Significant New Activity orders and notices of the Chemicals Management Plan

Significant New Activity approach for existing substances

As part of the Chemicals Management Plan, the Domestic Substances List (DSL) may be amended from time to time to indicate that the Significant New Activity (SNAc) provisions of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act,1999 (CEPA 1999) apply to some existing substances.

An amendment to the DSL will be made if Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) or Health Canada (HC) suspect that a significant new activity involving a substance may result in the substance being released in amounts or conditions that could result in it meeting one or more criteria set out in section 64 of CEPA 1999. Additional information will be required from the proponent who wishes to manufacture, import or use the substance for activities indicated in the order applying the SNAc provisions. The additional information will allow ECCC and HC to assess the potential environmental and human health risks associated with the new activities before they are undertaken.

Please note that SNAc provisions do not apply to the uses of a substance that are regulated under Acts of Parliament listed in Schedule 2 of CEPA 1999, including the Pest Control Products Act, the Fertilizers Act and the Feeds Act.

Please also note that SNAc provisions do not apply to the uses of a living organism that are regulated under Acts of Parliament listed in Schedule 4 of CEPA 1999, including the Pest Control Products Act, the Seeds Act, the Fertilizers Act, the Feeds Act and the Health of Animals Act.

Review of current Significant New Activity orders and notices

ECCC and HC have initiated a review of SNAc orders and notices currently in place under CEPA 1999.

Purpose and rationale of the review

Since publication of the first SNAc notice in 2001, policies and practices have evolved, particularly with respect to the nature and scope of SNAc orders and notices, as well as the wording used to identify "significant new activities". This review is being undertaken to ensure that current SNAc orders and notices are in step with current information, policies and approaches.

The SNAc review will apply all elements of the Policy on the Use of Significant New Activity Provisions of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (published in December 2013). Resulting changes to SNAc requirements are expected to provide greater clarity of scope and improved ease of compliance, while protecting Canadians and their environment.

Proposed scope of the review

The review will consider SNAc orders and notices currently in place and will:

  • review completed risk assessments for substances subject to the SNAc provisions and other available information to confirm that the rationale for applying the SNAc provisions is consistent with current policies
  • confirm that the information requested in the SNAc requirements is consistent with current SNAc policy and approach
  • review wording to ensure clarity and consistency with current approach to drafting of SNAc requirements

The review of SNAc orders and notices will be undertaken by grouping SNAc orders and notices either by substance type or by the type of "new activities" described. This will facilitate an efficient review process and allow for consistency in the application of new approaches to similar SNAc provisions. Specific SNAc orders and notices may be reviewed earlier than scheduled, depending on stakeholder input.

Outcome of the review

Following the review process, there may be no changes needed for certain SNAc orders and notices or, for others, rescissions or amendments may be warranted. As the review will be implemented via a phased approach, information on the results of the review process will be published on an ongoing basis. Elements of this review may be subject to external consultation. Please contact us to communicate your interest in participating in these consultations.

After considering comments received, a notice or order may be published (as appropriate) to indicate that the SNAc provisions no longer apply to certain substances or that the content of published SNAc orders and notices have been revised.

If you have any questions or comments on this review or would like to submit information that could be relevant to the review, please contact us. Indicate on the envelope or in the subject line "Review of current Significant New Activity orders and notices".

Significant New Activity review groups

For a detailed list of substances in the SNAc review groups, please refer to the Significant New Activity review groups web page.

