Présentation : Louis-Marie Poissant, M. Sc.
Env.
Health and Environmentin Outaouais
CONTENS
• OUTAOUAIS EXTERIOR ENVIRONMENT AND AIR• OUTAOUAIS QUALITY OF INDOOR AIR • OUTAOUAIS WATER (POTABLE AND
RECREATIONAL) • SOILS IN OUTAOUAIS• SINISTER’S RISK IN OUTAOUAIS
OUTAOUAIS EXTERIOR ENVIRONMENT AND AIR
Vehicle and smog
Transport is the principal atmospheric pollution’s source in Outaouais. It’s the most important contribution to the smog.
OUTAOUAIS EXTERIOR ENVIRONMENT AND AIR
Wood firing and fine particle
During 9 hours, one non-certified wood-burning stove emits as much fine particles as a vehicle covering 18 000 km.
•Type of wood-burning stove
•Stove’s number by square kilometer
•Topography : the basin one restrains the air circulation
•Weather (low ceiling)
Climate change
By 50 years, there would be four times as much heat wave as now in Outaouais.
It’s important to have a better comprehension of the evaporation and the evapotranspiration of the plants because it cools down the air near the plants (vaporisation enthalpy, 2256 kJ/kg)
OUTAOUAIS EXTERIOR ENVIRONMENT AND AIR
Urban Sprawl and Public Health
Climate change
Importance for the rain water to join the ground water
OUTAOUAIS EXTERIOR ENVIRONMENT AND AIR
Aussi livre: Urban Sprawl and Public Health
Source: http://www.cwp.org/Resource_Library/Why_Watersheds/
The sun may be dangerous
• Ultraviolet A radiation (UVA) and ultraviolet B radiation (UVB) who give the suntan are carcinogenic
• A suntan is not an indication of an healthy skin…as for the beauty…
OUTAOUAIS EXTERIOR ENVIRONMENT AND AIR
Who’s responsible for the seasonal allergies ?
OUTAOUAIS EXTERIOR ENVIRONMENT AND AIR
Anemophilous plants:Poplar, willowGrassSmall ragweed (ragweed) Mugwort
Ragweed causes the worst allergy’s symptoms but it can easily been pick up
Pollen falls back at a range of one kilometer
www.tqhp.qc.ca
Accommodation's insalubritiesMould, a common problem
OUTAOUAIS QUALITY OF INDOOR AIR
Gatineau can serve as an example for its regulations on accommodation's salubrity. Others municipalities should be inspired by this regulations
Sadly, the poor have more chance to suffer from insalubrity. Reduce social inequalities can improve healthiness.
Bad isolation + radiant of temperature = condensation mould
OUTAOUAIS QUALITY OF INDOOR AIR
Carbon monoxide (CO) is produced by the INCOMPLETE combustion of:
Natural gasoil gasoline propane wood
Sources : Cars and motor vehiclesHeating, cooking and freezing equipments and appliancesTools working with gas
Beware of carbon monoxide!
OUTAOUAIS QUALITY OF INDOOR AIR
Heavy and radioactive gas, produce by the disintegration of uranium, radon gets into the houses by:
• Beaten-earth • Cracks in the paving or/and
the walls• Well pumps• Underflow space• Opening around the
exhaust hose• Drinking water
Underground radon and lung cancer
Building material, sometimes an indoor air pollutant
• The typical volatile organic compound (VOC) is the formaldehyde. – This gas is released by the carpet, plywood and
pressed wood materials ( characteristic smell of new materials). It’s also emitted during wood’s combustion.
– Powerful eye irritant • Asbestos
– If it’s enclosed in the building, there will be no human exposition to the aasbestos
OUTAOUAIS QUALITY OF INDOOR AIR
WATER IN OUTAOUAIS
In the last five years, 195 boiling report have been emitted in Outaouais
Major improvement:Drinking water treatment plant with filtration and chlorationorGround water as source of water
Drinking water
TRIHALOMETHANES (THMs) IN DRINKING WATER
• THMs are formed when halogens (Fluorine, Chlorine and Bromine) replace the hydrogen in a methane molecule (CH4)
– Ex: CH-Cl3,CHCl2Br
• By-products of the surface water’s chloration (organic compounds are the source of the methane).
