Enforcement responsibilities and activities
Legislation
Enforcement officers at Environment and Climate Change Canada enforce federal environmental legislation that protects the natural environment, its biodiversity, and the health of Canadians. Their responsibilities fall under the following legislations:
- Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999
- Pollution Prevention Provisions of the Fisheries Act
- Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act
- Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act
- Species at Risk Act
- Canada Wildlife Act
- Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994
- Antarctic Environmental Protection Act
Enforcement notifications
Environment and Climate Change Canada issues notices about successful environmental prosecutions across Canada. Learn more about enforcement notifications and how you can subscribe to receive them in your inbox.
Environmental Offenders Registry
Following a conviction, corporations that have been found guilty must disclose their offences to shareholders, as required under the Environmental Enforcement Act. These offences are accessible to the public online.
Consult the Environmental Offenders Registry to find information on corporations convicted under certain Canadian federal environmental laws.
Enforcement measures and policies
Enforcement officers have the powers and protections of peace officers. They have the authority to issue enforcement actions. Officers use a range of tools to deal with non-compliance with environmental laws, such as:
- warning letters
- tickets
- compliance orders
- administrative monetary penalties
- directions
- charges leading to prosecutions
When officers decide what action to take, they consider several criteria from the compliance and enforcement policies. These may include:
- the nature of the violation:
- the seriousness of harm
- the intent of the violator
- the compliance history
- any attempts to conceal information or undermine respect for the legislation
- the effectiveness of the action to get the desired result:
- to reach compliance with the Acts in the shortest possible time and without any additional violations
- the consistency in enforcement:
- within and across regulatees
- across Canada
One of the most important factors in choosing an enforcement action is how effectively and quickly it restores compliance with the law.
Learn more about the range of current enforcement measures in the compliance and enforcement policies listed below:
- Compliance and Enforcement Policy for the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA) – March 2001
- Compliance and Enforcement Policy for the Habitat Protection and Pollution Prevention Provisions of the Fisheries Act – November 2001
- Compliance and Enforcement Policy for Wildlife Legislation
- Policy Framework to Implement the Environmental Violations Administrative Monetary Penalties Act
Enforcement actions
Information about successful prosecutions can be found in Environment and Climate Change Canada’s repository of enforcement notifications and in the Environmental Offenders Registry.
Enforcement actions can also be found in the annual reports of some of the legislations that Environment and Climate Change Canada enforces:
- Canadian Environmental Protection Act Annual Reports
- Fisheries Act Annual Reports
- Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act Annual Reports
- Species at Risk Act Annual Reports
- Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act Annual Reports