Without including the CPA’s objections, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has published new edits to its Environmental Emergency guidelines that do not appropriately exclude residential and farming applications from having to adhere to Environmental Emergency (E2) Plan requirements. This regulation came into force in August of 2019.
While these current requirements are now in effect, the CPA is working to effect change in the next revision of the regulation to better protect the general public from having to apply this burdensome requirement.
This version of the guidelines became available on the ECCC website as of December 30, 2020. The intent of the guidelines is to assist regulatees in better understanding the requirements of the regulations so that they are able to be compliant with the legislation.
Recent revisions to the Technical Guidelines for the Environmental Emergency Regulations, 2019
In order for the Technical Guidelines to better correspond to industry’s needs, a second edition of the guidelines is being published, following the latest publication in December 2019. These amendments are touted to provide more clarity and better align with the intentions of the regulations but do not provide effective relief from implicating residential and small farming applications, with propane being the only substance affected in this requirement. (A revision history of this second version is available in the first pages of the document.)
Any questions related to the regulations or the Technical Guidelines can be directed to VP Regulatory Affairs and Safety Robert Loenhart at robertloenhart@propane.ca.