Management of Chemicals
Canada is at the forefront of managing chemicals that are used in commerce. EHS has been actively advising both, public and private sector, clients in this area for 15 years and has developed strong expertise in this field.
Chemical substances are managed in Canada by all three levels of government: federal, provincial and municipal. At the federal level, the primary authority for management of chemical substances stems from the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA 1999). CEPA-toxic substances are those substances listed in Schedule 1 of CEPA 1999. At the provincial and municipal levels, chemical substances are managed by a myriad of air, water and soil regulations as well as by various municipal by-laws.
Canada’s federal government departments, Health Canada and Environment Canada, completed in 2006 a mammoth screening and prioritization program for over 23,000 chemical substances on the Domestic Substances List, http://www.ec.gc.ca/substances/ese/eng/dsl/dslprog.cfm. Approximately 4000 substances have been identified as needing further attention. This is a major challenge for Canada’s federal government.
EHS has advised private and public sector clients on management options of the following chemicals. The asterisk denotes that EHS’ input resulted in a regulation, a guideline, a code of practice or an environmental standard.
1. Acrylonitrile;
2. Bisphenol A;
3. 1,3-Butadiene;
4. t-Butyl Acetate;
5. 2,4,6-tri-tert-Butylphenol;
6. Dichloromethane*;
7. Epichlorohydrin;
8. Ethylene oxide;
9. Formaldehyde;
10. Glycol ethers
a. 2-butoxyethanol;
b. 2-methoxyethanol;
c. 2-Ethoxyethanol;
11. Hexachlorobutadiene, HCBD*;
12. Isoprene;
13. Mercury;
14. n-Nitrosodimethylamine, NDMA*,
15. Nonylphenol and its ethoxylates;
16. Ozone Depleting Substances*
a. CFCs*;
b. HCFC refrigerants*;
c. HCFC solvents*;
d. Halons*;
17. Pigments
a. CI Pigment Yellow 34
b. CI Pigment Red 104
c. Acid Blue 80
18. Particulate Matter
a. PM2.5
b. PM10
c. TPM
19. Road salt*;
20. Siloxanes, D4, D5, and D6;
21. Thiourea;
22. Vinyl Acetate;
23. Volatile Organic Compounds*
Managing Environmental Risk