REGULATIONS AND POLICY

Canadian PCB Regulations and Policy

Overview | Federal | Ontario | Quebec | Federal-Provincial

Overview

The regulatory information for Canada regarding PCBs is organized into tables and accompanying text for federal, provinces and federal-provincial levels.

At the federal level, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act 1999, the main federal statute that addresses how toxic substances are assessed and managed is described. Tables (PDF format) have been included to provide overviews for the various regulations enacted under CEPA that relate to PCBs (handling, use, manufacture, production, disposal and transportation, allowable levels, etc.). The regulations include:

• Chlorobiphenyls Regulations (SOR/91-152; Amended SOR/2000-102);

• Regulations Respecting Mobile System for the Destruction and Treatment of Chlorobiphenyls that are Operated by or under Contract with Federal Institutions (SOR/90-5; amended SOR/93-231 and SOR/2000-105);

• PCB Waste Export Regulations, 1996 (SOR/97-109, amended SOR/2000-103);

• Regulations Respecting the Storage of Material Containing Chlorobiphenyls (PCBs) (SOR/92-507, Amended SOR/2000-102); and

• Regulations Respecting the Import and Export of Hazardous Wastes (SOR/92-637; Amended 94-459; SOR 94-684; SOR/2000-103).

At the provincial level, this website provides a description of the regulatory framework addressing PCBs for the two Great Lakes Provinces: Ontario and Quebec. In Ontario, the Environmental Protection Act and the Water Resources Act are described. Under these two statutes there are a number of regulations that affect the use and movement of PCBs in Ontario.

They include:

• Reg. 347 - General - Waste Management. This regulation requires registration by waste generators and requires that manifests be completed to track waste movements.

• Regulation 362 - Waste Management - PCBs. This regulations records PCB waste storage and tracks the movement of PCBs.

• Regulation 352 - Mobile PCB Destruction Facilities. This regulation among other things outlines:
  • record-keeping requirements for sites,
  • installation and operation times for facilities,
  • establishes air standards for PCBs,
  • rules (e.g., disposal waste, discharge for cooling water, safe storage of PCB waste, self-inspections, distances of facilities, equipment, and containers from watercourses, other buildings, drainage systems, general soil or ground cover characteristics for the systems); and
  • notices and fees process for applicants interested in setting up destruction .

For Quebec, this section describes Quebec's Environment Quality Act (L.R.Q., c. Q-2), which highlights several sections that may apply to PCBs. For example; s. 8 and 9, s. 20, and s. 22 of the Environmental Quality Act are important as they provide the public with the opportunity to undertake action with respect to toxic substances such as PCBs. Section 70 of the Act addresses Hazardous Waste Materials in general and provides criteria for permitting for the following: storage, treatment, elimination or other processes involving hazardous materials.

Tables for this information are provided in PDF format.

Overviews are also provided for several key Federal-Provincial agreements and initiatives that have a focus on PCBs such as the Canada-Ontario Agreement Respecting the Great Lake Ecosystem and the St. Lawrence Vision 2000.