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Alberta biomonitoring program : chemicals in serum of pregnant women in Alberta

Description

A comprehensive list of priority environmental contaminants were monitored in blood serum of pregnant women in 2005, with the purpose of establishing the magnitude of exposure to environmental... More ≫

Description

A comprehensive list of priority environmental contaminants were monitored in blood serum of pregnant women in 2005, with the purpose of establishing the magnitude of exposure to environmental contaminants during pregnancy for women living in all regions of Alberta. The objectives were specifically to examine the influence of age, geographic location, and seasonality on the maternal serum concentrations of man-made or naturally occurring chemicals that women may absorb from food, drinking water, air, soil, household dust, or commercial products. This is the first Province-wide biomonitoring study for Alberta.

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Chemicals in serum of children in southern Alberta (2004–2006) : influence of age and comparison to pregnant women

Description

A comprehensive list of priority environmental contaminants were monitored in blood serum of healthy children with the objective to examine the influence of age and to compare these new data with... More ≫

Description

A comprehensive list of priority environmental contaminants were monitored in blood serum of healthy children with the objective to examine the influence of age and to compare these new data with concentrations in pregnant women that were reported previously for the same region. In general, concentrations of detected contaminants were either lower or similar to concentrations reported in other studies of children in North America or around the world.

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Human health risks associated with aerially applied fire retardants : screening level risk assessment

Description

Alberta Health retained Millennium EMS Solutions Ltd. to prepare a Screening Level Risk Assessment (SLRA) related to the general public being exposed to aerially applied fire retardants used... More ≫

Description

Alberta Health retained Millennium EMS Solutions Ltd. to prepare a Screening Level Risk Assessment (SLRA) related to the general public being exposed to aerially applied fire retardants used during wildfires. The objectives of this work were to estimate human exposure to fire retardants in various media following use during a wildfire, to characterise the potential human health risks from these exposures, and to provide appropriate and valuable public health advice for residents returning to an area impacted by fire retardant use.

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Human health risks associated with surface water impacts after a wildfire : problem formulation

Description

Presents findings of a study to complete a problem formulation for human health risks associated with surface water impacts after a wildfire. The main goal of the work was to better understand and... More ≫

Description

Presents findings of a study to complete a problem formulation for human health risks associated with surface water impacts after a wildfire. The main goal of the work was to better understand and assess potential human health risks from the Horse River Wildfire on surface water bodies that serve as drinking and recreational water sources and apply learnings to future wildfires. Five recommendations are provided, including a review of facilities in Alberta that are most susceptible to wildfire associated surface water risk and generation of a small suite of key indicator compounds to help notify water users of the wildfire related impacts to water.

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Multiple chemical sensitivity : literature review and state of the science

Description

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is a complex, chronic health condition associated with numerous symptoms, linked to low-level exposure to one or more chemicals. Significant gaps exist in the... More ≫

Description

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is a complex, chronic health condition associated with numerous symptoms, linked to low-level exposure to one or more chemicals. Significant gaps exist in the scientific understanding of MCS. Variability in observed symptoms and subsequent clinical diagnoses limit the certainty of population prevalence estimates. Alberta Health commissioned a literature review from a consultancy in the fields of toxicology and environmental assessment to understand the current state of science related to MCS.

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Post-disaster food assessment and salvaging best practices : literature review and jurisdictional scan

Description

This report presents an overview of packaged food safety after a natural or man-made disaster by examining current jurisdictional best practices and literature on food packaging and food... More ≫

Description

This report presents an overview of packaged food safety after a natural or man-made disaster by examining current jurisdictional best practices and literature on food packaging and food microbiological sciences. The purpose of this report is to explore the scientific basis and vulnerabilities of jurisdictional food safety best practices (specifically after natural or man-made disasters). This report is intended to serve as an information resource for public health officials.

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2019 fish consumption guidance : mercury in fish

Description

This technical report was prepared to provide summary information about the fish consumption advice available for Alberta water bodies and to present new data collected from 2013 to 2016... More ≫

Description

This technical report was prepared to provide summary information about the fish consumption advice available for Alberta water bodies and to present new data collected from 2013 to 2016 (inclusive) along with attendant advice. The information in this report may be of interest to researchers, public health professionals, or members of the public who are interested in fish consumption advice in Alberta and want additional information. This document has been produced using methods described in past reports – as such, the information contained herein is a summary of available data related to mercury in fish and human health advice.

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Smoke from outdoor recreational fires and wildfires : jurisdictional review and summary of management options

Description

This review summarizes the health impacts of wood smoke and provides a description of the regulatory measures that different provincial, state and municipal governments have implemented to manage... More ≫

Description

This review summarizes the health impacts of wood smoke and provides a description of the regulatory measures that different provincial, state and municipal governments have implemented to manage it. For recreational fires, bylaws from various municipalities are reviewed. For wildfires, the guidelines used in different jurisdictions to manage wildfire smoke and reduce public exposure are summarized.

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Horse River Wildfire response : environmental monitoring, public health assessment and ecological screening technical summary document

Description

This report was prepared to assess whether the soil and air quality in Fort McMurray and surrounding areas met ecological and human health guidelines during the response to the Horse River... More ≫

Description

This report was prepared to assess whether the soil and air quality in Fort McMurray and surrounding areas met ecological and human health guidelines during the response to the Horse River Wildfire of 2016 and after clean-up of the debris and damage that remained. The first part of the report includes high-level summaries from literature reviews on the contaminants of potential concerns from wildfire smoke and ash and their impacts on soil and human health. The second part includes the identification of potential risks to human and ecological health from ash and soil in fire affected areas, a health risk assessment of potential ash migration into residential gardens, an overview of the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo's remedial program, and a post-cleanup health risk assessment based on the post remedial soil sampling program results.

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Inventory and analysis of exposure factors for Alberta

Description

Presents the findings of a study conducted to provide information on human behaviours and characteristics that influence an individual's exposure to environmental contaminants in Alberta. The... More ≫

Description

Presents the findings of a study conducted to provide information on human behaviours and characteristics that influence an individual's exposure to environmental contaminants in Alberta. The purpose of the study was threefold: to inventory and evaluate data on exposure factors that are relevant to Albertans; to determine the most suitable exposure factors for use in exposure and human health risk assessments in Alberta; and to determine where gaps in the data exist and prioritize the gaps that could be considered for future study.

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