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Implementing Pollution Prevention in CanadaJohn
de Gonzague Abstract: Environment Canada uses a range of approaches to protect the environment including legislation, regulations, guidelines, codes of practice, economic instruments, partnerships with the private sector, informational tools, voluntary programs, and implementing international agreements. The purpose of this paper is to present the legislative, policy, and program elements of Canada's national pollution prevention strategy. It will provide a background and general evolution of pollution prevention within the Canadian context, as well as providing an overview of regulatory and non-regulatory approaches in engaging various sectors to practice pollution prevention. Lastly, it will provide concrete examples of how governments are developing and implementing pollution prevention initiatives. Keywords: pollution prevention, policy, Canada IntroductionThe pollution prevention approach has been in use in some Canadian companies for over 30 years. Yet, this approach has not become well known and practiced more widely until recently. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, the reliance on command and control regulations by government, and the insistence by the majority of industry on separate decision-making for production processes and for waste management made acceptance of a pollution prevention approach difficult. Yet, the high cost of waste management, of treatment systems, and of add-on pollution control made the need to consider changes to production processes, feedstocks, design features of products more urgent. Over time, a large, experienced environmental industry sector grew stronger in Canada, one that was focused mainly on waste management. This too tended to perpetuate the status quo. Within the last decade, however, ollution prevention has been clearly defined and promoted as a Canadian strategy. Its use is becoming more commonplace, and many in the environmental industry recognize and promote its benefits. Canadian Environmental Policy Context The Canadian commitment to the concept of Sustainable Development in the 1980s provided the basis for a shift from pollution control to pollution prevention. It was clear that the need to integrate environmental and economic considerations required a new approach to environmental protection. It was also clear that public debate was needed to effect the change in behavior required to make pollution prevention happen. There was a need to address inter-jurisdictional matters within Canada, to maintain and increase Canada's competitiveness and productivity, and to understand the views and interests of industry, industry associations, organized labour, and environmental non-government organizations. This happened through meetings, workshops and conferences where peoples views, perspectives and expectations were voiced. The first major public policy statement providing substance to pollution prevention came from the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment. In A National Commitment to Pollution Prevention (November 1993), Ministers of the provincial, federal and territorial governments set the stage to advance pollution prevention within their jurisdictions through leadership, partnerships, information sharing, and legislative and regulatory measures. This policy direction was further entrenched in June 1995 with the release of Pollution Prevention - A Federal Strategy for Action, a Cabinet-approved federal policy statement. It included a comprehensive action plan to:
Each federal government department contributes to the annual Canadian Progress in Pollution Prevention report outlining achievements in these areas. This process of documenting progress maintains the high priority given to this federal policy. Concurrently, the Government of Canada announced its Toxic Substances Management Policy. The policy is preventive and precautionary in nature. It calls for: "virtual elimination from the environment of toxic substances that result predominantly from human activity and that are persistent and bioaccumulative; and, management of other toxic substances and substances of concern, throughout their entire life cycles, to prevent or minimize their release into the environment."2 The policy establishes a framework for making science-based decisions on the effective management of toxic substances. This was followed in May 1996 with A Strategy to Fulfil the CCME Commitment to Pollution Prevention. In the strategy the Council of Ministers outline their vision for pollution prevention in Canada and establish the goal to make pollution prevention the strategy of choice for protecting the environment and improving economic competitiveness.3 Definition of Pollution Prevention A critical aspect of the discussions on pollution prevention in Canada focused on definition. This more than any other issue had the potential to bring policy development to a standstill. On the one hand labour and environmental groups wanted pollution prevention to be restricted to activity or changes that occurred at the source of pollution, while some industries and governments wanted the definition of pollution prevention to include all aspects of waste management and pollution control. Central to this debate were two aspects fundamental to the definition of pollution prevention - use reduction and recycling. Certain opinion leaders wanted to exclude the 'toxics use reduction approach' as a means of achieving pollution prevention goals, preferring to promote