In our past blogs, we have shared news regarding the effort to ban certain plastics. This restriction on plastics in Canada was made official and announced in a June 20, 2022, News Release.
A group of manufacturing companies is seeking to overturn this ban. According to an article in Plastics News, “A coalition of plastics companies has sued to block Canada’s ban on six single-use plastic products, challenging Ottawa’s decision to declare them ‘toxic’ and prohibit them.”
The article continues, “There is no credible evidence that any of the [plastics] are ‘toxic,'” RPUC (Responsible Plastic Use Coalition) said in its lawsuit. ‘The [ban] was made despite a paucity of facts and evidentiary support about the nature and extent of the environmental contamination and harm arising from the SUPs [single-use plastics].’”
Updating activity on the ban of certain plastics and a PFAS update (Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay).
As we reported in June 2021, the Canadian Government added plastics to Schedule 1 of the Toxic Substances. This move allowed ministers to propose risk management measures under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA).
The outcome of the lawsuit withstanding, below is the schedule for the ban.
Source: Government of Canada
| Item | Manufacture and import for sale in Canada | Sale | Manufacture, import, and sale for export
|
| Checkout bags, cutlery, foodservice ware, stir sticks, straws* | December 20, 2022 | December 20, 2023 | December 20, 2025 |
| Ring carriers (for beverages) | June 20, 2023 | June 20, 2024 | December 20, 2025 |
| Flexible straws packaged with beverage containers | N/A | June 20, 2024 | December 20, 2025 |
*Single-use plastic flexible straws that are not packaged with beverage containers are excluded under certain conditions (for more information, consult the guidance documents).
PFAS in Rainwater
While there has not been a lot of legislative movement in Canada with respect to regulating per- and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS) there has been plenty of news regarding how widespread PFAS are in the environment.
The most recent headline was about the presence of PFAS in rainwater. According to Stockholm University, “Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are man-made hazardous chemicals that are spread globally in the atmosphere and as a result they can be found in the rainwater and snow in even the most remote locations on Earth. During the last 20 years, guideline values for PFAS in drinking water, surface waters and soils have decreased dramatically due to new insights into their toxicity. As a result, the levels in environmental media are now ubiquitously above guideline levels” (emphasis added).
While there has been no shortage of studies with respect to the widespread nature of PFAS, studies continue to produce toxicological data that will be used to develop standards based on the best available science.
With the increasingly large carrot of potential profit from addressing this group of chemicals, entrepreneurs are investing time and money to propose a number of ideas for the remediation of PFAS. Some of these approaches may hold some promise.
Recent PFAS Regulatory Development in the United States
There was a recent significant PFAS regulatory development in the United States. On August 25, 2022, Pre-Publication Notice “Designation of Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctanesulfonic Acid (PFOS) as CERCLA Hazardous.” CERCLA is the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act, also known as Superfund (see our ).
We continue to update our PFAS Resources Page, as new data, studies, legislation, and news are available.
If you have questions or need assistance with an environmental matter, feel free to contact us at 519-948-7300.
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