Okay. First off, obviously, if people aren't aware but want to be clear, part of Health Canada is the Pest Management Regulatory Agency. A colleague of mine, Dr. Karen Dodds, heads that up, and I'm sure she'd be happy, if there are specific questions, to come back and answer those.
Generally, though, the department overall, whether it's about drugs or pesticide substances, takes a risk-based approach. I'm very cognizant of what has been outlined in the deck; that is, what is the hazard, what is the exposure, and when you put those two things together, do we have a problem? There isn't a single drug the department approves--sorry, there probably is a single one. Often drugs we approve have side effects, so you have to look at that and weigh those cost-benefits. It's the same when you look at agricultural uses of pesticides for the farming industry and others. What are the benefits versus the downside, and what, overall, is the total risk? That is how, fundamentally, the department approaches this. Are any of those risks acceptable? How do we manage them and make sure that Canadians are never presented with an unacceptable level of risk?
I'm very pleased to say that within CEPA and PMRA there is significant cooperation. We have memorandums of understanding to share information and agreements. So if we're looking at something that's in water, what is it from the CEPA point of view? What is it from the pesticides point of view? Are we coming to similar conclusions on the science?
More fundamentally, we feel that it is our role to regulate, where appropriate, where the risks are unacceptable, and to encourage that the information be made available to all Canadians. So if Canadians wish to do more, give them the information they need so they can also play a role in managing the risk, and allow other jurisdictions, as they see fit and appropriate, to make choices that are relevant and right for them.
We'll continue to be a sound source of science on what those risks are and try as much as possible to make sure that they are integrated across federal statutes, and provide that information as transparently as possible.