Canada To Focus on Health Harms Under Changes to Chemical Law

摘要

Canada has unveiled legislation to toughen its main law for regulating toxic chemicals, including substances imported by U.S. companies that are under Biden administration scrutiny. Bill C-28, an overhaul delayed by the coronavirus pandemic, would expand the potential effects regulators must study when reviewing substances, including human health issues such as endocrine disruption, Environment and Climate Change Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said at a news conference Tuesday. "The issues around endocrine disruptors will definitely be a focus," Wilkinson said. A new system also would exist for fast-tracking the prohibition of chemicals with the highest risks, he said. That system could include per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS or "forever chemicals," once studies on those are done, officials speaking on background at a technical briefing said afterward. Endocrine disruptors, which affect hormone regulation, were an area of debate during consultations. The American Chemistry Council asked Canada to keep its approach of focusing on exposures of concern rather than treating them as a unique class of substances.