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Environment committee I can comment on the amendment in clause 12, which is to eliminate the whole virtual elimination regime. That requires the creation of a second list. However, as I just explained, in Bill S-5 we are also proposing a second list. If you will, it's a list of substances that, becaus
January 30th, 2023Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee Perhaps I can start. The government did adopt a concept of virtual elimination, both in the toxic substances management policy and in the statute when it was amended in 1999. Since then, however, the virtual elimination regime in the act has proven to be unworkable and has had
January 30th, 2023Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee I don't think we have any objections to the stated goal of promoting pollution prevention, in that the act itself already requires ministers to give priority to pollution prevention when risk-managing substances. The challenge with this amendment is that it would require a gover
January 30th, 2023Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee That's not our interpretation. Maybe I can turn it over to my colleague, Ms. Laura Farquharson.
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee I think this question is better posed to the clerk, but indeed, the amendment would delete all those lines that are referred to.
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee Perhaps I can help. When CEPA 1999 was passed, it enumerated the list of documents that the law required the government to include on the registry. In Bill S-5, one thing the government intended to do in multiple places, including in the registry, was to increase public access to
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee The registry has been in the act since 1999. I can't tell you why, but it has been referred to in this way since then as “Registre” only in French and “Environmental Registry” in English, so this is just retaining that inconsistent approach. I don't think it creates a problem, b
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee I would just echo what Ms. May said.
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee It's Mr. Carreau, but maybe I can jump in initially. The issue here would the difference between codifying a list in a statute that is fixed until amended by Parliament versus providing an illustrative list as a matter of policy, which Health Canada has done, as you've already n
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee I think the current drafting approaches, consistent with the way in which statutes are being interpreted in the courts, suggest that such language is not necessary. “Including” is intended to be read as “including but not limited to”, as one uses it in normal parlance.
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want, first of all, to correct the assumption that it appears some members have that this amendment was introduced in the Senate. This, in fact, has been part of Bill S-5, part of the government bill. We consulted extensively on the definition of “vulner
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee The answer is that it's not standard practice and indeed it could introduce some element of uncertainty to people not familiar with the Rio principles. That said, the basic legal test for referring to external documents is that they need to be clear and they need to be available
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee At the moment we're trying to work through the implications; we've just seen this amendment. The changing of the term “prudence” to “précaution” is not at all problematic. It's a clarification of a translation. Referring to the Rio principle, from a preliminary perspective I thi
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee I don't have that available. I'm not sure if one of my staff does. We can get it quickly, I'm sure, but I can reassure you that principle 15 has been the basis for the approach to the precautionary principle under CEPA from its inception.
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet
Environment committee I can read principle 15. In order to protect the environment, the precautionary [principle] shall be widely applied by States according to their capabilities. Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a rea
December 13th, 2022Committee meeting
John Moffet