No Further Action on 22 Acids and Bases

Summary#

The federal ministers in charge of environment and health published the final assessment of 22 chemicals called the Acids and Bases Group under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 on April 27, 2024. They concluded that 16 of the substances do not meet the law’s tests for environmental harm, and the other 6 do not meet the test for posing a danger to human health, so they propose taking no further action at this time.

What it does#

• States the outcome of an assessment of the 22 substances on the Domestic Substances List.
• Finds that 16 substances (including common acids, bases and their salts) do not meet the criteria in section 64 of CEPA for posing harm to the environment.
• Finds that 6 substances — hydroxylammonium chloride, sodium hypochlorite, sodium chlorate, calcium hypochlorite, chlorine, and chlorine dioxide — do not meet the human-health criterion in paragraph 64(c) (these six had been previously assessed for ecological risks but lacked a human-health conclusion).
• Announces that the Ministers (Environment: Steven Guilbeault; Health: Mark Holland) propose to take no further action under CEPA for these substances at this time.
• Makes the full assessment and supporting information available on the government’s chemical substances pages on Canada.ca.

What kinds of chemicals are in the group (from the assessment):

• Substances and salts that break down in water to things like ammonia, chlorine species, sulphites, hydroxides, phosphates, and nitrates/nitrites.

Common reported uses cited in the assessment:

• Paints and coatings, industrial intermediates, plant nutrients/fertilizers, process regulators, corrosion inhibitors, anti-scaling, metal plating and surface treatment, fillers, cleaning, disinfecting and bleaching, petroleum refining.
• Some may also appear in pesticides, drugs (including natural health products), cosmetics, dyes, explosives, food additives or food-packaging components.

Who's affected#

• Companies that make, import or use these chemicals in industrial processes (paints/coatings, petroleum refining, metal finishing, water treatment, agriculture/fertilizers).
• Manufacturers of consumer products that may contain these substances (cleaners, disinfectants, some cosmetics, non-prescription products).
• Operators of municipal wastewater systems, since the assessment considered how these substances affect effluent pH and downstream waters.
• The general public, to the extent people are exposed through drinking water, outdoor air, or consumer products mentioned in the assessment.

If it is unclear who is affected:

• The notice does not list every specific company or product brand, so some businesses or products that use small amounts of these substances may not be obvious from the summary.

Why it matters#

• A “no further action” outcome means the government judged current levels and uses, based on available data, do not require immediate new federal controls under CEPA for these substances.
• For businesses, that reduces the chance of new CEPA-based restrictions being imposed right away on these chemicals — but it does not rule out future action if new evidence appears.
• For people, the assessment generally found low risk at current exposure levels for the population and for the environment, which may be reassuring. However, the conclusion depends on current uses and exposure estimates; changes in those could prompt re-evaluation.
• The full assessment is public on Canada.ca for anyone who wants the detailed science and data behind the conclusions.