safe use and recycling of toxic substances and other substances of concern. After much public deliberation, decisions were made by governments in Canada to use a definition that would include use reduction among the many other pollution prevention techniques available. The Canadian pollution prevention policy is also clear that pollution prevention is part of a broader environmental protection effort that includes the need to recycle and to manage wastes properly. The Canadian Government defines pollution prevention as: "The use of processes, practices, materials, products, substances or energy that avoid or minimize the creation of pollutants and waste, and reduce the overall risk to human health and the environment.”4 With some minor wording differences, the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment essentially adopted the same definition. This fundamental shift from emphasizing waste management to concentrating efforts on minimizing the creation of pollutants and wastes provides a sound basis in Canada for the integration of economic and environmental decision-making. It focuses decision-making on eradicating the causes of pollution, on modernizing production equipment, on product design, on using less toxic substances, and on averting environmental risk and associated liability concerns. It has both demand side and supply side implications. The underlying rationale of pollution prevention is that it is more cost-effective, more socially acceptable and more efficient in reducing risk of harm to human health and the environment. Canadian Pollution Prevention LegislationDuring this policy development period, work was also underway to renew the 1988 Canadian Environmental Protection Act. The June 1995 report of the Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development entitled It's About Our Health! Towards Pollution Prevention, set the foundation for a new act centered directly on pollution prevention. This Parliamentary Committee spent 12 months interviewing Canadians from all walks of life. The end result was a report with 141 recommendations providing the federal government with strong direction to strengthen federal legislation dealing with environmental protection. The New Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA, 1999) is an Act respecting pollution prevention and the protection of the environment and human health in order to contribute to sustainable development.4 Canadian environmental legislation is found at every level of government in Canada - federal, provincial and municipal. CEPA, 1999 is fundamental to the federal government role in dealing with toxic substances and with implementation of Canada international and transboundary environmental responsibilities. This Act has unique features directly related to the implementation of pollution prevention. Some of these features are highlighted below: Pollution Prevention Plans - Toxic Substances Pollution prevention planning is a new authority in federal legislation in Canada. The Minister of the Environment has been given direct authority to require anyone who conducts an activity related to a toxic substance to prepare and implement a pollution prevention plan. The Minister sets the overall timelines for preparation and implementation, specifies what factors are to be considered in preparing the plan and sets the form, manner and content of the declarations that must be filed. People required to prepare and implement plans can set their own objectives and timelines within the overall direction provided by the Minister. All information, except for the individual detailed pollution prevention plans, is made public, subject to some confidentiality provisions. There are also provisions for individual extensions to deadlines. Since these provisions are not regulatory (that is, individual facilities can decide to set objectives that are below or above government expectations), the process for issuing the requirement to prepare and implement plans can be done in a matter of months rather than the three or more years it can take to bring in regulations. Therefore, by using pollution prevention planning, industry benefits from the freedom to chose facility-specific solutions with a timetable that can match capital stock replacement requirements. The Canadian public benefits by getting preventive and control activities initiated faster. As well, community involvement is encouraged through the decision to make baseline information on discharges and proposed solutions regarding each facility available to the public. The process government uses for requiring pollution prevention plans is set in Guidelines for the Implementation of the Pollution Prevention Planning Provisions of Part 4 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA 1999). It is an open and transparent process that involves interested parties in setting the requirements to prepare and implement plans. These consultations are part of the Canadian way of doing government business. Where pollution prevention planning does not achieve expected results, CEPA, 1999 has strong regulatory provisions that can be used. Pollution Prevention Plans - International Air & Water Pollutants In addition to this authority to require plans for substances that are toxic, the Government of Canada can require the preparation and implementation of pollution prevention plans for polluting substances that contribute to air or water pollution in another country. These provisions would be used by the federal government only if provincial governments in Canada declined to