Pest Management Advisory Council - 2019 Meeting Summary Report
On May 30, 2019 members of the Pest Management Advisory Council joined the Pest Management Regulatory Agency for the annual meeting of the Council.
The meeting was held in Ottawa at the Brooke Claxton Building, Tunney’s Pasture.
Opening remarks and review of the agenda
The Executive Director of the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA), Dr. Richard Aucoin, opened the meeting by welcoming the Chair and members, some of whom are new to the Council. He indicated that the advice of the Council is of great value in the development of approaches to issues brought forward.
The Chair of the Council, Mr. Tom Beaver, also welcomed members, observers and other participants to the meeting, and Mr. Beaver proceeded with an overview of the agenda.
PMAC membership
Members discussed the sectors and expertise represented on the Council and expressed support for broadening representation to other implicated sectors and interested groups.
PMAC members agreed to make recommendations to the Minister.
Transformation and re-evaluation
Ms. Margherita Conti, Director General, Value Assessment and Re-evaluation Management Directorate provided an overview of the current status of PMRA’s modernization of the post-market pesticide program. She also presented preliminary results of options analyses that PMRA is conducting with a view to increasing both the efficiency and effectiveness of the program, given the current and anticipated increase in the number of re-evaluations and special reviews. Some options were proposed for the Council’s consideration.
Elements discussed by the Council included: a cyclical versus risk-based approach to reviews, how to prioritize if cyclical, and what criteria might be established for a risk-based approach. The Council also discussed if legislative changes were in order, and whether the program is sufficiently funded.
PMAC members agreed to make recommendations to the Minister.
Water monitoring
Ms. Janice Villeneuve, Section Head, Environmental Assessment Directorate, provided an update on the progress made by the PMRA since the last PMAC meeting held in 2017. She detailed the importance of robust water monitoring data to inform regulatory decision-making. She also detailed the current challenges such as type and availability of data and analytical methods, as well as the steps PMRA is taking to prioritize water monitoring for pesticides, which include a database, trend analysis and bench-marking.
PMAC members were appreciative of the work done to date on establishing a database of human health and environmental reference values, and the collaboration with other federal and provincial authorities to further the availability of high quality data.
Elements discussed by the Council included: the current status of collaboration with federal and provincial authorities, the possible inclusion of academia and the public in providing relevant data, and the importance of consistent methodology across governments.
PMAC members reiterated the importance of having robust monitoring data to inform decision-making and agreed to make recommendations to the Minister.
Legislative and regulatory review
Mr. Lars Juergensen, Associate Director, Transformation Policy, presented the elements of the parliamentary review process of the Pest Control Products Act, which can be initiated after June 29, 2020. PMRA has begun an internal analysis of the legislation, to include consultations with key external stakeholders for early indications of potential issues, with broader public consultation at a later date. Concurrent activities related to the PCPA review were covered: the Post-Market Pesticide Re-evaluation Program, the Pest Control Products Regulations, Cost Recovery, and Label improvement initiatives. Information on previous and proposed amendments to the PCPA since 2017 was also provided.
This was followed by questions and comments from members. Elements discussed included exploring cross-sectorial linkages for increased sales and use data, focussing on cumulative risk assessment, and allowing sufficient timing for PMAC and stakeholders to consider proposed legislative changes.
PMAC members agreed to make a recommendation to the Minister.
Pesticide label improvement initiatives
Ms. Aura Pantieras, Director, Submission and Information Management Division, and Mr. Jordan Hancey, Director, Policy and Regulatory Affairs, provided an overview of PMRA’s ongoing label improvement initiative. This included a comparison of the current state of labels, and a work plan with key milestones for a future vision for labels that would incorporate the right authorities, lean business processes, modern IT tools, and be easily understandable to both users and the public. The expected outcomes are improved health and environmental protection, greater transparency and operational efficiency, and greater international collaboration on harmonization, culminating in an electronic label system expected to reduce burden.
This was followed by questions and comments from members. Elements discussed included the consideration of standardizing labels across platforms, i.e., E-labels, product labels, and in decision documents, to avoid contradictory information.
PMAC members agreed to make a recommendation to the Minister.
Video presentation and poster exhibit
Posters were displayed during the meeting to provide information about PMRA scientific activities. Authors were present to discuss their work with PMAC members.
The video entitled “Pesticides: What do Health Canada scientists do?” was presented. The presentation was followed by feedback from members.
Public comment period
A public comment was given. They acknowledged PMRA’s need for pesticide use data, questioned the usefulness of sales data, expressed support for ways to mitigate the cost of water sampling. They expressed concern about people using pest control products under remote supervision of license holders, and made a comment on approaches to re-evaluations and special reviews.
