Release of Lead to the Atmosphere

Act: Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, c. 33, S.C.
Regulation: Secondary Lead Smelter Release Regulations, SOR/91-155, as amended

To Whom Does This Apply?

Plants or factories in which lead-bearing scrap or lead-bearing materials, other than lead-bearing concentrates derived from a mining operation, are processed by metallurgical or chemical process into refined lead, lead alloys or lead oxide.

Eligible Activities

Processing of lead-bearing materials.

Summary

The 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. Its 12 parts include powers and provisions to:

• require the Minister to undertake environmental research and to develop environmental quality objectives, guidelines and codes of practices for federal entities, industry and business;
• assess new substances before they enter the Canadian marketplace;
• regulate toxic substances, fuels, and air emissions from the engines of motor vehicles as well as the engines of other equipment;
• regulate the export and import as well as interprovincial movement of hazardous wastes, hazardous recyclable material, and non-hazardous wastes that are identified by regulation and destined for final disposal;
• regulate nutrients;
• regulate animate products of biotechnology;
• regulate the environmental effects of federal operations;
• regulate Canadian sources of international air and international water pollution, in specified circumstances;
• regulate disposal of wastes at sea;
• enforce the Act and its regulations; and
• conclude agreements of various types with provincial, territorial and aboriginal governments, as well as with aboriginal people.

Environment Canada administers the Act on behalf of the federal government, but, for the assessment of substances that are new to Canada and for toxic substances, develops regulations jointly with Health Canada. Health Canada also has a role in determining whether or not a Canadian source is contributing to international air or international water pollution. All enforcement activities for CEPA 1999 and its regulations are, however, under the authority of Environment Canada.

The original regulations became effective on August 1, 1976 in accordance with Section 7 of the Clean Air Act. Consequent to Canadian Environmental Protection Act of 1988, the Secondary Lead Smelter Regulations were published on 21 February, 1991. The regulations limit discharges of particulate matter, and define monitoring and reporting requirements. The regulations ensure that all regulated sources in Canada apply limits based on the best practical technology available at the time the original regulations were promulgated in 1976 and limit emissions to the limits specified.

The specified limits are: (a) 0.046 grams per normal cubic metre, in the case of operations involving the use of blast furnaces, coupolas or reverberatory furnaces and (b) 0.023 grams per normal cubic metre, in the case of operations involving the use of holding furnaces, kettle furnaces or lead oxide production units or involving scrap handling and material handling, crushing, furnace tapping, furnace slagging, furnace cleaning or casting, whether released separately or in combination with releases from other sources, measured dry and undiluted in accordance with the method described in Standard Reference Methods for Source Testing.

Products Exempted

Lead-bearing concentrates derived from mining operations.

Requirements

The Regulations limit the concentration of lead in particulates emitted from specified sources.

Other Related Documents

Standard Reference Methods for Source Testing: Measurement of Emissions of Particulate Matter and Lead from Secondary Lead Smelters, Department of the Environment Report EPS-1-AP-78-3 dated June 1979, as amended from time to time.

• National Office of Pollution Prevention
• Environmental Acts, Regulations and Agreements

• CEPA Secondary Lead Smelter Release Regulations

DISCLAIMER
Information contained in this section is of a general nature only and is not intended to constitute advice for any specific fact situation. For particular questions, the users are invited to contact their lawyer. For additional information, see contact(s) listed below.

New Brunswick Contact(s):
See National Contact.

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National Contact(s):
Environmental Protection Publications Centre
Environment Canada
Telephone: 613-953-5921 or 613-953-5750
Fax: 819-953-7253
Web site: http://www.ec.gc.ca/envhome.html

Mr. Patrick Finlay
Director, Minerals and Metals Branch
Pollution Prevention Directorate
Environmental Protection Service
Environment Canada
Place Vincent Massey
351 Saint-Joseph Boulevard
Gatineau, Quebec  K1A 0H3
Telephone: (819) 953-1103
Fax: (819) 953-5053
E-mail: Patrick.Finlay@ec.gc.ca
Web site: http://www.ec.gc.ca/envhome.html