Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
It's my pleasure to be with you today on behalf of Canada's chemistry and plastics manufacturers. You may be aware that Canada's chemistry sector generates nearly $60 billion a year, making us the third-largest manufacturing sector in the country. This is split almost evenly between pharmaceutical and industrial-grade chemicals, the latter of which I will speak to you about today.
Before I begin my formal remarks, however, I would like to extend our sector's appreciation to Parliament and the Government of Canada for the extraordinary and timely measures taken to support Canadians and Canadian businesses during this unprecedented time.
I have three messages to share with you today. They'll be easy to remember, as they're a bit of a take on the three Rs. The chemistry sector is resilient, responsive and well poised to lead Canada's economic recovery.
First, our sector is resilient. There have been no material impacts to our companies or their supply chains. Most of our industry continues to operate at normal levels of production. Some have seen production decreases while still maintaining operations, and others are experiencing production increases. The sector so far has not required economic supports and has experienced very limited layoffs.
Second, our sector is highly responsive. Canada's chemistry sector produces important water treatment and disinfection chemicals essential for public safety. These have been in extremely high demand to support the COVID-19 response. Plastics also play an important sanitary role for medical and food packaging purposes and are inputs into PPE, or personal protective equipment. Demand for these products has increased significantly as a result of COVID-19.
Our members have also reconfigured value chains and production activities to assist in the response. For example, Shell Canada, BASF Canada and Procter & Gamble have all reconfigured operations to make hundreds of thousands of litres of hand sanitizer, which they have donated to hospitals and community support organizations. Also, led by BASF Canada and Trimac, both CIAC members, our sector has supported the development of the rapid response platform. This platform matches PPE producers with those who have PPE needs. In its first three weeks of operation, more than 25,000 PPE matches have been successfully completed through the platform.
Finally, while being resilient and responsible, the sector is also poised to contribute to Canada's economic recovery. Over $7 billion of capital investments are currently under way and scheduled to come into production in late 2021 and early 2022, and we anticipate that a significant portion of the additional $11 billion committed or announced in capital investments that were deferred due to COVID will materialize to assist in the recovery. All of our facilities have deferred scheduled major maintenance activities, and it will be of utmost priority to get these projects under way as soon as possible. These projects can involve thousands of contractor staff and total in the hundreds of millions of dollars, injecting much-needed capital into the economy.
In addition, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia are all looking toward the chemistry sector for significant additional investment growth beyond that already announced.
Let me close by offering two pieces of advice on what Canada can do to support future growth in Canada's chemistry and plastics sectors.
First, it is essential that the Government of Canada embrace the investment growth potential of the chemistry sector. As the fundamental building blocks of the modern world, chemistry solutions will play a vital role as we build the post-COVID-19 economy. The Government of Canada should work collaboratively and in a coordinated manner with the provinces to deliver a team Canada approach to attracting global investment to the sector. Governments working together have benefited Canadians in the response to COVID-19. We need to see the same coordinated approach as we restart and grow our economy.
Second, while it needs to maintain its focus on addressing the challenging issue of plastic pollution in the environment, the Government of Canada must use tools other than the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and in particular its schedule 1 list of toxic substances to regulate plastic waste. Declaring plastics toxic in Canada will greatly undermine the confidence of global investors. It will deliver a message that Canada is indeed ambivalent about growing the sector, despite the resilience, responsiveness and economic opportunity demonstrated throughout the crisis.
Thank you again for providing me with the opportunity to speak with you today. I look forward to your questions.