Waste and plastics: Appearance before the Standing Committee – May 3, 2022

Plastics at a glance

A global problem

• Each year:
  • Over 300 million tonnes of plastics are produced. By 2050, another 33 billion tonnes could be generated.
• Plastic pollution costs up to $2.5 trillion in ecological, economic and social impacts annually.
• Plastic-related emissions could reach 1.34Gt/year equivalent to more than 295 new 500-MW coal-fired power plants.
• Over 800 species worldwide are impacted by marine litter.

Plastics in Canada

• $35B industry, almost 100,000 workers.
• Over 3 million tonnes of plastic waste annually - 9% is recycled.
• About 1% of plastic waste enters the environment, impacting wildlife, habitats and livelihoods.

Canada’s linear plastics economy

• 4.7 million tonnes (Mt) of plastic resin
  • 1.6 Mt goes into disposable products
  • 1.7 Mt in durable goods disposed
  • 1.5 stays in durable goods
• 3.3 Mt of plastic becomes waste each year
  • 86% landfill
  • 1% pollution
  • 4% incineration
  • 9% recycling
    • 8% mechanical recycling
    • 1% chemical recycling

Everyone has a role: Collective action for systems change and greater circularity

• Plastics circularity can reduce 1.8 megatonnes of carbon pollution, avoid $500M/year in costs, and create 42,000 jobs by 2030.
• Prevention
  • Reduce (most preferred/greatest value)
  • Repair, reuse
• Value recovery
  • Remanufacture, refurbish
  • Recycle
  • Energy recovery (least preferred/lowest value)

Transitioning to a circular plastics economy

Canada is:

• Developing measures, regulations, and agreements to prevent plastic pollution.
• Supporting the Canadian Plastics Innovation Challenges.
• Supporting industry-based solutions to manage plastics sustainably.
• Supporting education and awareness, tackle plastic pollution, and advance citizen science.
• Reducing plastic waste from federal operations.
• Advancing science to effectively address plastic pollution.
• Collaborating with provinces and territories on the Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste.
• Advancing global action via development of an ambitious legally binding global agreement, championing the Ocean Plastics Charter, supporting developing countries, and more.

Elk Valley

Q1. What is the government doing to address pollution from coal mines in the Elk Valley?

• The Government of Canada is committed to preventing and managing pollution from industrial sectors.
• On March 26, 2021, Teck Coal Limited was ordered to pay a total of $60 million in fines and monetary court orders after a guilty plea was entered on two counts of unlawfully depositing a deleterious substance into water frequented by fish contrary to S.36 (3) of the Fisheries Act. In addition to the penalty, the company must also comply with a Fisheries Act Direction. This sentence is the highest ever imposed by a court for pollution in violation of the Fisheries Act.
• The Government of Canada is developing the Coal Mining Effluent Regulations (CMER) under the Fisheries Act. In January 2022, ECCC published a discussion document on a proposed approach for the CMER to solicit feedback. ECCC is currently reviewing feedback received and holding bilateral engagement sessions with Indigenous groups and other interested parties.
• The CMER will reduce threats to fish and fish habitat from coal mining effluent by setting national effluent quality standards.
• Furthermore, as announced by the Minister of Environment in June 2021, any new and expanded coal mine that is not already described in the Physical Activities Regulations and that has the potential to release selenium into water bodies and cause adverse effects to fish and fish habitat will be considered for designation by the Minister for entry into the impact assessment process. These reviews will assess potential impacts of selenium discharge, in particular on fish and fish habitat and the specific receiving environment in question.

Contaminated sites

Q1. What is the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP)?

• The Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP) is the Government’s core program for managing federal contaminated sites. It was established in 2005.
• The program was renewed from 2020-2035 and provided $1.16B in funding from 2020-21 to 2024-25.
• This program reduces risks to Canadians and the environment. It also supports other government priorities such as skills development, training and employment of Canadians, including in Indigenous communities and in northern and rural areas.
• 19 federal departments, agencies and Crown corporations receive funding under the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan.

Q2. How is the Government addressing contaminated sites affecting Indigenous people?

