What is the basis for Canadian Water Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Aquatic Life?
A. Canadian Water Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Aquatic Life help to protect all plants and animals that live in lakes, rivers, and oceans by establishing acceptable levels for substances that affect water quality. As long as conditions are within the levels established by the guidelines, one would not expect to see negative effects in the environment. The guidelines are based on toxicity data for the most sensitive species of plants and animals found in Canadian waters and act as science-based benchmarks for the protection of 100% of the aquatic life species in Canada, 100% of the time.
