By: Sydney Sybydlo
This is a list of select proposed EHS regulatory changes in Canada, the United States, and the European Union. Nimonik monitors EHS legislation, regulations and standards in over 30 countries and 400 jurisdictions. If you would like to track EHS legislation in specific regions, jurisdictions or countries, we are happy to help. Please send us a request for more information here and we will get in touch shortly.
Canada
- Federal – National Parks of Canada Land Use Planning Regulations
- Federal – Regulations Amending Certain Department of the Environment Regulations
- Federal – Bill C-358 – An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act (carbon pollution pricing)
- Federal – Regulations Amending Certain Regulations Made Under the Canada Labour Code
- Alberta – Bulletin 2023-36: Invitation for Feedback on Proposed New Requirements for Rock-Hosted Mineral Resource Development
- British Columbia – Bill 31 – Emergency and Disaster Management Act
- Ontario – Proposed Regulations under the Mining Act for Recovery of Minerals
- Ontario – Proposed regulatory amendments to encourage greater reuse of excess soil
- Quebec – Bill 495, Anti-Farm Land Grabbing Act
United States
- Law Enforcement; Criminal Prohibitions
- Protection of Stratospheric Ozone: Updates Related to the Use of Ozone-Depleting Substances as Process Agents
- Phasedown of Hydrofluorocarbons: Management of Certain Hydrofluorocarbons and Substitutes Under Subsection (h) of the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020
- Trichloroethylene (TCE); Regulation Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
European Union
Canada – Federal
National Parks of Canada Land Use Planning Regulations
Published Date: 30 September 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry, Building Management & Maintenance
The Government of Canada has announced its intention to replace obsolete rules governing land use permitting in national parks. According to the government, they would consolidate land use planning rules under one regime that, among other things, “establishes new exceptions for minor, routine projects,” and “introduces flexibility needed to address local land use planning issues.” The rules would also:
- “[prohibit] anyone from changing land uses (i.e. residential to commercial) and/or undertaking construction projects without the required approvals;”
- “[enforce] minimum property standards;”
- “[set] appropriate limits to development to cottages, including continuation of restricted floor area size provisions”;
- clarify that the rules would not “constrain constitutionally protected Indigenous rights, such as traditional harvesting activities, the use of park lands, or traditional spiritual and ceremonial purposes;”
- “set requirements for public and Indigenous consultation;”
- “establish the process for obtaining a compliance report in respect of a project;”
- “set out the process for the subdivision of lands; and
- “establish a process for applicants to request, under limited circumstances, that the Chief Executive Officer of Parks Canada review the park superintendent’s decisions.”
The changes would be made by replacing the National Parks Building Regulations, National Parks of Canada Cottages Regulations, National Parks Signs Regulations, and Town of Jasper Zoning Regulations with the new National Parks of Canada Land Use Planning Regulations, which would also make minor corresponding amendments to the Preliminary Screening Requirement Regulations and the Environmental Violations Administrative Monetary Penalties Regulations.
Additional information is available here.
Regulations Amending Certain Department of the Environment Regulations
Published Date: 30 September 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry
The Government of Canada has announced its intention to update rules governing the management of hazardous and non-hazardous electronic waste (e-waste) to align Canadian regulations with international agreements. According to the government, the changes would:
- “control Canadian exports and imports to and from all countries and all transit of e-waste through Canada”;
- “prohibit the export of most [hazardous waste (HW)] and [hazardous recyclable materials (HRM)] to non-OECD countries”;
- “clarify that any person intending to export a shipment that contains HW or HRM must hold a permit authorizing the movement prior to any movement of the shipment”;
- “allow an interim operation to occur prior to the disposal of the HW by means of a final disposal operation or prior to the recycling of the HRM by means of a final recycling operation”; and
- “modify the definition of HW to include additional text that would allow for the assessment of whether something is waste using certain characteristics, as opposed to relying entirely on whether something is to be disposed of using [a specified operation.]”
The changes would be made by amending the Cross-border Movement of Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Recyclable Material Regulations, the Regulations Designating Regulatory Provisions for Purposes of Enforcement (Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999), and the Environmental Violations Administrative Monetary Penalties Regulations.
Interested parties may submit comments until 29 November 2023.
Additional information is available here.
Bill C-358 – An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act (carbon pollution pricing)
Published Date: 4 October 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry
The Government of Canada is proposing to “eliminate the goods and services tax (GST) in respect of carbon pollution pricing.”
The change would be made by amending the Excise Tax Act.