take action with regard to sources of pollution within their jurisdictions. These provisions extend to polluting substances that have not been declared toxic under CEPA, 1999. This is important as the process for declaring a substance toxic is elaborate and time-consuming. Environmental Emergency Plans Where pollution prevention planning deals with expected operational releases, the Act also provides the Minister with the authority to require the preparation of environmental emergency plans. The provisions are similar to those related to pollution prevention plans and will ensure that facilities are ready to deal with spills and other types of emergency situation. Waste Reduction Plans Relating to the export of hazardous and non-hazardous waste, the Minister can require exporters to prepare and implement plans to reduce or phase out the export of specified waste. The Minister can refuse to issue a permit to an exporter who does not comply. Risk Assessment and Management of Toxic Substances Beyond pollution prevention planning, the Act provides for the assessment of any substance new to Canada before commercial use is permitted. Through this assessment, conditions can be imposed to ensure that risk to human health and the environment is minimized. The Minister can also refuse commercial use of specific substances where warranted. The Act also requires the Ministers of Environment and Health to identify all inherently toxic substances from among the 23,000 substances on the Domestic Substances List and to further assess those that are also identified as either persistent or bioaccumulative. The determination of inherent toxicity, persistence and bioaccumulation must be done by 2006. Information on high volume and high production substances must also be gathered within the same timeframe. The expectation is that from the substances that are assessed for risk, 10 to 20 substances per year will be found to be entering the Canadian environment in quantities or concentrations that are a danger to human health or to the environment on which life depends, or that have immediate or long-term harmful effects on the environment. In such instances, the Ministers would consider adding these substances to the List of Toxic Substances. Adding a substance to the list would trigger a requirement for proposing preventive or control actions within 2 years and for initiating action within 18 months of actions being proposed. Other Pollution Prevention Provisions The above are highlights of the pollution prevention aspects of CEPA, 1999. Other pollution prevention provisions of the Act provide for a pollutant release/pollutant transfer information program, the prohibition of disposal at sea except through permit, the regulation of fuels (concentration or quantities of an element, component or additive in a fuel, etc.), the control of vehicle, engine and equipment emissions, as well as regulation of government operations and federal and aboriginal lands. Municipal Regulatory InitiativesToronto Pollution Prevention Sewer Use By-law The city of Toronto is the first municipality in Canada to incorporate pollution prevention planning requirements into the Sewer Use By-law. The by-law requires industries to carry out pollution prevention planning in order to a) improve water quality b) control toxic metals and organics and c) improve biosolids quality. Eleven metals and twenty-seven organic compounds are addressed. The by-law also requires companies that discharge these chemicals to submit a detailed pollution prevention plan every six years as well as a summary plan every two years. The objective is to improve the operation and effectiveness of the treatment plants and to remove as much of these substances from the treatment plant sludge as possible. The city of Toronto holds pollution prevention training workshops for the industry sectors, has developed a guidance manual, has issued guidelines for completing the plans, and is developing a pollution prevention website as well as on-line submission of pollution prevention plan summary. Other cities in Canada are observing the Toronto project and are exploring the potential for similar by-laws. Municipal By-laws Restricting Pesticide Use The use of chemical pesticides on public and private lands in Canada is widespread, and many Canadians are concerned with the perceived or potential health effects on their children. Several Canadian municipalities have enacted new by-laws that enforce the reduction or elimination of pesticide use. Two large pesticide application companies brought one of these municipalities to court to strike down the by-law. They lost challenges to the by-law in two Quebec courts before appealing to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court of Canada on June 28, 2001 also upheld the by-law that banned the cosmetic use of pesticides within municipal boundaries including private property. The companies had argued that municipalities did not have the power to control local pesticide use. The Supreme Court held that the municipal by-law did not conflict with provincial legislation and complements federal legislation. The decision has broad implications for the use of pesticides across Canada, and for municipalities’ right to regulate themselves. This is a precedent-setting case in support of local pesticide reduction initiatives and is consistent with the precautionary principle. The City of Victoria provides a good example of use reduction. It initiated an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program with the goal of reducing the use of chemical pesticides. Pest problems are often symptomatic of ecological imbalances, and IPM attempts to plan and manage ecosystems to prevent organisms from becoming pests. As a result of the program, there has been a 97 per cent decrease in the use of chemical pesticides. Many non-governmental organizations are involved in the communities and municipal governments in the area of responsible pest management. A national strategy was developed by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), in the spring of 2000 to encourage responsible use of pesticides, encourage alternative pest management practices and make people aware of the possible effects of pesticide use. The decision to create a strategy recognized growing community concerns about human and ecosystem health, pest management costs, and initiation of individual municipal government programs to reduce pesticide use. Voluntary Programs The strengthened CEPA, 1999 provides an excellent legislative/regulatory base to encourage the use of voluntary pollution prevention programs. Without the ability and the political will to regulate, it is far less likely that voluntary initiatives would exist to any great extent. Surveys of businesses in Canada have shown that regulation or the threat of regulation is the primary factor in decisions to undertake environmental protection projects. As well, it is recognized by industry and governments that the regulatory approach can sometimes be burdensome, costly and slow. Industry leaders were looking for mechanisms to effectively reduce risk environmental and human health risks without the need for regulation. In the 1990s Canada gained experience with industry participation in a number of voluntary pollution prevention initiatives. By definition, participation in these programs was non-coercive although within industry associations there can be peer pressure to join and produce results. The ARET Program is an example of a successful Canadian voluntary emission reduction program. The Accelerated Reduction and Elimination of Toxics (ARET) program sought reductions of 90 per cent of 30 selected persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic substances (PBTs) as well as 50 per cent reductions in emissions of another 87 potentially harmful substances. Eight industry sectors plus governments participated including 316 facilities from 169 companies and government organizations. Participants have reported reductions of 26,358 tonnes of targeted substances to 1998 with reductions of 29,410 tonnes projected by end of 2000. Once final figures are in, it is expected that an overall reduction of 71 per cent will be achieved for PBTs (90 per cent reduction target). The 1998 numbers already show an overall 67 per cent reduction in emissions for substances with the 50 per cent target. Canada has also entered into successful pollution prevention agreements with specific industry sectors, notably Canadian vehicle manufacturers, vehicle parts manufacturers, chemical producers, metal finishers, dry cleaners, and the printing and graphics industry. For example, the Memorandum of Understanding signed with Ford, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler commits these companies to reduce and/or eliminate the use, generation and release of the agreed upon list of 65 substances 5 of concern. It has resulted in reduction or elimination of over 9400 tonnes of targeted substances, and over 300,000 tonnes of wastes and other substances. The Canadian Government, through reviews of the effectiveness of these voluntary programs, and because of views expressed that voluntary programs lacked some basic elements that are needed to engender public trust in such initiatives, investigated ways of improving such agreements. An inclusive consensus building consultation process was initiated to satisfy concerns and to provide the government with a policy framework for negotiating agreements that would provide Canadians with confidence that new voluntary programs would meet basic principles. Policy Framework for Environmental Performance Agreements In June 2001, after many months of discussion and consultation, the Minister of the Environment approved the Policy Framework of Environmental Performance Agreements. The four essential principles identified in the policy are a) effectiveness b) credibility c) transparency/accountability and d) efficiency. The policy framework also elaborates on eight essential design criteria:
In addition, the policy defines the government responsibilities regarding 1) when to use Environmental Performance Agreements, 2) provision of support and development of capacity, 3) provision of incentives to participate, 4) monitoring performance, and 5) action with regard to non-performance. Based on this policy framework, Canada is in the process of designing a new pollution prevention voluntary program which is expected to be officially announced this Fall. The proposed program will target action on toxic substances and other substances of concern. It will promote the use of pollution prevention planning and encourage the use of environmental management systems (EMS). It will also recognize companies that engage in promoting pollution prevention activity in their supply chain, that undertake mentoring activities, and that manage downstream activities such as through extended producer responsibility programs. The renewal of existing Memorandum of Understanding with major industry sectors and other such agreements will also be subject to the new policy framework. Assistance to Small and Medium Sized Companies