Environment Canada

Environment Canada is the department responsible for establishing and maintaining federal environmental policies and programs for the Canadian government. Environment Canada has coordinated various multidisciplinary workshops and commissioned studies to assess nanotechnology applications intended to benefit the environment, as well as the products and processes that might pose a threat to the environment. Policy makers have noted that because Environment Canada's mandate overlaps with that of Health Canada, the national policies regarding issues of health and safety associated with nanomaterials and nanotechnology are often subject to regulatory complexity. Nevertheless, in recent years, Environment Canada has taken a lead role in forming Canadian nanotechnology policies, particularly with respect to governing the production and use of nanomaterials, which are defined as substances having one or more dimensions between 1 and 100 nm and exhibiting novel structure or molecular arrangement.

In June 2007, Environment Canada issued an advisory note to manufacturers and importers of nanomaterials stating that under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) of 1999, new substances produced within or imported into Canada must be subject to risk assessment in order to ascertain their effects on health and the environment. As such, the Domestic Substances List (DSL) determines whether a substance qualifies as “new” under CEPA's New Substances Notification Regulations (Chemicals and Polymers).

If the substance is already on the list, it is not considered new (e.g., titanium dioxide nanoparticles would not be considered new because their molecular structure is the same as macroscale titanium dioxide, which is already on the DSL; by contrast, carbon fullerenes are considered new because of their novel molecular structure). It has been proposed that companies that use more than 1 kilogram of nanomaterials must provide information to the government, such as the physical and chemical properties of the substance as well as an explanation of how the nanomaterials are used and managed. However, the regulations note that nanomaterials that are naturally occurring or incidentally produced are not subject to notification under the Act.

Extending CEPA's mandate to cover nanomaterials represents the first step in Environment Canada's short- and longer-term regulation of nanomaterials. While the Act may initially govern new nanomaterials, Environment Canada expects to assess its measures in the next few years to determine whether a more elaborate regulatory framework is needed. This may include the possibility of implementing Significant New Activity (SNAc) provisions in cases where CEPA is insufficient. In addition, Canada is working with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to formalize a nomenclature system for new nanomaterials, that is, those substances that do not currently appear on the DSL.

Other international initiatives in which Environment Canada is participating include a program proposed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which will test the health and safety implications of 14 representative nanomaterials. [Page 210]Environment Canada will participate in this undertaking along with other international partners such as the United States Environmental Protection Agency.