Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Reform: Addressing Unfinished Business Following Bill S-5

The briefing note calls for further reform of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) following Bill S-5, highlighting the need for enforceable national air quality standards, the removal of barriers to citizen lawsuits against polluters, improved labelling of hazardous substances in consumer products, and enhanced environmental protections on First Nations reserve lands to address systemic inequities and health risks.

• The author asserts that current citizen enforcement provisions in CEPA (section 22) are effectively non-functional due to cost and legal barriers, preventing people in Canada from holding polluters accountable.
• Canada is identified as the only G-8 nation that lacks enforceable national air quality standards, despite having established Canadian Ambient Air Quality Standards (CAAQS) for certain pollutants.
• There is a reported gap in environmental protection for First Nations reserve lands compared to other Canadian communities, which the document states has negatively affected Inherent and Treaty rights.
• The document cites Health Canada estimates that air pollution causes 15,300 premature deaths in Canada every year, with respiratory diseases linked to air pollution costing $120 billion annually in 2016 (6% of Canada's real GDP).

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (2024). Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Reform: Addressing Unfinished Business Following Bill S-5. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/BRIEFING-NOTE_-CANADIAN-ENVIRONMENTAL-PROTECTION-ACT-CEPA-BILL-TO-ADDRESS-UNFINISHED-BUSINESS-FROM-BILL-S-5.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Reform: Addressing Unfinished Business Following Bill S-5. 2024. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/BRIEFING-NOTE_-CANADIAN-ENVIRONMENTAL-PROTECTION-ACT-CEPA-BILL-TO-ADDRESS-UNFINISHED-BUSINESS-FROM-BILL-S-5.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Reform: Addressing Unfinished Business Following Bill S-5 |date=February 2024 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/BRIEFING-NOTE_-CANADIAN-ENVIRONMENTAL-PROTECTION-ACT-CEPA-BILL-TO-ADDRESS-UNFINISHED-BUSINESS-FROM-BILL-S-5.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironment2024canadian, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) Reform: Addressing Unfinished Business Following Bill S-5}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2024}, month = feb, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/BRIEFING-NOTE_-CANADIAN-ENVIRONMENTAL-PROTECTION-ACT-CEPA-BILL-TO-ADDRESS-UNFINISHED-BUSINESS-FROM-BILL-S-5.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }