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Overview of Existing Substances Program
at Environment Canada
The Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA 1999) is one of the primary
tools used to prevent and reduce threats posed to Canadians and the Canadian
environment by substances used or released by our society. CEPA 1999 provides
for the assessment and management of substances that can enter into the Canadian
environment. It ensures the protection of the environment and the health of
Canadians from exposure to "toxic" substances. Under Section 64 of
CEPA, a substance is defined as “toxic” if it enters or may enter
the environment in amounts or under conditions that may pose a risk to human
health, the environment or its biological diversity, or to the environment that
supports life. Risk managers within Environment Canada and Health Canada use
the results generated by risk assessments to develop suitable responses under
CEPA 1999 to manage the risks posed by toxic substances.
Environment Canada and Health Canada, through the Existing Substances Program,
jointly identify, prioritize, and assess the risks resulting from existing substances.
An existing substance is one that has been or is currently used in Canada as
a commercial substance or product, or is released into the Canadian environment
on its own or as an effluent, mixture or a contaminant.
The Existing Substances Division (ESD) at Environment Canada performs the following
activities to establish whether or not specific substances may threaten human
health or the environment and should be considered for risk management:
- Identifies substances for risk assessment -- Candidates are identified
through seven mechanisms (feeders): 1) categorization of the Domestic Substances
List (DSL), 2) industry-supplied information, 3) provincial or international
decisions prohibiting or restricting substances, CEPA 1999), 4) public nominations
to the Priority Substances List, 5) assessment of “new” substances
similar to existing substances (for more information, please refer to the
website of New Substances Division at Environment Canada at http://www.ec.gc.ca/substances/nsb/eng/neo_e.htm),
6) emerging science and monitoring, and 7) international assessment or data
collection.
- Collects and manages data -- To support the identification of substances
justifying risk assessment and risk management activities, ESD generates and
collects scientific and technical information on the properties and amounts,
concentrations, or nature of entry of any given substance in the Canadian
environment, and monitors activities taking place elsewhere. Information or
activities from the public domain, other federal departments, provinces and
territories, other countries, industry, and science research programs is compiled,
organized, and tracked.
- Sets priorities for assessments -- Once candidate substances have been identified,
ESD focuses its resources on those most urgently needing assessment. This
ensures an effective and efficient assessment process, and provides the risk
management program with the means to effectively manage priorities.
- Conducts risk assessments -- When substances have been identified and priorities
established, ESD reviews information and proposes decisions on substances
in the Canadian environment. This involves problem formulation, entry assessment,
exposure assessment, effects assessment, and risk characterization. ESD invites
external scientific and technical experts from various groups to participate
in the risk assessment process.
- Coordinates and integrates information -- ESD consults, liaises, and coordinates
with provincial, territorial, and aboriginal governments, other federal departments
and programs, stakeholders, international organizations, and other countries.
- Ensures communications -- ESD is committed to a well-understood, open and
accountable process. This ensures that concerns of all Canadians are heard
and ESD is abreast of emerging issues to make its endeavours and decisions
intelligible to the public.
For more information on the Existing Substances Program in Health Canada, please
refer to their website at http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ewh-semt/contaminants/existsub/index_e.html.
Through these various tools, Environment Canada and Health Canada are able
to provide a scientifically rigorous, open and transparent process for assessing
and communicating the potential risks posed by existing substances in Canada.
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