There are many federal states, all of which have unique circumstances, but many federal states do have legally binding ambient air quality standards, such as the United States. Even if you look at the non-binding Canadian ambient air quality standards—and “standards” is a bit of a misnomer—they are developed through a process of extensive consultation with the provincial, territorial, and indigenous governments.
We have a process in place. It's simply that this process results in voluntary standards, and the result of having voluntary air quality standards is that there's not sufficient action taken when those standards are being violated. Where are those standards being violated? They're not being violated in Rosedale or Forest Hill. They're being violated in communities that are poor, marginalized, or vulnerable.
This is a really important question of environmental justice. The existing voluntary standards that we have are not serving Canadians. That's evidenced by Health Canada's conclusion that air pollution causes over 15,000 premature deaths a year.
We've been doing voluntary guidelines for air quality for decades and decades. They haven't solved the problem, so it's time for stronger medicine.