Toxic “forever chemicals” are being found in the blood of Canadians — and even higher levels are being found in northern Indigenous communities — says a new report from the government of Canada.
Health Canada and Environment Canada have released a draft assessment of the science on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Both departments propose listing the human-made chemicals as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA).
Listing a substance as toxic under CEPA is the first step toward the government enacting regulations to ban it, as Ottawa did with single-use plastic items.
Studies show PFAS can harm human health and wildlife. Some of the chemicals accumulate in the liver and kidneys.
Because PFAS break down very slowly, living things are exposed to them repeatedly and PFAS blood levels can build up over time.
PFAS can be found in various consumer products — cosmetics, diapers, menstrual products, food packaging, carpets, furniture and clothing. But while many of these products are considered disposable, PFAS chemicals hang around.
“Only diamonds should be forever — not human-made substances that are polluting our environment,” said Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault in a tweet.
“We must do all that we can to protect the health and safety of Canadians and our environment,” said Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos.
The government defines PFAS as a class of more than 4,700 human-made chemicals — a list that keeps growing.
The government report states humans are also exposed to “forever chemicals” through the air they breathe, in dust and in drinking water.
Sustainable packaging contains harmful chemicals: study
New research has found that some packaging that’s touted as environmentally friendly contains high-levels of PFAS chemicals that can be damaging to the environment and human health. PFAS are hard to break down and have been linked to multiple different types of cancer.
The “extremely persistent” chemicals are found across Canada and even in the remote Arctic, the report said.
PFAS are also used in firefighting equipment like flame-retardant foam and in vital components in electric vehicles, batteries and solar panels.
“[PFAS] contribute to clean energy and emissions reduction,” said Danielle Morrison, a policy manager for the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada.
The association said its members will follow the science but it cautions against banning PFAS that are essential and for which no alternatives exist.
PFAS can be passed to fetuses: report
Aside from finding traces of PFAS in the blood of Canadians, Health Canada and Environment Canada’s review showed pregnant moms can transmit these substances through the placenta. Infants, it found, can be exposed to PFAS through breast milk.
The report said that, internationally, firefighters are among the groups known to face increased exposure to PFAS. In Canada, it said, another population is at risk.
“Northern Indigenous communities (as measured in adults, including pregnant women), as well as Indigenous youth and children in other parts of Canada were found to have elevated levels of certain PFAS,” the government report said.
“Effects commonly reported in animal studies include effects on the liver, kidney, thyroid, immune system, nervous system, metabolism and body weight, and reproduction and development,” the report found.
It said outcomes are similar in human epidemiological studies.
“There has been enough exposure to PFAS long enough that we are finding adverse effects in the human population,” said Miriam Diamond, a professor at the School of the Environment at the University of Toronto.
Diamond, who studies how PFAS enter the environment, said Canada is “conducting an experiment in real-time on the health of our population.”
It’s time to ban non-essential PFAS, she said.
Prof. Miriam Diamond holds one of the compostable paper bowls analyzed in her lab. That type of food container was found to have high levels of PFAS or ‘forever chemicals.’ (Robert Krbavac)
Canada already restricts some PFAS, but an environmental group said Canada is taking a piecemeal approach and needs to go further.
“It’s really important that we cut this off at the source and stop trying to do the small pieces,” said Cassie Barker, a senior program manager of toxics at Environmental Defence.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