Smaller companies make up a large majority of business in Canada. Many such enterprises do not have the resources readily available to invest in pollution prevention projects. The Toronto Region Sustainability Project and EnviroClub are two initiatives in Canada that are being used to address this problem. The successes demonstrated and the lessons learned will provide a basis for potential expansion of these efforts. The Toronto Region Sustainability Program aims to involve selected small and medium sized enterprises in pollution prevention planning, toxic reductions, smog reductions and eco-efficiency. It is intended to be a model for use in other areas of Canada. The program is an agreement between three levels of government (the Province of Ontario, the City of Toronto, and Environment Canada). OCETA (Ontario Centre for Environmental Technology Advancement) is contracted to run the project. It identifies businesses showing potential for this type of program, hires environmental consultants to conduct pollution prevention audits of participating businesses, identifies problems and potential solutions, and facilitates access to financing to undertake pollution prevention projects. Note that the facility audits are cost shared with participating businesses paying 50 per cent of the costs, while the costs of the pollution prevention projects undertaken at the facilities are the full responsibility of the participants. OCETA has put much effort into identifying potential candidates. An industrial sector community database analysis has been created to identify the industrial sectors having maximum environmental impacts on air and water quality. Data are compiled from several databases, reports, and emissions data. The categories reviewed are:
Once these data are collected and analyzed, consultation with government and environmental non-governmental organizations occur to determine those Target Sectors that pose the greatest potential concern for air, water and land pollution. Key sectors and companies that will be receptive to pollution prevention opportunities and assessment are identified. The program is then marketed to these potential participants stressing the benefits which include administrative simplicity, cost avoidance, capacity/knowledge building and solving environmental problems ahead of regulation. EnviroClub is a similar concept that was started by the federal Department of Environment in the Province of Quebec. The objective of EnviroClub is to help small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) improve their environmental performance, competitiveness and profitability. Because many pollution prevention projects have a return on investment that is attractive to small businesses, this has proven to be a strong marketing message. EnviroClub also cost-shares with participants the costs of environmental audits at facilities. Participants have the choice of implementing identified pollution prevention projects or of developing an environmental management system for the facility. The Department of the Environment is directly involved in the administration of this program and it reviews the choice of individual in-plant p2 projects, promotes the program, develops partnerships for financing and marketing, and engages large companies in the identification and recruiting of smaller businesses. Larger companies can see benefit in having the supply chain engaged in pollution prevention activities that stress quality control and cost-effective operation. One club with 12 facilities has completed that pollution prevention audit process and several have implemented projects. Based on this success, other regional or city based EnviroClub groups are being initiated. Conclusions The progress made in Canada to understand and adopt pollution prevention has come about through much dialogue. Many people stand to gain from widespread use of pollution prevention techniques and technologies. For some in the chemical and metals industry sectors, opportunity exists in creating and marketing alternatives to products that carry significant environmental and health risks. In all sectors, international competitiveness and productivity concerns make it essential that resources are used as efficiently as possible, that the growing environmental awareness of consumers is taken into account, and that the economic benefits of minimizing the creation of waste and pollutants are realized. The Canadian approach of developing strong pollution prevention policy at all levels of government has led to new effective legislation, and a commitment through regulatory and voluntary programs to reduce or eliminate waste and minimize the need for costly waste management. The commitment by governments has also reinforced a shift that has been taking place in large companies in Canada for many years now. Corporate environmental policies have embraced pollution prevention and the need to integrate environmental and economic decision-making. Canada's continuing challenge is to find the right mix of regulation and voluntary programs that will continue to provide Canadians with a healthy environment and a strong economy. The successes that we have had to date in pollution prevention have helped make Canada one of the best countries in the world to live in. AcknowledgmentsThe research and assistance of Kathi De of the National Office of Pollution Prevention and the review provided by Darcie O'Connor of the same Office were very much appreciated in the preparation of this paper.
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