Additional information is available here.
Regulations Amending Certain Regulations Made Under the Canada Labour Code
Published Date: 28 October 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry, Building Management & Maintenance
The Government of Canada has announced its intention to update certain rules concerning occupational exposure to radiation and radon. According to the government, it intends to “establish new regulatory requirements for exposure to nanomaterials, thermal stress, non-solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation and radon, and provide an approach for situations where exposure threshold limits have not been established.”
The changes would be made by amending the Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, Aviation Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, Maritime Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, On Board Trains Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, Oil and Gas Occupational Safety and Health Regulations, and Administrative Monetary Penalties (Canada Labour Code) Regulations.
Interested parties may submit comments until 27 November 2023.
Additional information is available here.
Canada – Alberta
Bulletin 2023-36: Invitation for Feedback on Proposed New Requirements for Rock-Hosted Mineral Resource Development
Published Date: 16 October 2023
Industry Sector: Mining & Minerals Industry
The Alberta Energy Regulator has announced its intention to develop a “rock-hosted mineral resource regulatory framework, including rules, a directive, and other supporting documents” and is seeking feedback on a draft directive that “sets out the requirements that industry must follow for rock-hosted mineral resource development and covers the entire development life cycle.”
Interested parties may submit comments until 30 November 2023.
Additional information is available here and here.
Canada – British Columbia
Bill 31 – Emergency and Disaster Management Act
Published Date: 17 October 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry, Building Management & Maintenance
The Government of British Columbia has announced its intention to modernize the province’s emergency management rules. According to the government, the changes will notably “account for all 4 phases of emergency management, which are mitigation, preparation, response and recovery” and “clarify the powers and duties” of various levels of government officials.
The Government says that the new rules would “implement a more proactive appreach to emergency management – with an emphasis on disaster risk reduction”.
The rules would be implemented by replacing the Emergency Program Act with the Emergency and Disaster Response Act.
Additional information is available here.
Canada – Ontario
Proposed Regulations under the Mining Act for Recovery of Minerals
Published Date: 10 October 2023
Industry Sector: Mining & Minerals Industry
The Ontario Ministry of Mines has announced possible new rules to address mineral recovery from tailings and other mining waste in the province and is seeking feedback on the following aspects of the proposed rules:
- categorization of projects, based on their scale, to determine application requirements;
- the terms of validity of recovery permits;
- site remediation requirements;
- contents of an application for a recovery permit;
- contents of a recovery and remediation plan (required for any recovery permit project); and
- mandatory terms and conditions of recovery permits.
It is also seeking feedback on Aboriginal consultation procedures, possible certifications of projects, and financial assurance requirements.
The rules would be made by a new regulation under the Mining Act.
Interested parties may submit comments until 24 November 2023.
Additional information is available here and here.
Proposed regulatory amendments to encourage greater reuse of excess soil
Published Date: 17 October 2023
Industry Sector: Construction Industry
The Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks has announced its intention to update soil quality and management rules to prevent the disposal of reusable soil. According to the Ministry, the changes would notably:
- “remove requirements for waste Environmental Compliance Approvals (ECAs) for third-party storage and processing of readily usable low-risk dry soils and small liquid soil sites (class 1 sites), and enhance usability of project leader owned storage sites (class 2 sites)”;
- “increase opportunities for reuse of salt-impacted soil in low-risk circumstances”;
- “exempt specified small projects from physical or electronic hauling records, and add clarifications related to required information and responsibility for confirming information in hauling records”;
- “exempt landscaping projects at low-risk portions of enhanced investigation project areas from reuse planning requirements”;
- “clarify the responsibility of the qualified person when substances such as polymers are used for dewatering or solidification of liquid soil”; and
- “enable storage of sediment and soil near waterbodies for projects excavating in or adjacent to that waterbody”.
The changes would be made by amending the On-Site and Excess Soil Management regulation.
Interested parties may submit comments until 1 December 2023.
Additional information is available here.
Canada – Quebec
Bill 495, Anti-Farm Land Grabbing Act
Published Date: 26 September 2023
Industry Sector: Financial & Insurance Industry, Public Administration & Institutions
The Government of Quebec has announced its intention to establish rules regarding the acquisition of farm land. According to the government, the rules would introduce “anti-farm land grabbing measures”, notably by prohibiting the “acquisition of farm land by an entity that is a private investment fund.”
The rules would take effect by enacting the Anti-Farm Land Grabbing Act and amending the Act respecting the preservation of agricultural land and agricultural activities.
