PFAS class proposed for CEPA listing

Summary#

The Department of the Environment published several notices on July 13, 2024 about chemicals and environmental protection. These include new federal guidelines for BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene), special conditions allowing one confidential substance to be made or imported for a single use, and an updated draft report proposing that the class of PFAS (excluding fluoropolymers) be considered under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999.

What it does#

• Announces that the Federal Environmental Quality Guidelines for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene (BTEX) are now available on the federal chemicals website.
• Publishes Ministerial Condition No. 20113 under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 that permits manufacture or import of a confidential substance (Confidential Substance Identity Number 19719-7) but only under strict conditions:
  • The substance may be imported or made only as a flame retardant for use in expandable polystyrene.
  • It cannot be imported for manufacture of consumer products that have direct human contact or for food-grade uses.
  • The notifier must give the government at least 120 days notice before starting manufacturing in Canada and provide details about quantities, facility, transport, releases, and disposal.
  • Waste, containers, and residues must be disposed of in an engineered hazardous waste landfill facility, and records must be kept for at least 5 years.
  • These conditions came into force on July 2, 2024.
• Releases an Updated Draft State of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Report and a revised risk-management scope. The ministers propose to recommend adding the class of PFAS, excluding fluoropolymers, to Part 2 of Schedule 1 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, and they are asking for public comment for 60 days.

Who's affected#

• BTEX guidelines: regulators, environmental consultants, provinces and territories, and communities near contaminated sites or industrial sources of these chemicals.
• The ministerial condition (Confidential Substance 19719-7): the original notifier (the company that supplied the information), any manufacturers or importers that handle that substance, producers of expandable polystyrene, waste managers and hazardous-waste landfills, and any parties who would receive or move the substance. The general public and consumer-product manufacturers are explicitly excluded from being allowed uses.
• PFAS report and proposal: manufacturers and importers of PFAS-containing products, industries using PFAS (for example in firefighting foams, textiles, coatings, or food packaging), water utilities, contaminated-site managers, Indigenous and northern communities noted as having higher exposures in monitoring data, and anyone with an interest in chemical risk rules. If you want to comment, the notice allows submissions for 60 days.

Why it matters#

• BTEX guidelines provide federal reference points that can influence how provinces, cities, and companies assess pollution, set cleanup targets, or monitor air and water quality. That affects local health and environmental protection decisions.
• The ministerial condition is a targeted control: it allows one specific chemical to be used for a narrow industrial purpose while imposing limits, tracking, and disposal rules intended to reduce environmental release and human exposure. That can prevent broader or unregulated uses.
• The PFAS draft report signals a possible major policy shift. PFAS are persistent, widely found in the environment, and some are linked to health and ecological harms. If the government adds the PFAS class (excluding fluoropolymers) to Schedule 1 of CEPA, it would enable a range of regulatory actions to restrict or manage many PFAS together. The public consultation gives stakeholders a chance to respond before any final decision.