• Excess of bladder cancer, low risk (RR<1,5), in the population exposed during many years (20 years or more).
• The measures organized to limit the formation of THMs in drinking water shouldn’t harm the water disinfection because it will be an unacceptable risk
• To drink ground water or filtrated water settle the problem
WATER IN OUTAOUAIS
WATER IN OUTAOUAIS
Beach closed and faecal coliforms
Protect your beach!Do not feed the birds !They’re an important source of water contamination.When it’s raining, birds excrements end up in the water. That explain why the beaches are closed after an heavy rain.
Beaches
WATER IN OUTAOUAISLakes
Thinking your lake is infected by parasites ?
• Reduce your time of swimming or contact with the
• Dry your skin immediately with a towel
• Do not let your skin dry in the sun.• Do not feed the birds, especially
the ducks !
Swimmer’s itch
WATER IN OUTAOUAISLakes
Phosphate comes from a lot of sources:
•Erosion (drainage ditch) • Soap with phosphate • Septic tank
Cyanobacterias (1 of 4)
Thinking about my watershed
Cantley
Val-des-Monts
Gatineau
Bassin La Blanche
L’Ange-Gardien
Bassin La Lièvre
Val-des-Monts
Drainage ditch and stream erosionbeavers?
House and grass
Ditch erosion (steeply slope)
We’re doing everything we can so that the water can flow rapidly to the lake:
Straight ditch with a regular and steeply slopeWaterproofing of the soil (gravel, asphalt)
Argyle is dragged along with the water (brown water, eluviation)
Stream erosion (water is slowed down by the trees)
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Sediments and argyle contain mineral P
Organic P is present in all living organism
P is present in the water, >30 µg/L for an eutrophic lake
WATER IN OUTAOUAISCYANOBACTERIA ARE A PRELUDE TO A CHANGE
Contaminated soils
• Very few industrials soils contaminated: only 8 registed in the « Répertoire sur les dépôts de sol et de résidus industriels »
• Even so there are 385 contaminated soils in Outaouais (habitually gas from an old gas station, etc).
WASTE AND SOILS IN OUTAOUAIS
Agriculture
• Hoed crop (corn, potato, canola seed, etc.) and landless production are the major issue of soil’s’ contamination and erosion
• That kind of production is unusual in Outaouais.
WASTE AND SOILS IN OUTAOUAIS
WASTE
• Amount of waste is directly related to the consommation market.
• It’s important to complete the product life cycle: reduce, reuse, recycle, upgrade and discard
• Difficulties to throw away the waste in a sustainable way.• Be careful ! Polluter pays principle only works when there is a
product life cycle (ex: tire)
WASTE AND SOILS IN OUTAOUAIS
Nature
Technology
Road
Dam
Terrorism
An extreme situation will not always ended up as a disaster if the institutions are well prepared.
RISK OF DISASTER IN OUTAOUAIS
DISASTER : low probability, high consequences
A communication plan, an essential tool
The communication of the risk help to reduce the number of injured person and to save lives during a disaster.
Risk management
RISK OF DISASTER IN OUTAOUAIS
THE CONTROVERSY OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
• Controversies come from a misunderstanding: – Science helps to prove many things, but it cannot
shows the absence of health risk. – Some people ask for science to prove the
absence of risk.
• For example: – microwave antenna for cell phone– Endocrine disruptor in drinking water
• To be aware of science’s limit – For example: epidemiologic studies include a lots
of exposed persons
In conclusion, there’re places to amelioration.
We need to go forward.
In spite of everything, Outaouais’ region is a good place to live !