Bill C-204 (Historical)

An Act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (final disposal of plastic waste)

This bill is from the 43rd Parliament, 2nd session, which ended in August 2021.

Sponsor

Scot Davidson Conservative

Introduced as a private member’s bill. (These don’t often become law.)

Status

In committee (Senate), as of June 22, 2021
(This bill did not become law.)

Summary

This is from the published bill.

This enactment amends the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 to prohibit the export of certain types of plastic waste to foreign countries for final disposal.

Similar bills

S-234 (44th Parliament, 1st session) An Act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (final disposal of plastic waste)

C-204 (43rd Parliament, 1st session) An Act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (final disposal of plastic waste)

Elsewhere

All sorts of information on this bill is available at LEGISinfo, an excellent resource from Parliament. You can also read the full text of the bill.

Bill numbers are reused for different bills each new session. Perhaps you were looking for one of these other C-204s:

C-204 (2025) An Act to amend the Income Tax Act (volunteer firefighting and search and rescue volunteer tax credit)

C-204 (2021) Ukrainian Heritage Month Act

C-204 (2015) An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code (gender identity and gender expression)

Votes

June 2, 2021 Passed 3rd reading and adoption of Bill C-204, An Act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (final disposal of plastic waste)

Feb. 3, 2021 Passed 2nd reading of Bill C-204, An Act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (final disposal of plastic waste)

Debate Summary

This is a computer-generated summary of the speeches below. Usually it’s accurate, but every now and then it’ll contain inaccuracies or total fabrications.

Bill C-204 aims to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act to prohibit the export of plastic waste to foreign countries for final disposal.

Conservative

Supports ban on plastic waste export: Conservatives support Bill C-204, which proposes to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act to explicitly prohibit the export of plastic waste for final disposal.
Criticizes current export practices: Members argue that exporting plastic waste to developing countries results in mismanagement, illegal dumping, and incineration, causing significant environmental and health damage abroad.
Advocates for domestic solutions: Instead of exporting waste, Canada should leverage domestic innovation and support Canadian companies developing solutions to manage plastic waste at home.
Criticizes government inaction: Conservatives criticize the Liberal government for failing to show leadership, being slow to adopt international standards, and not effectively preventing the harmful export of plastic waste.

NDP

Supports bill, needs amendments: The NDP supports the bill to ban plastic waste exports but emphasizes the need for amendments at committee to strengthen the legislation.
Ban all waste exports: While the bill focuses on plastic, the NDP argues that Canada should ban the export of all waste, not just plastic, to other countries.
Reduce plastic production: Banning exports is only one step; the priority must be to reduce the amount of plastic waste produced through measures like banning single-use plastics and implementing producer accountability.
Criticizes government action: The NDP criticizes the government for dragging its feet on the issue, delaying action, and failing to fully honour international commitments regarding waste exports and plastic pollution.

Bloc

Supports stopping plastic waste exports: The Bloc Québécois supports Bill C-204 as an essential step to stop exporting plastic waste and encourages the government to take further action on plastics.
Bill does not go far enough: While supporting the bill, the Bloc argues it is ineffectual and does not address the fundamental problem of rethinking production methods and reducing overall waste generation.
Promote circular economy: Canada must transition from a linear to a circular economy, focusing on optimizing resource use, reusing, recycling, and adding value domestically instead of exporting waste.
Ethical responsibility to handle waste: It is unethical to dump plastic waste abroad; Canada has a duty to manage materials properly within its borders and stop exporting its problems.

Liberal

Does not support the bill: The government opposes Bill C-204, stating it already has a comprehensive agenda to achieve zero plastic waste and eliminate plastic pollution through domestic and international actions.
Bill is ineffective: Members argue the bill is unlikely to effectively tackle problematic exports because it does not cover plastic waste exported for recycling, particularly contaminated waste sent to countries lacking capacity.
Comprehensive government strategy: The government's approach addresses the entire plastic life cycle, including strengthening controls under the Basel Convention and implementing domestic actions like banning single-use plastics and requiring recycled content.

Was this summary helpful and accurate?

(The House divided on the motion, which was agreed to on the following division:)

Vote #45

Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999Private Members' Business

February 3rd, 2021 / 4:50 p.m.

The Speaker Anthony Rota

I declare the motion carried. Accordingly, the bill stands referred to the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development.

(Bill read the second time and referred to a committee)

Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999Private Members' Business

February 3rd, 2021 / 4:55 p.m.

The Speaker Anthony Rota

I want to remind hon. members that when voting, we want to know if they are voting yes or no, yea or nay, and not the editorial that goes with it. It is a long voting period, and members' co-operation would certainly be appreciated.

Before proceeding to the next vote, we will pause the sitting briefly in order to allow employees who provide support for the sittings to substitute each other safely.