With the recent discovery of high levels of lead in many households across Canada, homeowners are being urged to flush their pipes every morning in order to clear contaminants that have built up overnight. However, experts disagree that running water in the morning will be successful at removing lead from drinking water for any period of time. Dr. Richard Mass, co-director of the UNC-Asheville Environmental Quality Institute, explains "What happens is that initially in the first few minutes after the water has been flushed, the lead builds back up in the system very rapidly and then later it continues to build up but ever more slowly. To give you an example, we have found that in two hours you get about 85 to 90 per cent of the lead concentration that you would get in an overnight dwell of say 8 hours. In just 30 minutes you get about 50 per cent of what builds up in 8 hours and remarkably enough, about 30 per cent of the lead that you would build up in an overnight dwell...builds up in the first 10 minutes."The Ontario Drinking Water Advisory Counsel (ODWAC) also seems to be lukewarm about flushing as an effective way to remove lead from drinking water. They point out that the results can be unpredictable and the situation in each home could be different. They also raise the issue of water conservation. Their report does not recommend bottled water, unless the actual lead content can be officially confirmed, because the current labeling rules under the Food and Drugs Act allow the under-reporting of contaminants. Instead, they suggest that, in the short-term while structural and procedural changes are being implemented, 'municipalities could consider providing bottled water to consumers from the water treatment plant that serves them."A proposed Health Canada guidelines document suggests yearly monitoring and remedial action when high lead levels are found. Actions include replacing pipes, lead service lines and lead-based fittings, changes to water treatment processes, public education programs and promoting certified drinking water treatment systems.There is a section of the document devoted to drinking water systems. It states, "point-of-use drinking water treatment devices installed at drinking water taps are considered to be the best approach to reduce concentrations to safe or aesthetic levels immediately before consumption."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 or component has been certified as meeting the appropriate NSF/ANSI drinking water material standards.
