In March 2015, Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, Ottawa Riverkeeper, and Environmental Defence Canada with representation from Ecojustice, recommended that Environment Canada add microbeads to the Priority Substances List, under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA). This list specifies which substances are given priority in assessing whether they are toxic or capable of becoming toxic. This gives the federal government more power to control the use of these toxic substances in Canada.

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Minister of the Environment Ministre de l'Environnement
Ottawa, Canada K1A OH3
JUN 17 2015
Ms. Tanya Nayler
Barrister and Solicitor
Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic
at the University of Ottawa
1 Stewart Street, Suite 216
Ottawa ON K1 N 7M9
.Dear Ms. Nayler:
Thank you for your correspondence of March 23, 2015, written on behalf of
Environmental Defence, Lake Ontario Waterkeeper and Ottawa Riverkeeper,
requesting the addition of plastic microbeads in persona! care products to the
Priority Substances List under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999
(CEPA 1999). 1regret the delay in responding.
Subsection 76(3) of the Act concerning the Priority Substances List is the
responsibility of bath the Minister of the Environment and the Minister of Health.
Therefore, 1 am forwarding a copy of your correspondence to the Honourable
Rona Ambrose, for consideration.
The House of Gommons unanimously voted on March 24, 2015, to add
microbeads in consumer products to the List of Taxie Substances (Schedule 1)
managed by the Government under CEPA 1999. A substance is added to
Schedule 1 when the Governor in Council is satisfied, based on advice from the
Minister of the Environment and the Minister of Health, that it meets the definition
of "taxie" in section 64 of the Act.
To that end, Environment Canada is currently conducting a scientific review of
microbeads in consumer products. Since we are already moving forward with
action on microbeads, we believe it is not necessary to add this substance to the
Priority Substances List at this time.
With regard to section 75 of CEPA 1999, as stated in Environment Canada's
response to Environmental Petition No. 363 (Canada's implementation of
section 75 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, and the ban
of substances by the European Union under the Regulation on Registration,
Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals), the procedures to
support this section's obligations were proposed and published for public
comment in 2005. These procedures outlined that the Rotterdam Convention
on the Prior lnformed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and
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Canada

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Pesticides in International Trade and its definitions would be used for the
exchange of information among the Organisation for Economie Co-operation
and Development member states. Actions taken by the State of Illinois have not
followed this process and do not trigger a review under section 75.
1trust that this information is helpful, and 1extend my best wishes.
Sincerely,
The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, P.C. M.P.
Minister of the Environment
c.e.: The Honourable Rona Ambrose, P.C., M.P.