Bill C-684

2nd Session, 41st Parliament,

62-63-64 Elizabeth II, 2013-2014-2015

house of commons of canada

BILL C-684

An Act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (microplastics)

Whereas plastic does not biodegrade like other organic materials, but rather, upon exposure to the elements, photodegrades into smaller pieces causing land and water pollution that is impossible to remediate;

Whereas plastic pollution is the dominant type of anthropogenic debris found throughout the marine environment;

Whereas plastic pollution is an environmental and human health hazard and a public nuisance;

Whereas consumer personal care products such as facial scrubs, soaps and toothpaste increasingly contain thousands of microplastic particles, ranging from 50 to 500 microns in size, that are flushed down household drains on a daily basis as part of their intended use;

Whereas microplastics used in personal care products are not recoverable through ordinary wastewater treatment and consequently are released into the environment;

Whereas microplastics of the size found in personal care products are ingested by marine organisms;

Whereas microplastics are persistent organic compounds that attract other pollutants commonly present in the environment, many of which are recognized to have serious deleterious impacts on human health or the environment, including DDT, DDE, PCBs, and chemicals with flame-retardant properties;

Whereas microplastics have been found in the inland waters of North America, as well as in the fish, marine mammals and reptiles and in the digestive and circulatory systems of the mussels and worms living in those waters;

Whereas PAHs, PCBs and PBDEs from plastic transfer to fish tissue during digestion and bioaccumulate in the tissue, resulting in liver damage;

Whereas fish that are frequently consumed by humans have been found to ingest microplastics;

Whereas scientists based at the Vancouver Aquarium and the University of Victoria have discovered high concentrations of microplastics in the coastal waters of British Columbia and in the marine fauna found in those waters;

Whereas studies have shown that microplastic contamination is also present in the Great Lakes;

Whereas researchers from McGill University and the Government of Quebec have discovered microplastics in the St. Lawrence River in a concentration equivalent to that of the world’s most contaminated ocean sediments;

Whereas researchers from Dartmouth College in New Hampshire have discovered widespread microplastic contamination in Arctic waters as a result of the transportation of microplastic pollution by ocean currents;

Whereas increasing quantities of microplastics contained within glaciers are being released into Arctic waters as a result of an increase in Arctic temperatures due to climate change;

Whereas this microplastic pollution is unnecessary because there are many natural, biodegradable and economically feasible alternatives to microplastics, as evidenced by their use in existing consumer personal care products;

Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

1. The Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 is amended by adding the following after section 119:

2. Paragraph 272(1)(c) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(c) contravenes a prohibition imposed under subsection 82(1) or (2), paragraph 84(1)(b), subsection 107(1) or (2), paragraph 109(1)(b), section 119.2 or subsection 186(1) or 225(4);