Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Standing Committee (EM&A)

Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Standing Committee

(EM&A)

Chemicals Management ForumSan Antonio, Texas May 15-16, 2012

Commission for Environmental Cooperation

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• 1999: North American Regional Action Plan (NARAP) on Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (EM&A) in support of the SMOC initiative that, among other things, promotes collaboration in acquiring environmental data and information to assess exposure to substances of concern and the risks they pose to human health and the environment

• 2008: Develop and implement a sustainable regional approach to environmental and human biomonitoring and assessment to enhance North American monitoring capacity, with an early emphasis on supporting Mexico in the initial stages of implementation of its National Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (Programa Nacional de Monitoreo y Evaluación Ambiental—Proname)

• 2010: The EMA SC supports the Sound Management of Chemicals Working Group in “…continental management of chemicals of concern.”

Background

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• Serve as a trinational forum for promoting cooperation and sharing knowledge in monitoring and assessing persistent toxic substances in the North American environment

• Work to improve the comparability, quality, relevance and availability of environmental information on the status, trends of persistent toxic substances

• Direct beneficiaries are governments, academics and private laboratories in Mexico

What it does

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Objectives and Goals of EM&A

• Assist the Parties in increasing the comparability, reliability, relevance and availability of data and information on chemicals

• Seek to improve the information needed to identify and assess trends and concerns related to contaminants and stressors that affect the environment and human health

• In order to ensure an integrated North American data set, place continued emphasis on supporting Mexico’s monitoring and evaluation program (Programa Nacional de Monitoreo y Evaluación Ambiental—Proname)

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Highlights of EM&A Work

1. Comparability/Reliability of Data• Training: e.g., POPs in environmental matrices• Workshops: e.g., Chemical data analysis, modelling

atmospheric fate and transport• Intercalibration exercises: e.g., Atmospheric

chemistry• Lab validation exercises: e.g., Developed guidelines

for interlaboratory validation• Guidance documents: e.g., Biomonitoring

initiatives

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Highlights of EM&A Work (cont’d)

2. Information for assessing trends and concerns– Trinational blood biomonitoring project– Compendium of trinational monitoring initiatives– Supporting SMOC initiatives, including gathering

information on:– PCBs – Lindane– DDT– Mercury– Dioxins and Furans

3. Mexico’s monitoring and evaluation program (Programa Nacional de Monitoreo y Evaluación Ambiental—Proname)

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North American Trilateral Maternal Blood Study

SAMPLING SITES

Results:

• As expected, mothers from Mexico had higher concentrations of p,p’-DDT and p,p’-DDE due to its more recent use in Mexico. Lower concentrations of PCBs were seen in Mexican mothers compared to those in Canada and the United States.

• In Mexico, it was found that mothers of Coatzacoalcos, a center of the Mexican petrochemical industry, had the highest concentration of several POPs (p,p´-DDE p,p´-DDT, PCDDs)

• Merida, an urban area without major sources of contaminant exposure, had higher concentrations of several PCB congeners

Conclusion

This study provides an indication of the concentrations of POPs/metals in pregnant women in North America and Mexico, plus the need for an ongoing surveillance program among vulnerable populations to pinpoint sources of higher exposure.

The purpose of this sampling was to obtain an initial profile of levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and metals in pregnant women from Canada, Mexico and the United States.

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Wet Deposition of Hg in North America (2003)

First subcontinental Mercury Monitoring Network for the three countries: Canada, Mexico and the USA .

PART 2

Proname National PBT Environmental Monitoring and Assessment

Program

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General Objective

• Reduce and/or eliminate persistent bioaccumulative and toxic substances in Mexican ecosystems, through a long-term (more than 25 years) national environmental-biological monitoring program that contributes to ecosystem and human health.

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200920102012Future sites

Celestún

Valle del Yaqui

Manantlán Valle de

Bravo

Coatzacalcos

Cd Juárez

Sinaloa

Mapimí

Zacatecas

Monterrey

Huasteca Potosina

Salamanca

PochutlaLacandon jungle

Proname Sites in Operation

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soil

sediment

water

air

biota

Persistent bioaccumulative toxic

substances (PBTs)

Environmental media &

components

Humans

2009 to date

10 initial POPs (organochlorine pesticides)

Metals (Hg, Cd and Pb, among others)

Polyaromatic hydrocarbons PCBs

2011-2012 12 initial POPs

(organochlorine pesticides) Metals (Hg, Cd and Pb,

among others) Polyaromatic hydrocarbons PCBs+ 10 new POPs (selection)

Implementation of biomonitoring program (2012)

Institutional strategy to begin biomonitoring program - To be defined

Substances and Environmental Compartments (Proname)

Valle del Yaqui, Son.

R.B. Sierra de Manatlán, Jal.

R.B. Ría Celestún, Yuc.

Presence of Persistent Bioaccumulative Toxic Substances at Proname Sites, in Different Environmental Media & Components

WATER BIOTA (Animal) BIOTA (Plant) SOIL SEDIMENT

2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011

Metals                    

PAH                    

PCB                    

POP                    

WATER BIOTA (Animal) BIOTA (Plant) SOIL SEDIMENT

2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011

Metals                    

PAH                    

PCB                    

POP                    

Valle de Bravo, Edo de Mex.

Starting in 2012

Coatzacoalcos, Ver..