List of Significant New Activity review groups
SNAc review group description Chemical substances
New substances - nanomaterials - 33 SNAcs for nanomaterials, published between 2008 and 2013. See Nanomaterials SNAc Review Group
Existing substances - aromatic azo and benzidine-based substances - 66 SNAcs published between 2008 and 2013, included in the Aromatic Azo and Benzidine-based Substance Grouping Initiative. See Aromatic Azo and Benzidine-based Substances SNAc Review Group
New and existing substances - Consumer product wording - 45 SNAcs for both new and existing substances published between 2004 and 2014 that reference "consumer product" in the definition of new activities. See Consumer Product SNAc Review Group
Existing substances - high hazard, not in commerce - 176 substances including SNAcs published as part of the 145 PBiT substances, 52 substances with high hazard potential and Challenge initiatives. See High Hazard, Not in Commerce Substances SNAc Review Group
Remaining existing substances - 29 SNAcs published between 2009 and 2014. See Remaining Existing Substances SNAc Review Group
Remaining new substances SNAcs - 83 SNAcs published between 2001 and 2014. See Remaining New Substances SNAc Review Group
Summary of publications
Publication date Review group Chemical substances Publication
February 5, 2022 High Hazard, Not in Commerce Substances SNAc Review Group 10 substances A notice of intent to amend the DSL to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 10 substances was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 156, No. 6 for a 60-day public comment period.
February 5, 2022 High Hazard, Not in Commerce Substances SNAc Review Group 46 substances A notice of intent to amend the DSL to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 46 substances was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 156, No. 6 for a 60-day public comment period.
June 19, 2021 Remaining Existing Substances SNAc Review Group and Remaining New Substances SNAc Review Group 11 organisms from the implicated review groups (15 organisms included in the notice)

A notice of intent to amend the DSL to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 2 living organisms and rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 4 living organisms was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 155, No. 25 for a 60-day public comment period.

A notice of intent to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 3 living organisms new to Canada and rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 6 living organisms new to Canada was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 155, No. 25 for a 60-day public comment period.
March 17, 2021 Remaining Existing Substances SNAc Review Group 6 substances An order amending the DSL to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 6 substances was published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 155, No. 6.
July 27, 2019 High Hazard, Not in Commerce Substances SNAc Review Group 110 substances A notice of intent to amend the DSL to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 105 substances and rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 5 substances was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 153, No. 30 for a 60-day public comment period.
November 25, 2017 Consumer Product SNAc Review Group DEGME (CAS RN 111-77-3) A notice of intent to amend the SNAc order for DEGME was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol.151, No. 47 for a 60-day public comment period.
July 12, 2017 Aromatic Azo and Benzidine-based Substances SNAc Review Group 33 substances An order amending the DSL to rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 33 substances was published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 151, No. 14.
February 22, 2017 Remaining New Substances SNAc Review Group 8 substances An order amending the DSL to rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 8 substances was published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 151, No. 4.
February 11, 2017 Remaining New Substances SNAc Review Group CAS RN 15290-77-4 A notice to rescind the SNAc notice for cyclopentane, 1,1,2,2,3,3,4-heptafluoro- was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 151, No. 6.
January 14, 2017 Consumer Product and Stakeholder Priority Group; contains substances from the following review groups: Consumer Product SNAc Review Group, High Hazard, Not in Commerce Substances SNAc Review Group, Remaining Existing Substances SNAc Review Group, and Remaining New Substances SNAc Review Group 27 substances A notice of intent to amend the DSL to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 24 substances and to rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 2 substances on the DSL was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 151, No. 2 for a 60-day public comment period.
An erratum, replacing Table 2 in the explanatory note to the above notice of intent, was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 151, No. 4 - January 28, 2017.
A notice of intent to vary the requirements under the SNAc provisions for the substance clarified oils (petroleum), catalytic cracked, reaction products with cresol and polymethylenepolyphenylene isocyanate (CAS RN 68920-56-9) was published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 151, No. 2 for a 60-day public comment period.
October 19, 2016 Aromatic Azo and Benzidine-based Substances SNAc Review Group 16 substances An order amending the DSL to rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 16 substances was published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 150, No. 21.
June 27, 2015 Nanomaterials SNAc Review Group 9 substances Notices to rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for 9 substances were published in the Canada Gazette, Part I: Vol. 149, No. 26.
March 11, 2015 Aromatic Azo and Benzidine-based Substances SNAc Review Group TDBD (CAS RN 1871-22-3) An order amending the DSL to rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for TDBD was published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 149, No. 5.
December 17, 2014 Aromatic Azo and Benzidine-based Substances SNAc Review Group CPAOBP (CAS RN 78952-70-2) An order amending the DSL to rescind the requirements under the SNAc provisions for CPAOBP was published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 148, No 26.

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