Crude Tall Oil Proposed for CEPA Schedule 1

Summary#

On February 18, 2023, the federal government published a proposal to add crude tall oil (CTO) (CAS RN 8002-26-4) to Schedule 1 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. The screening assessment found CTO may harm aquatic life from releases at pulp-mill and related sites. The order itself would not yet impose rules but would let officials develop future risk-management measures.

What it does#

• Adds crude tall oil (CTO) to Schedule 1 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (this is a proposed order).
• Gives Environment and Climate Change Canada and Health Canada authority to design and propose risk-management actions for CTO if they choose.
• Does not by itself create new regulatory requirements or costs for businesses.
• Starts a public comment period of 60 days after publication (proposal published on February 18, 2023).
• The departments concluded CTO meets the ecological test in paragraph 64(a) of CEPA (risk to the environment), but they did not find a human-health concern.

Who's affected#

• The pulp and paper sector, especially facilities that produce CTO as a co-product of kraft pulping. Industry reports for 2011 showed manufacture in the range of 10,000 tonnes to 100,000 tonnes and imports in the range of 10 tonnes to 100 tonnes.
• Companies that import or handle CTO. A recent industry survey identified five importers and four manufacturers in Canada.
• Businesses using CTO or downstream products (for example, tall-oil pitch, rosin, distilled tall oil (DTO), and some industrial uses such as oil‑and‑gas drilling additives). The assessment noted DTO and CTO are distinct; consumer products appear to use DTO, so consumer exposure to CTO seems low.
• Aquatic ecosystems and the organisms living downstream of facilities that release CTO or its components to surface water.
• The general public: the proposal itself does not change regulations or create immediate costs for citizens.

Why it matters#

• The screening assessment found releases of CTO from manufacturing and associated activities could harm aquatic life. That is the reason for adding CTO to Schedule 1.
• Being listed on Schedule 1 is the step that lets the government propose concrete controls. Future rules could affect how pulp mills treat wastewater, manage spills, or handle CTO and its wastes.
• Right now, the proposal does not change laws or require actions. But it signals possible future regulation and starts a public comment process where industry, communities, and others can respond.
• There is some uncertainty in the assessment because CTO is a complex, variable mixture and some of its components also occur naturally; that affects how persistence and bioaccumulation were judged.