Water Sanitation Health

Chemical hazards in drinking-water

Cyanogen chloride

Cyanogen chloride is considered in the WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality.

The background document and summary statement for the 4th edition are now available.

The Guidelines for drinking water quality also consider for individual chemicals:

Background

The GDWQ FTF meeting (Geneva, 2003) recommended that the background documents for cyanide and cyanogen chloride be updated based on the new CICAD, when available. The final draft of CICAD No. 61 on hydrogen cyanide and cyanides (human health aspects) is now available. However, the Chemical Aspects WG needed to await the development of methodology on calculating acute reference doses before preparing a revised background document, as short-term exposures may be of concern for these substances.

Expected end-product(s)

1) Revised text for the Policies and Procedures Manual, for the second addendum to the Third Edition; 2) revised background documents and summary statements, for the Fourth Edition

Progress to date

The GDWQ WG meeting (Geneva, 2004) agreed to a plan of work. The GDWQ WG meeting (Geneva, 2005) agreed to initiate the preparation of a background document and to develop a policy for the derivation of acute guidance values. The GDWQ WG meeting (Geneva, 2006) agreed that the background document, after revision to take into account comments provided at the meeting, would be sent for public domain comment and would be included in the second addendum. The GDWQ WG meeting (Berlin, 2007) amended the plan of work and recommended that the background document be pushed back to the Fourth Edition. The GDWQ WG meeting (Singapore, 2008) agreed that an external peer review by a toxicology expert was necessary and that the revised document should be sent to WG members for review.

Other publications of interest

Managing surface waters for health (in preparation)

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