Additional information is available here.
United States
Law Enforcement; Criminal Prohibitions
Published Date: 3 October 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry, Public Administration & Institutions
The United States Forest Service (the Service) has announced its intention to update how they enforce prohibitions “related to fire and use of vehicles on National Forest System roads and trails by eliminating the requirements to issue an order for enforcement.”
According to the Service, prohibitions “relating to controlled substances, drug paraphernalia, and alcoholic beverages” on National Forest System (NFS) lands would also be added. The changes would update other prohibitions “to enhance protection of persons visiting and working on NFS lands,” to “enhance enforcement of wildfire prevention prohibitions,” and to “[update] the prohibitions relating to off-road vehicles”.
Interested parties may submit comments until 4 December 2023.
Additional information is available here.
Protection of Stratospheric Ozone: Updates Related to the Use of Ozone-Depleting Substances as Process Agents
Published Date: 19 October 2023
Industry Sector: Chemical Industry, Oil & Gas Industry
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced its intention to “establish recordkeeping and reporting requirements for uses of ozone-depeleting substances as process agents”.
According to the EPA, those reporting requirements would enable more effective monitoring of these narrow uses more consistently.
“Process agents” would be defined as controlled substances used “to form the environment for a chemical reaction or inhibiting an unintended chemical reaction ( e.g., use as a solvent, catalyst, or stabilizer) where the controlled substance is not consumed in the reaction, but is removed or recycled back into the process and where no more than trace quantities remain in the final product.”
Interested parties may submit comments until 4 December 2023.
Additional information is available here.
Phasedown of Hydrofluorocarbons: Management of Certain Hydrofluorocarbons and Substitutes Under Subsection (h) of the American Innovation and Manufacturing Act of 2020
Published Date: 19 October 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced its intention to “establish a program for the management of hydrofluorocarbons [HFCs] that includes requirements for leak repair and use of automatic leak detection systems for certain equipment using refrigerants containing hydrofluorocarbons and certain substitutes; requirements for the use of reclaimed [HFCs] in certain sectors or subsectors; the use of recycled [HFCs] in fire suppression equipment; recovery of [HFCs] from cylinders; container tracking; and certain recordkeeping, reporting, and labeling requirements.”
It is also proposing alternative standards “for spent ignitable refrigerants being recycled for reuse” and seeking feedback on potential “approaches for establishing requirements for technician training and/or certification.”
Interested parties may submit comments until 18 December 2023.
Additional information is available here.
Trichloroethylene (TCE); Regulation Under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
Published Date: 31 October 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry, Office Spaces, Building Management & Maintenance
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced its intention to further regulate trichloroethylene (TCE), which poses an “unreasonable risk of injury to human health.”
According to the EPA, “TCE is widely used as a solvent in a variety of industrial, commercial and consumer applications including for hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) production, vapor and aerosol degreasing, and in lubricants, greases, adhesives, and sealants.”
“To address the identified unreasonable risk, EPA is proposing to: prohibit all manufacture (including import), processing, and distribution in commerce of TCE and industrial and commercial use of TCE for all uses, with longer compliance timeframes and workplace controls for certain processing and industrial and commercial uses (including proposed phaseouts and time-limited exemptions); prohibit the disposal of TCE to industrial pre-treatment, industrial treatment, or publicly owned treatment works, with a time-limited exemption for cleanup projects; and establish recordkeeping and downstream notification requirements.”
Interested parties may submit comments until 15 December 2023.
Additional information is available here.
European Union
Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on preventing plastic pellet losses to reduce microplastic pollution
Published Date: 16 October 2023
Industry Sector: General Industry
The European Commission has announced its intention to tackle microplastic pollution in the handling of plastic pellets. According to the content of this proposal, it would notably:
- establish obligations for the handling of plastic pellets at all stages of the supply chain, covering economic operators, EU carriers, and non-EU carriers transporting plastic pellets in the Union;
- establish a priority order for economic operators, EU carriers and non-EU carriers to comply with the requirements and perform the required actions;
- establish obligations regarding certifications; – provide enforcement provisions for the conduct of environmental inspections or other checks to verify compliance;
- require economic operators, EU carriers, and non-EU carriers to inform the competent authorities of any incidental or accidental losses affecting human health or the environment and to take measures to limit consequences;
- provide assistance to help micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the pellet supply chain comply with the requirements; and
- specify rules on penalties for non-compliance.
Additional information about this initiative is available here and here.
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