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What the Environmental Emergency Regulations mean for your manufacturing business

Published: July 15, 2020
Updated: July 15, 2020
Article

In effect since August 2019, the Environmental Emergency Regulations (EER) outline reduction measures for the accidental release of hazardous substances into the environment. Developed under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA), the regulations aid businesses in a number of industries in properly handling environmental emergencies that their facilities might encounter. Staying compliant with these regulations is the responsibility of the individual(s) in charge of managing and controlling the substances in question at their given facility.

As stated on the Government of Canada website:

These regulations require that any person who owns, has the charge, management or control of a regulated substance at or above certain quantities notify Environment and Climate Change Canada. For higher-risk facilities, an environmental emergency plan must also be prepared, brought into effect and exercised.

Schedule 1 of the Regulations includes 249 substances that pose an acute hazard to the environment or to human health should an accidental release occur.

As most manufacturing and distribution businesses operate facilities that use these types of potentially hazardous substances, it's important that they comply to the regulations. Staying compliant can help manufacturers avoid unexpected costs in the event of an environmental emergency that could put both the environment and human health at risk.

Further, developing an environmental emergency plan can help you avoid a number of risks—ones that could cause both financial and reputational harm to the business as a whole.

How BDO can help you expect the unexpected

Our team of emergency and crisis management professionals are here to help guide you in adhering to these regulations while equipping your business to better respond to environmental emergencies, should they arise.

Some of our services include the following:

  • Reviewing current plans and arrangements, developing an action plan to address identified gaps.
  • Targeted risk analysis to establish plausible environmental release scenarios and offsite consequence modelling.
  • Design and development of plans that help comply with the EER and any other similar regulations.
  • Developing training and exercise programs.
  • Developing and facilitating exercises and simulations for strategic, tactical, and operational responders.

If you're unsure of where your business stands in its current EER compliance, our team would be happy to discuss.

Rob Rovina, Business Development Manager

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