Ministerial Conditions for Three New Chemicals

Summary#

This Canada Gazette issue (Part I, Vol. 159, No. 37, published September 13, 2025) contains several government notices from the federal Environment department and others. It includes three ministerial conditions that allow the manufacture or import of specific new chemicals under set requirements (effective September 4, 2025), a set of waivers from testing or information requirements granted to several companies, descriptions of newly identified critical habitat for four species that will receive added protection after 90 days, and separate notices from other departments about a spectrum auction and a change to Library and Archives Canada’s fees.

What it does#

• Allows manufacture or import, with conditions, for three new chemical substances under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999:
  • Substance with CAS number 832720-36-2 (ministerial condition No. 22269).
  • Substance with CAS number 1310726-60-3 (ministerial condition No. 22270).
  • Substance with CAS number 1374248-77-7 (ministerial condition No. 22274).
  • Common conditions include: give the government 120 days notice before starting manufacture in Canada; provide information on expected quantities, site address, storage/transport, likely environmental releases, disposal methods and manufacturing process details; immediate action and notification if a release occurs; transfer only to parties who acknowledge the conditions; and keep records for five years.
• Grants waivers that let some companies skip parts of the usual testing or data they would otherwise have to provide for new living organisms or chemicals. Examples of recipients named include Cytophage Technologies Inc., Novozymes Canada Limited, Sanofi Pasteur Limited and BASF Canada Inc. (the notices list many others and the specific tests waived).
• Identifies critical habitat for several species under the Species at Risk Act. The protection (an added layer of legal effect) will apply 90 days after the notice for habitat found within these federally managed wildlife areas:
  • Chestnut-collared Longspur — areas in the Longspur National Wildlife Area.
  • Slender Mouse-ear-cress — areas in the Canadian Forces Base Suffield National Wildlife Area and Great Sandhills National Wildlife Area.
  • Sprague’s Pipit and Swift Fox — areas in the Longspur National Wildlife Area.
• Announces, from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, a notice about a 2026 auction of residual radio spectrum licences (rules, licences available, and how to ask clarification questions are set out).
• Announces that Library and Archives Canada has repealed its old reprography (copy) fee schedule from 2005 and will publish a revised copy service fee schedule on its website.

Who's affected#

• Companies that notified these specific new substances or plan to manufacture/import them in Canada — including the original notifiers who provided information on August 27, 2025.
• Chemical manufacturers, importers, distributors and anyone who would receive or handle these substances (they must follow the notice, record-keeping and transfer rules).
• The named companies that received waivers (for example, Cytophage Technologies Inc., Novozymes Canada Limited, Sanofi Pasteur Limited, BASF Canada Inc.) — and other firms in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and chemical sectors that might seek similar waivers.
• People, landowners, conservation groups and managers of the Longspur, Canadian Forces Base Suffield and Great Sandhills National Wildlife Areas in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, where critical habitat protections will apply.
• Telecom companies and potential bidders interested in the 2026 spectrum auction.
• Researchers, historians and members of the public who use Library and Archives Canada copy services (they will see a new fee schedule posted).

Why it matters#

• The ministerial conditions let new or imported chemicals enter Canada but attach rules meant to limit environmental and human exposure and to ensure traceability. That affects workplace safety, waste handling and emergency response for those chemicals.
• Waivers can speed up development or import by reducing testing requirements for companies. That may lower costs or speed market entry, but it can also mean less publicly available test data about environmental or health effects.
• Describing critical habitat for at-risk species brings an extra level of protection in those federal wildlife areas. That can influence what activities are allowed there (for example, some land uses or developments may be restricted or need extra review).
• The spectrum auction affects which companies can offer wireless services and can influence competition, service quality and prices for consumers.
• Repealing the old reprography fees at Library and Archives Canada may change how much it costs to order copies of archival material and signals a modernization of how the institution charges for those services.