Participant list
Chair
Tom Beaver, Management Consultant and Advisory
Council Members/ Alternates
Barb McKinnon, New Brunswick Lung Association
Frank Annau, Canadian Federation of Agriculture
Jason Smith, Canadian Horticulture Council (alternate)
Karsten Liber, University of Saskatchewan
Kathleen Cooper, Canadian Environmental Law Association
Paleah Black Moher, Ecotox Consulting Services
Pierre Petelle, CropLife Canada
Shannon Coombs, Canadian Consumer Specialty Products Association
Toni Grewal, Health and Safety Officer, British Columbia Teachers’ Federation
Regrets
Rebecca Lee, Canadian Horticultural Council
Assembly of First Nations’ representative
Executive Secretariat
Richard Aucoin, Executive Director, Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA)
PMRA Secretariat
Geneviève Crête, Stakeholder Relations, Policy, Communications and Regulatory Affairs Directorate (PCRAD)
Holly Campbell, Stakeholder Relations, PCRAD
Natalie Lamarche, Stakeholder Relations, PCRAD
PMRA Representatives
Adam Colley, Senior evaluator, Registration Directorate (RD)
Aura Pantieras, Director, Submission and Information Management Division, RD
Glenna Somers, Associate Director, Transformation, RD
Janice Villeneuve, Section Head, Environmental Assessment Directorate (EAD)
Jason Flint, Director General, Policy, Communications and Regulatory Affairs Directorate (PCRAD)
Jordan Hancey, Director Regulatory Affairs and Applied Analysis, PCRAD
Lars Juergensen, Associate Director, Transformation Policy, PCRAD
Margherita Conti, Director General, Value Assessment and Re-Evaluation Management Directorate (VRD)
Mireille Prud’homme, Section Head, Stakeholder Relations, PCRAD
My-Yen Yu, Senior Policy Analyst, Transformation Policy, PCRAD
Scott Kirby, Director General, Environmental Assessment Directorate (EAD)
Regi Mathew, Section Head, Re-evaluation Review Section, VRD
Robert Asare-Danso, Section Head, Program Management Section, Compliance, Lab Services and Regional Operations Directorate (CLSROD)
Susan Wong, Manager, Business Analysis, Data Management and Protection Section, RD
Tina Singal, Acting Section Head, Agricultural Stakeholder Engagement Section, VRD
Titus Tao, Senior Policy Analyst, Transformation Policy, PCRAD
In camera session
The PMAC members went over their input to the Minister of Heath.
Closing remarks
In closing, Mr. Tom Beaver and Dr. Aucoin thanked members for their input and advice to Health Canada.
Next meeting will be scheduled for spring 2020 in Ottawa, date to be determined.
2019 Recommendations to the Minister of Health
PMAC Membership
The Pest Management Advisory Council is a multi-stakeholder advisory body that fosters dialogue amongst stakeholders and with Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency. The membership consists of individuals who provide a balanced representation of interest in pesticide regulatory issues. It includes pesticide manufacturers; pesticide users; environmental and health related interest groups; and, individuals from academia and research institutions with relevant expertise.
In 2013, the number of appointed PMAC members was reduced from 23 to 12. PMAC noted that presently, with 11 appointed members, representation is lacking in various key areas implicated by the pesticide regulatory system. The Council reports directly to the Minister of Health and decisions relating to the Council, including membership review and appointments, are made by the Minister.
Recommendation:
- That the Minister appoint additional members with expertise in public health, biodiversity and the Canadian grain sector.
Transformation and re-evaluation
As noted in the preamble of the Pest Control Products Act (PCPA), pest management plays a significant role in diverse areas of the economy – including domestic and export-oriented agriculture – and other aspects of the quality of life throughout Canada. The Council expressed significant concerns that the PMRA is not adequately resourced to deliver Health Canada’s legal obligations under the PCPA, and more particularly to support its post-market re-evaluation program. In the coming years, it is expected that PMRA’s Post-Market Pesticide Re-evaluation Program will face a significant increase in workload pressures. If not addressed, the credibility of Canada’s regulation of pest control products is threatened.
PMAC recognizes that PMRA has initiated a fulsome review of the post-market program in order to determine ways to ensure a more sustainable program.
Recommendations:
- That additional resources be committed to PMRA. A significant re-investment is needed in the next federal budget to ensure the PMRA has the capacity to properly implement the Pest Control Products Act including ongoing improvement of the re-evaluation program.
- That a renewed re-evaluation program maintain some degree of cyclical oversight for all pesticides and that new approaches to prioritizing the re-evaluation of higher-risk pesticides are implemented.
Water monitoring
PMAC members reiterated advice from the 2016 and 2017 meetings citing the need for robust water monitoring data, which is vital to supporting Health Canada’s regulatory decision making for pesticides.
PMAC recognizes that in the last two years, PMRA has made great strides with respect to establishing a database of human health and environmental reference values.
Recommendations:
- That dedicated funding be allocated to relevant departments for the creation of a permanent national water monitoring program that will provide pesticide monitoring data of a uniform standard throughout Canada.
- That consideration be given to water monitoring program models that would leverage participation of academia such as the National Air Pollution Surveillance (NAPS) Program.
- That the Minister support PMRA’s efforts to publish Aquatic Life Reference Values and Human Health Reference Values to facilitate greater transparency and monitoring of pesticides in Canadian surface and ground water.
Legislative review
Every 7 years, the PCPA stands referred to a committee of one or of both Houses of Parliament for a comprehensive review of the Act’s provisions and operation. Upon completion of its review, this parliamentary committee may recommend changes to the Act or its administration.
Given the importance of this legislation to Canadians, PMAC wishes to review the provisions of the Act and its administration in advance of the statutory review by Parliament.
Recommendation:
- That the next annual PMAC meeting be held well in advance of June 29th, 2020, when the Pest Control Products Actwill stand referred to a committee of parliament for statutory review.
Labelling of pest control products
Recognizing PMRA’s responsibilities to prevent unacceptable risks to both human health and the environment, PMAC reiterated the importance of product labels as a regulatory instrument and communication tool.
Recommendation:
- That, in consultation with stakeholders, PMRA continue its efforts on pesticide label improvement initiatives given the importance of labels as regulatory instruments.