 µg/L	Used as the primary benchmark for evaluating average total HAA concentrations in distribution systems across Canada.	Applies to the average of total HAA5 concentrations in the distribution system.	high
#P005	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	1.7 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monochloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.3.	When using EPA Method 552.3 for compliance analysis.	high
#P006	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.2 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dichloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.3.	When using EPA Method 552.3 for compliance analysis.	high
#P007	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.2 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Trichloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.3.	When using EPA Method 552.3 for compliance analysis.	high
#P008	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.3 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monobromoacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.3.	When using EPA Method 552.3 for compliance analysis.	high
#P009	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.1 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dibromoacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.3.	When using EPA Method 552.3 for compliance analysis.	high
#P010	operational	reporting	guideline	Community size threshold for HAA monitoring analysis	drinking water	requirement	5000 persons	Threshold used to categorize communities into larger and smaller systems for the analysis and reporting of HAA5 monitoring data.	Used to differentiate between larger (>5000) and smaller (<5000) drinking water systems in regulatory data analysis.	high
#P011	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	2 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monochloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.1.	When using EPA Method 552.1 for compliance analysis.	high
#P012	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	5 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dichloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.1.	When using EPA Method 552.1 for compliance analysis.	high
#P013	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	0.7 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Trichloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.1.	When using EPA Method 552.1 for compliance analysis.	high
#P014	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	2 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monobromoacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.1.	When using EPA Method 552.1 for compliance analysis.	high
#P015	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	1 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dibromoacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.1.	When using EPA Method 552.1 for compliance analysis.	high
#P016	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	2.5 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monochloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.2.	When using EPA Method 552.2 for compliance analysis.	high
#P017	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	2.5 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dichloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.2.	When using EPA Method 552.2 for compliance analysis.	high
#P018	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	0.8 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Trichloroacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.2.	When using EPA Method 552.2 for compliance analysis.	high
#P019	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	2 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monobromoacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.2.	When using EPA Method 552.2 for compliance analysis.	high
#P020	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Practical Quantitation Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	0.7 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dibromoacetic acid in drinking water using EPA Method 552.2.	When using EPA Method 552.2 for compliance analysis.	high
#P021	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Practical Quantitation Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	1 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monochloroacetic acid in drinking water using APHA Standard Method 6251B.	When using APHA Standard Method 6251B for compliance analysis.	high
#P022	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Practical Quantitation Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.6 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dichloroacetic acid in drinking water using APHA Standard Method 6251B.	When using APHA Standard Method 6251B for compliance analysis.	high
#P023	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Practical Quantitation Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.6 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Trichloroacetic acid in drinking water using APHA Standard Method 6251B.	When using APHA Standard Method 6251B for compliance analysis.	high
#P024	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Practical Quantitation Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.5 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Monobromoacetic acid in drinking water using APHA Standard Method 6251B.	When using APHA Standard Method 6251B for compliance analysis.	high
#P025	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Practical Quantitation Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.6 µg/L	Analytical requirement for measuring Dibromoacetic acid in drinking water using APHA Standard Method 6251B.	When using APHA Standard Method 6251B for compliance analysis.	high
#P026	unknown	health	guidance	MCA Probable Lethal Oral Dose	other	unknown	50-500 mg/kg bw	The probable lethal oral dose for MCA (acid) in humans.		high
#P027	operational	reporting	unknown	Small community size threshold (General Survey)	drinking water	requirement	10000 people	Threshold used in various Health Canada surveys to define smaller communities for CDBP characterization.		high