• Through the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan (FCSAP) the government is addressing federal contaminated sites affecting Indigenous peoples, including sites on reserve lands and in the North.
• When the Government renewed the FCSAP in 2019 it expanded program parameters to accelerate the clean-up of federal sites located on Indigenous reserves and in the North.
• The renewed program supports reconciliation by:
  • Reducingon-reserve contamination and associated liability
  • Increasing engagement and participation of Indigenous peoples regionally and locally in prioritizing and planning remediation projects
  • Providing greater opportunities for Indigenous workers and businesses in service-delivery contracts with the federal government.
• The Prime Minister’s recent Mandate Letter to ECCC is challenging the government to do even more to identify and prioritize the clean-up of contaminated sites in areas where Indigenous, racialized and low-income Canadians live. Options are being explored to determine how best to address contaminated sites affecting these groups of Canadians.

Q3. What is the role of Environment and Climate Change Canada with respect to contaminated sites?

• ECCC has 3 roles; it:
  • provides government-wide leadership and guidance for federal contaminated sites and, along with Treasury Board Secretariat, serves as the Secretariat for the horizontal Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan;
  • provides expert technical support and advice to federal custodians; and
  • assesses and remediates contaminated sites under its responsibility.

Q4. How are contaminated sites managed in the North?

• The Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan provides funding to federal organizations that have contaminated sites in the North.
• Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) provides overall leadership for contaminated sites in the North.
• CIRNAC’s Northern Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program, approved in 2019, addresses the 8 largest and highest-risk abandoned mines in the Yukon and the Northwest Territories.

Q5. What has ECCC been doing to ensure compliance at G&R Recycling?

• In 2020, the Department’s Enforcement Branch conducted inspections in collaboration with the Ministère de l’Environnement et de la lutte contre les changements climatiques following complaints of a discharge into a water body next to the G&R site.
• Following the analysis of information obtained during these inspections, Enforcement Officers were able to conclude that a violation of the pollution preventionprovisions of the Fisheries Act had occurred with respect to the deposit of a deleterious substance to waters frequented by fish.
• On November 18, 2020, Enforcement Officers issued a Direction under the Fisheries Act to G&R Recycling with respect to the discharges of deleterious substances into waters frequented by fish.
  • The Direction requires G&R Recycling to take measures to cease all discharges of water containing deleterious substances into water frequented by fish or any place where the deleterious substances can reach such waters.
  • Enforcement Officers continue to follow-up to ensure the Direction is being respected. The most recent engagement between officers and the business owners took place on February 24, 2022.
  • Enforcement Officers have also undertaken a number of on-site follow-up inspections: on December 2, 2020, May 13, 2021 and November 24, 2021. To date, G&R Recycling is complying with the measures in the Direction.

Q6. Why did it take so long for ECCC to take action at G&R Recycling?

• G&R Recycling S.E.N.C. is a Mohawk company (G&R Recyclage) which operated as a sorting centre for construction and demolition materials in Kanesatake abutting the municipalities of Oka and Saint Placide in Quebec. G&R Recycling operated with a permit granted by the Province of Quebec under the Loi sur la qualité de l’environnement and through a Council Resolution made by the Kanesatake Mohawk Council (the Council). Area residents have long expressed concern about the amount of waste on the site and its impact (particularly in terms of odour) since 2014.
• Since 2017, the Environment and Climate Change Canada has been working with Indigenous Services Canada to provide support to the Kanesatake Mohawk Council’s Environment Office to help the community address environmental issues in its territory. In 2021, this included financial support to the Environment Office of the Council to conduct an environmental site assessment to help the Council determine how to proceed with management of the site.
• Prior to 2020, the department’s Enforcement Branch had no reasonable grounds to believe that a deposit of dry materials would permit the release of a deleterious substance into waters frequented by fish, considering the nature of the concerns, dry goods piled on land.

Q7. What role does Environment and Climate Change Canada play in the restoration of the G&R Recycling site?

• Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Enforcement Branch enforces the pollution prevention provisions of the Fisheries Act, including the general prohibition in paragraph 36(3). These provisions of the Fisheries Act have allowed the Enforcement Branch to intervene with respect to one aspect of the problem related to site contamination: to direct that G&R cease the discharge of water containing deleterious substances from the site.
• The company was also subject to a series of provincial enforcement actions under the Québec Environment Quality Act that culminated in March 2020 when the Province issued a ministerial order directing G&R to immediately cease the deposit of residual materials and return the site to its original state.
• G&R also operated under a Council Resolution. The site is located on land governed by the Kanesatake Interim Government Act.
• To discuss the overall issues related to the site and the actions each are taking within their respective mandates, Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Enforcement Branch and Strategic Policy Branch meet regularly with Indigenous Services Canada and the provincial authority, le Ministère de l’Environnement et de la lutte contre les changements climatiques, to exchange information.
• Both the provincial and federal governments, including the Ministère de l’Environnement et de la lutte contre les changements climatiques, Environment and Climate Change Canada and Indigenous Services Canada continue to support the Kanesatake Mohawk Council. Site decontamination must be based on the principle of “polluter pays,” meaning that the operators of G&R Recycling remain responsible for all damages and costs.

Plastics

Q1. What are the anticipated impacts of Single-Use Plastic Regulations on small- and medium-sized businesses (plastic producers and users) and is there support for transition?

• The Regulations will apply to all businesses, including SMEs. However, we do not expect that they will result in direct compliance costs to small businesses because any increased costs will likely be passed on to consumers and importers can import alternatives to the six categories of single-use plastics.
• The Government estimates that about 110 small businesses that manufacture single-use plastic items could be affected by the proposed Regulations. While these businesses would see a decrease in demand for the six categories of single-use plastic items, they could retool production lines to manufacture other plastic items.
• There are many companies that have already transitioned away from certain single-use plastics or invested in innovative solutions for recycling here in Canada. This includes a number of restaurants that have moved away from using single-use plastic cutlery and straws as well as a number of retailers that have replaced single-use plastic check out bags with reusable alternatives.
• To date, the Government has committed over $19 million through the Canadian Plastics Innovation Challenge, supporting small and medium sized businesses in developing solutions to address plastic pollution.
• The transition to a more circular economy aims to not only reduce pressure on the environment, but also increase competitiveness, stimulate innovation, and boost economic growth by creating new green jobs.

Q2. What are the next steps to establish a legally binding global agreement on plastics? What will the agreement include?

• In March 2022, at the resumed fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), 175 member states, including Canada, agreed to launch the necessary process to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution that addresses the full life cycle of plastics.
• The resolution established an intergovernmental negotiating committee to develop a new global instrument on plastic pollution by the end of 2024.
• Canada played a leadership role at UNEA by co-chairing the plastics discussions as well as contributing to negotiations. Canada will continue to work with governments and other stakeholders to develop an ambitious global agreement that mobilizes investments and advances necessary solutions at the local, regional, and global levels to transition to a circular plastics economy.

Q3. What is the status of the Government’s commitment to reduce landfill methane emissions?

• On January 28, ECCC published a discussion paper on reducing landfill methane emissions for a 75-day comment period.
• In summer 2022, the Department will establish a technical working group with sector experts to support in-depth discussions on elements of the regulations.
• ECCC will continue to collaborate with provinces and territories and consult with municipalities, Indigenous organizations and the private sector as it develops the proposed regulatory framework by Winter 2023.

Q4. When will the Government respond to the Committee’s recent report on single-use plastics? What are your initial reactions?

• I would like to thank the Committee for their balanced and comprehensive report.
• The ten recommendations cover a range of actions on plastics, including support for reuse and recycling, collaboration with provinces and territories, as well as standards and labelling. These recommendations align with and build on approaches that are planned or underway as part of the Government’s Zero Plastic Waste Agenda.
• The Committee asked for a response within 120 days of receiving the report. ECCC, with partner departments, will submit a response in the coming months.

Q5. When will the proposed Single-Use Plastics Prohibition Regulations come into force?

• There is support from Canadians for the Government to bring the proposed Regulations into force quickly.
• The market has made significant progress in moving away from the single-use plastic products that will be prohibited under the regulations. A number of restaurants have already stopped using single-use plastic cutlery and straws and various retailers no longer provide single-use plastic check out bags.
• As a result, a shorter coming into force period is being considered. We are aiming for a transition time that is consistent with our environmental objective while also allowing businesses to adapt to the new rules with minimal disruption. Some parts of the regulations will come into force as early as late 2022.