Modernizing the Canadian Environmental Protection Act — Canada’s pollution and toxics law

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment and other groups are calling for the modernization of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), 1999, asserting that the law is outdated and fails to address current environmental and health risks. The briefing highlights the disproportionate impact of toxics on marginalized groups, including Indigenous people and lower-income Canadians, and advocates for the implementation of 87 recommendations made by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development in 2017. Proposed amendments include banning highly hazardous substances, establishing national air and drinking water quality standards, and recognizing the human right to a healthy environment.

• The Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA), 1999, is considered outdated because it has not been significantly amended for over twenty years, despite changes in pollution sources and scientific risk understanding.
• Exposure to toxic substances creates significant public health and environmental justice disparities in Canada. Specifically, Inuit pregnant women and children show higher levels of PFAS, and lower-income Canadians are three times more likely to live within one kilometer of a major air pollution source than higher-income individuals.
• The document advocates for specific legislative amendments to CEPA, including the banning of carcinogens, reproductive toxins, and hormone disruptors (such as BPA, phthalates, and PFAS), the creation of enforceable national standards for drinking water and air quality, and the legal recognition of the human right to a healthy environment.
• There is broad support for CEPA reform across different sectors, including from over 500 scientists, the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada, and Responsible Distribution Canada.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (2020). Modernizing the Canadian Environmental Protection Act — Canada’s pollution and toxics law. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Modernizing-CEPA-briefing-note-Nov-2020-updated.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Modernizing the Canadian Environmental Protection Act — Canada’s pollution and toxics law. 2020. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Modernizing-CEPA-briefing-note-Nov-2020-updated.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Modernizing the Canadian Environmental Protection Act — Canada’s pollution and toxics law |date=November 2020 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Modernizing-CEPA-briefing-note-Nov-2020-updated.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironment2020modernizing, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Modernizing the Canadian Environmental Protection Act — Canada’s pollution and toxics law}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2020}, month = nov, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Modernizing-CEPA-briefing-note-Nov-2020-updated.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }