Government of British Columbia: Ministry of Environment: Ambient Water Quality Guidelines for Iron (Overview)
SUMMARY
This document is one in a series that establishes ambient water quality guidelines for British Columbia. It is an update to a previous report originally published in 1993. This update assesses the freshwater aquatic life guideline for use in British Columbia, assesses more recent information and makes amendments to suit B.C. conditions. The guidelines are safe conditions or levels that have province-wide application. The report consists of two parts: this, an overview report, and a technical document upon which this overview summary is based. A major use of the guidelines is to set ambient water quality objectives. The objectives are the guidelines modified or adopted to protect the most sensitive designated water use in a particular body of water. The objectives are used in the preparation of waste management plans, pollution prevention plans, waste management permits, orders or approvals. The latter three are the only documents that have legal status. The guidelines are also used as a basis for evaluating contaminated sites and determining remediation requirements. To protect freshwater aquatic life guideline for iron is 1 mg/L for total iron and 0.35 mg/L for dissolved iron. Water quality guidelines to protect marine life and other water uses such as wildlife, agriculture (i.e., livestock watering and irrigation), drinking water and recreational were not recommended because relevant data were not available from the literature.