#P028	chemical	treatment	guidance	pH threshold for ozone treatment	drinking water	OG	> 7.5 pH	At pH levels above 7.5, ozone may actually increase the production of CDBP precursors	When using ozone for oxidation of HAA precursors	high
#P029	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	0.21 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monochloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.1	high
#P030	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	0.45 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dichloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.1	high
#P031	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	0.07 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Trichloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.1	high
#P032	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	0.24 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monobromoacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.1	high
#P033	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.1)	drinking water	requirement	0.09 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dibromoacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.1	high
#P034	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	0.273 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monochloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.2	high
#P035	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	0.242 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dichloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.2	high
#P036	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	0.079 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Trichloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.2	high
#P037	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	0.204 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monobromoacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.2	high
#P038	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.2)	drinking water	requirement	0.066 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dibromoacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.2	high
#P039	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.17 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monochloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.3	high
#P040	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.020 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dichloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.3	high
#P041	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.019 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Trichloroacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.3	high
#P042	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.027 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monobromoacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.3	high
#P043	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Method Detection Limit (EPA Method 552.3)	drinking water	requirement	0.012 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dibromoacetic acid	Using EPA Method 552.3	high
#P044	operational	reporting	mandatory	MCA Method Detection Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.082 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monochloroacetic acid	Using APHA Standard Method 6251B	high
#P045	operational	reporting	mandatory	DCA Method Detection Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.054 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dichloroacetic acid	Using APHA Standard Method 6251B	high
#P046	operational	reporting	mandatory	TCA Method Detection Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.054 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Trichloroacetic acid	Using APHA Standard Method 6251B	high
#P047	operational	reporting	mandatory	MBA Method Detection Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.087 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Monobromoacetic acid	Using APHA Standard Method 6251B	high
#P048	operational	reporting	mandatory	DBA Method Detection Limit (APHA Method 6251B)	drinking water	requirement	0.065 µg/L	Analytical detection limit for Dibromoacetic acid	Using APHA Standard Method 6251B	high

D Definitions (36)

Req ID	Name	Context	Confidence
#D001	HOCl	hypochlorous acid	high
#D002	OCl-	hypochlorite ion	high
#D003	HOBr-	hypobromous acid	high
#D004	OBr-	hypobromite ion	high
#D005	NOM	natural organic matter	high
#D006	PCE	tetrachloroethylene	high
#D007	TCE	trichloroethylene	high
#D008	GC/ECD	gas chromatography with electron capture detector	high
#D009	MDLs	Method detection limits	high
#D010	APHA	American Public Health Association	high
#D011	MTBE	methyl tert-butyl ether	high
#D012	TAME	tertiary amyl methyl ether	high
#D013	PQLs	practical quantitation limits	high
#D014	GAC	Granular activated carbon	high
#D015	BAT	Best Available Technologies	high
#D016	NTU	nephelometric turbidity units	high
#D017	UV	Ultraviolet	high
#D018	NSF	NSF International	high
#D019	ANSI	American National Standards Institute	high
#D020	SCC	Standards Council of Canada	high
#D021	GST-zeta	glutathione-S-transferase-zeta	high
#D022	familial hypercholesterolaemia	a common disorder of lipid metabolism associated with a high risk of early mortality from coronary artery disease	medium
#D023	HAAs	family of halogenated aliphatic carboxylic acids	high
#D024	HAA5	the first five HAAs on this list (MCA, DCA, TCA, MBA, DBA)	high
#D025	total HAAs	the first five HAAs on this list (MCA, DCA, TCA, MBA, DBA)	high
#D026	biologically active carbon	bacteria-colonized GAC	high
#D027	suicide inhibition	DCA is able to inhibit its own metabolism by irreversibly inactivating the GST-zeta enzyme	high
#D028	peripheral neuropathy	loss of reflexes and muscle weakness	high
#D029	hepatomegaly	enlarged liver	high
#D030	acetates	HAAs present as salts in drinking water at normal pHs	high
#D031	T	treatment plant	high
#D032	D1	distribution system site close to treatment facility (0.1-6 km)	high
#D033	D2	distribution system midpoint site (0.75-16 km)	high
#D034	D3	far distribution system site (1-23 km)	high
#D035	MCA (sodium salt)	sodium salt or neutralized solution of the HAA resulting in the salt being formed	high
#D036	MCA (acid)	the free acid form of the HAA	high