Multilateral Environmental Agreements

Canada-U.S.A Agreement on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste

Status
Objectives
Commitments
National Framework
Evidence of Compliance

Status

Signed October 28, 1986
Entered into force November 8, 1986
The Agreement renews itself every 5 years unless one of the Parties gives written notice of termination.

Amendment to the Agreement came into force November 25, 1992 to ensure consistency with Annex II of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (Basel Convention) with the inclusion of “other wastes”.

The Canada-USA Agreement is recognized as an Article 11 bilateral agreement under the Basel Convention which allows the continued movement between the two countries of hazardous waste, hazardous recyclable material and other wastes, since the United States is not a Party to the Convention.

Objectives

The Agreement is intended to ensure that movements of hazardous wastes, hazardous recyclable materials, and municipal solid waste, destined for final disposal crossing the Canada-United States boundary, are conducted so as to reduce the risks to human health and the environment.

The Agreement is based on the same principles as the Basel Convention, while recognizing the proximity principle. The Basel Convention‘s key objectives are to:

• Minimize the generation of hazardous wastes;
• Ensure they are disposed in an environmentally sound manner and as close to the source of generation as possible;
• Reduce the international movement of hazardous wastes.

Commitments

The Agreement requires Canada to:

• co-operate to ensure, to the extent possible, that all transboundary shipments of hazardous wastes/hazardous recyclable materials and other waste comply with tracking requirements of both countries;
• co-operate in monitoring and spot-checking transboundary shipments of hazardous wastes/hazardous recyclagle materials and other waste;
• notify the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) of proposed transboundary shipments of hazardous wastes, or hazardous recyclable materials;
• immediately transmit in writing an acknowledgement of receipt (AOR) to export notices received from the USEPA;
• respond, indicating its consent or its objection to the export, within 30 days after transmitting the AOR to notices from the USEPA of proposed shipments of hazardous wastes, or hazardous recyclable materials and other waste, otherwise the US will consider that there is no objection to the export described in the notice and the export may take place;
• permit the export, import, and transit of hazardous wastes, hazardous recyclable materials and other waste across the Canada-United States border for treatment, storage, recycling, or disposal pursuant to terms of Canadian or American laws, regulations, and administrative practices and the terms of this Agreement; and
• re-admit shipments of hazardous wastes, hazardous recyclable materials and other waste returned by the country of import or transit;
• notify the USEPA of any Canadian shipments transiting through the territory of the United States, ie. Canada to Canada movements via the US.

National Framework

The Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA 1999) and Export and Import of Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Recyclable Material Regulations (2005) provide the legal authority to implement the 1986 Agreement. The federal Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act and Regulations is used to assist in the implementation of the prescribed hazards classification scheme for wastes and recyclable materials that are hazardous.

Environment Canada administers the CEPA provisions and enforces the Act and Regulations, in collaboration with Canada Border Services Agency, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the provinces, other enforcement agencies and U.S. officials.

CEPA 1999 provides the legal authority to apply the export/import requirements to municipal solid waste destined for final disposal, as required by the 1992 amendments to the Agreement. In February 2006, Environment Canada posted a discussion paper as part of the continued public consultations on proposed regulatory provisions for the export, import and transit of non-hazardous waste destined for final disposal. It is anticipated that the proposed regulatory provisions will be published in the Canada Gazette, Part I in 2007/08. Stakeholders will have an additional opportunity to comment on the proposed regulatory provisions at that time.

Evidence of Compliance

Environment Canada (EC) has modernized the federal regulatory framework related to the international movements of hazardous waste and hazardous recyclable material and is beginning its development of a regulatory framework for the international movement of non hazardous waste. Information related to transboundary movement data of hazardous waste and hazardous recyclable material can be found in the RESILOG newsletter which is posted on the Internet at: (http://www.ec.gc.ca/tmb/resilog/eng/resinews.htm)

Obtaining Copies of Relevant Publications

A copy of the Agreement can be obtained from the Canadian Government Publishing Centre, Ottawa, Ontario K1A OS9; telephone (819) 997-2560; or from the Waste Management Division, Environment Canada, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0H3; telephone (819) 997-3377.

The text of the 1992 Amendment to the Agreement can be found via Internet at: http://www.ec.gc.ca/tmb/eng/tmbcanusaag_e.html

User guides on the Export and Import of Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Recyclable Material Regulations can be found at http://www.ec.gc.ca/tmb/eng/EIHWHRM_Information_e.html