Position:
The federal government must establish and fund a program of human chemical testing in Canada modeled upon the current American program.
Resolution:
#A03-5, Monitoring of Human Exposure to Chemicals
The operative clause of this resolution calls on the federal government to establish and fund a program of human chemical testing in Canada that would:
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determine which chemicals get into Canadians and at what concentrations
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identify chemicals with a known toxicity level and determining the prevalence of people with levels above those toxicity levels
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assess the effectiveness of public health efforts to reduce exposure of Canadians to specific chemicals
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track, over time, transit levels of exposure of the population
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set priorities for research on human health effects
Status:
Open.
Recent Developments:
January 19, 2007
The strategy for the first Canadian Health Measures Survey has been established. Various data will be collected from a representative sample of approx. 5,000 Canadians over the next 24 months, with initial data dissemination expected in 2009. Full details are available from Statistics Canada
August 29, 2005
Response from Dr. Carolyn Bennett, Minister of State (Public Health) stating that the the Public Health Agency of Canada has been able to measure human exposure to chemicals in selective areas of Canada. Also, Health Canada has been involved in a study with Mexico and the United States to check contaminants in material blood on a regional basis in North America. Finally, First Nations communities are working with Health Canada to identify, understand and control the impact of exposure to environmnetal containants. Click here to read the letter.
June 20, 2005
Response received from Dr. David Butler-Jones with details of the PHAC's involvement in the project and how it will use the data. Please click here to read.
May 5, 2005
Letter written to Dr. David Butler Jones inquiring about the Public Health Agency of Canada's involvement in this survey. Please click here to read
February 15, 2005
Please click here for full details on Statistics Canada's Canadian Health Measures Survey, to be conducted in 2006-2007.
January 24, 2005
alPHa has sent a letter to Minister of State (Public Health) Carolyn Bennett to follow up on two resolutions, one of which is to inquire about the new federal agency's role in the Canadian Health Measures Survey. Please click here to read the letter.
March 4, 2004
Consultations are currently underway to fine-tune Statistics Canada's Canadian Health Measures Survey, planned for 2006-2007. Please click here for an overview.
November 13, 2003
alPHa Staff Gordon Fleming participated in a day-long consultation hosted by Health Canada. Its purpose was to prioritize chemicals for biomonitoring, to be included in the Canadian Health Examination Survey in 2005-06. It is modeled on the National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals (NHANES) program conducted by the U.S. CDC. The priority list was transmitted to Statistics Canada on December 15 by the Health Canada Working Group on Environmental and Biological Markers. A full summary will be posted here when it becomes available.
October 30th, 2003
alPHa has received an invitation from Health Canada to participate in a one-day expert workshop, the objective of which is to provide more specific advice to Statistics Canada on the importance of including biomonitoring of environmental chemicals and a prioritized list of substances to measure in the Canadian Health Examination Survey. This survey is to be conducted in 2005-6, and will be designed to estimate prevalence and distribution of factors associated with major health concerns.
September 8th, 2003
alPHa has sent a letter to federal Health Minister Anne McLellan introducing this Resolution along with three others for attention and action by Health Canada.
