Lead in drinking water: Quebec to become first province to adopt new Health Canada norms

Starting Monday, the city said it will be sending letters to those who are known to have lead pipes. (File image.)

MONTREAL -- Quebec will adopt Health Canada's recommended maximum levels of lead in drinking water, the government announced Wednesday, while reiterating that the province's drinking water is already safe to consume.

The province will become the first in Canada to adopt the recently lowered norms, Lionel Carmant, the junior minister for health and social services, said at a press conference in Quebec City.

In March, Health Canada issued a recommendation that lowered the maximum recommended concentration of lead in drinking water from 10 micrograms per litre to five micrograms per litre.

In addition to adopting the new standard for lead in drinking water throughout Quebec, the province said it will also review its sampling methods to conform with Health Canada standards.

The government will also require municipalities across Quebec to develop plans of action to reduce the amount of lead in their drinking water as per Health Canada's recommendations.

Last week, investigative reports by Concordia's Institute for Investigative Journalism, in collaboration with Le Devoir and Global News, revealed that some Quebec drinking water contains dangerous levels of lead.

This is a developing story that will be updated.