WATER BIOTA (Animal) BIOTA (Plant) SOIL SEDIMENT

  2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011

Metals                              

PAH                              

PCB                              

POP                              

WATER BIOTA (Animal) BIOTA (Plant) SOIL SEDIMENT

2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011 2009 2010 2011

Metals                              

PAH                              

PCB                              

POP                              

No sampling

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CELESTÚNCELESTÚN

CELESTÚNMANATLÁN

MANATLÁNV-YAQUI

V-YAQUIV-BRAVO

V-BRAVO

20092010

20112010

20112010

20112010

2011

0

5000

10000

15000

20000

25000

Metals PRONAME

MERCURIO (suelo) PLOMO (suelo) MERCURIO (sedimento) PLOMO (sedimento)

mg/kg

------- 6.6 mg/kg inorganic mercury Farm soilCanadian Soil Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Environmental and Human Health

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CELE

STÚN

CELE

STÚN

CELE

STÚN

MAN

ATLÁ

N

MAN

ATLÁ

N

V-YA

QUI

V-YA

QUI

V-BR

AVO

V-BR

AVO2009 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Organochlorine PesticidesPRONAME

4,4'-DDE (agua) 4,4'-DDT (agua) 4,4'-DDE (músculo) 4,4'-DDT (músculo)4,4'-DDE (hígado) 4,4'-DDT (hígado) 4,4'-DDE (B-vegetal) 4,4'-DDT (B-vegetal)4,4'-DDE (suelo) 4,4'-DDT (suelo) 4,4'-DDE (sedimento) 4,4'-DDT (sedimento)

/m

gkg

0.7 mg/kg Total DDT Farm soilCanadian Soil Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Environmental and Human Health

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------- 0.1 mg/kg Naphthalene Farm soilCanadian Soil Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Environmental and Human Health

Polycyclic Aromatic HydrocarbonsPRONAME

80,000,00085,000,000

101,500

140,000

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CELE

STÚN

CELE

STÚN

CELE

STÚN

MAN

ATLÁ

N

MAN

ATLÁ

N

V-YA

QUI

V-YA

QUI

V-BR

AVO

V-BR

AVO2009 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011 2010 2011

0

10000

20000

30000

40000

50000

60000

70000

80000

Polychlorinated BiphenylsPRONAME

3,4,4'-TRICLOROBIFENILO (sedimento) OTROS HOMÓLOGOS DE TRICLOROBIFENILOS (sedimento)2,2',3,4,4',5,5'-HEPTACLOROBIFENILO (sedimento) 2,2',3,4,4',5,6'-HEPTACLOROBIFENILO (sedimento)3,4,4'-TRICLOROBIFENILO (hígado) OTROS HOMÓLOGOS DE TRICLOROBIFENILOS (hígado)2,2',3,4,4',5,5'-HEPTACLOROBIFENILO (hígado) 2,2',3,4,4',5,6'-HEPTACLOROBIFENILO(hígado)

ng/k

g

------- 0.5 mg/kg PCBs Farm soilCanadian Soil Quality Guidelines for the Protection of Environmental and Human Health

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POPs Air Monitoring Program• The POPs Air Monitoring Program is being implemented

under the Proname umbrella, which in turn:– Fulfills the commitments established within the CEC

EM&A working group– Supplies POP data for the Global Monitoring Plan

(GMP) under the Stockholm Convention– Includes five sites:

• Two form part of the Global Atmospheric Passive Sampling Network (GAPS).

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2010 sampling sitesModified: October 15, 2010

GAPS – Global ContextGlobal Atmospheric Passive Sampling Network

• ~55 sites since 2005• Monitoring (reporting to GMP)• Surveillance (new priority chemicals)

GAPS Network: www.ec.gc.ca/rs-mn/default.asp?lang=En&n=22D58893-1

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Proname Sites

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POPs Monitoring Sites in Mexico• PRONAME/GAPS sites include the first 12 Stockholm

Convention POP plus some of the 10 new POP: – Ría Celestún, Yucatán, beginning April 2009 (background

site)– Valle del Yaqui, Sonora, beginning April 2009 (farm site)

• PRONAME sites measuring organochlorine pesticides and PCBs:– Manantlán, Jalisco, beginning July 2010 (background site)– Valle de Bravo, Mexico State, beginning April 2011

(transitional pilot site)– Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, beginning April 2011 (industrial

site)

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Proname Microsite

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PRONAME

PART 3

Next Steps for EM&A

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Next Steps

Contribute to advancing sound management of chemicals:

- Support Proname at two new sites- Continue support of research needs on specific

chemicals, such as mercury deposition and dioxin monitoring

- Continue support to Mexico as it develops its biomonitoring programs

- Generate a report on SMOC contributions to SAICM for ICCM3

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Challenges• Consolidate a network of analytical laboratories

in Mexico• Consolidate chemical specific monitoring into

overall Proname • Share methodologies to identify communities

and ecosystems at risk• Interpretation and evaluation of data, including

data comparison at a regional level and how best use the current data available

• Increase transparency by sharing results with stakeholders

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For additional information

• CEC website:http://www.cec.org/Page.asp?PageID=924&SiteNodeID=1019

• Proname website:

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Thank you

EM&A Co-chairs:• Canada: Nicole Davidson ([email protected])

• Mexico: Ana Patricia Martínez ([email protected])

• US: Ana Corado ([email protected])