Cost Recovery

Status of the New Substances Fees Regulations (NSFR)

December 2002

The New Substances Fees Regulations, developed under section 328 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) 1999, were approved by the Ministers of Environment Canada and Health Canada, and published in the Canada Gazette, Part II, on November 6, 2002.

The date of implementation for the New Substances Fees Regulations is January 1^st, 2003.

From this date forward, all notifiers will be required to pay the prescribed fees at the time of their notification or when a special service is requested. Environment Canada will be responsible for administering the regulations. These fees recover part of the cost of processing and assessing notifications for new chemicals and polymers.

Publication in Canada Gazette, Part I

The proposed New Substances Fees Regulations were pre-published in Canada Gazette, Part 1, on June 30, 2001, for a 60-day public comment period ending August 29, 2001.

An advisory note advising of the 60-day comment period was also published.

Both documents can be found on the New Substances Web site, and on the CEPA Environmental Registry Web site.

Outcome of 60-Day Comment Period and Environment Canada’s Response

Comments on the proposed New Substances Fees Regulations were received from several industry stakeholders.

Comments received included a Notice of Objection and a request that a Board of Review be established. The Minister of the Environment chose not to establish a Board of Review as this is not an appropriate mechanism under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA, 1999) to address matters of cost recovery.

Environment Canada’s response to the comments received from stakeholders can be found on the New Substances Web site, and on the CEPA Environmental Registry Web site.

Advisory Note

An advisory note is posted on the CEPA Registry Web site and on the New Substances website, containing information on the application and structure of the Fees Regulations, and the refund policy.

Next Steps

A Guide to the New Substances Fees Regulations will be made available to assist notifiers in understanding the regulations and in determining the applicable fee for a notification assessment.

An Industry/Government Advisory Panel is being established to develop an evaluation framework for the Fees Regulations and, in consultation with stakeholders, to re-examine the fee structure as required. The Advisory Panel will also be tasked with further exploring opportunities for further improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the New Substances Program.

For more information please contact the New Substances Division at 1-800-567-1999, or by fax at 819-953-7155.