Explanation of Headings used in the Water Quality Tables
Limits taken from Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality - Summary Table (published by Health Canada in collaboration with the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Committee on Drinking Water of the Federal-Provincial-Territorial Committee on Health and the Environment).
Abbreviations: GCDQW, Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality; AO, aesthetic objective (not a health related objective); MAC, maximum acceptable concentration; CFU, colony-forming units; NTU, nephelometric turbidity units; TCU, true colour units.
| Heading | Description |
|---|---|
| Station Description | Station code, location, and sampling point of collection. |
| Date | Date of sample collection. |
| Time | Time of sample collection (24 h). |
| Water Temp (°C) | Temperature of water sample when collected (AO = 15°C, GCDWQ). |
| Total CL2 Res (mg/L) | Total chlorine residual (disinfectant) in the water sample when collected. Typically this will be stable at a particular sampling point. |
| Total Coliforms (CFU/100 mL) | Number of total coliform bacteria per 100 mL of sample. MAC = none detectable/100 mL of water sample (this is typically reported as <1 CFU/100 mL but may also be seen as 0 CFU/100 mL). |
| E. coli (CFU/100 mL) | Number of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria per 100 mL of sample. MAC = none detectable/100 mL of water sample (this is typically reported as <1 CFU/100 mL but may also be seen as 0 CFU/100 mL). |
| Turbidity (NTU) | Turbidity (“cloudiness”) is recommended to be <1 NTU in water entering a distribution system (GCDWQ). |
| Colour, True (TCU) | Colour in the water; may be due to coloured inorganic materials such as iron, manganese, and copper or organic materials such as tannins and lignins (AO = 15 TCU, GCDWQ). |
| HPC Bacteria (CFU/mL) | Heterotrophic plate count bacteria, used for monitoring general bacteriological quality through treatment process and in distribution system. Not used as an indicator of water safety; no recommended water quality limit. |
