Better Protection Against Toxics... and You Can Help!

In a move of rare non-partisanship, the House of Commons unanimously passed the new Consumer Products Protection Act, or Bill C6 - a critical Act that would create new regulations for products that pose, or might reasonably be expected to pose, a danger to human health and safety.

However, this positive action is being threatened in the Senate, as opponents of the new Act have been emailing key Senators pressuring them to stop the Act before it becomes law.

Below is a letter we issued today to the Canadian Senate urging them to pass the Consumer Products Protection Act for the benefit of all Canadians, and our colleagues at Environmental Defence have set up a petition to allow you to offer your support. If you share our concern, follow this link to send your own urgent message to the Senate.

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October 28, 2009

Dear Senators:

Ecojustice is calling on the Senate to pass Bill C-6, the proposed Canada Consumer Product Safety Act.

Ecojustice Canada (formerly Sierra Legal Defence Fund) is an independent, non-profit organization supported by 30,000 Canadians. We have a staff of lawyers and scientists who provide services to citizens and groups working to improve environmental laws.

There is an immediate need for federal government to modernize the 40-year old Hazardous Products Act in today’s globalized economy, where many products available for sale are imported and may contain hazardous materials.

Ecojustice’s efforts fighting toxic chemicals in products led to a proposed ban on the use of toxic flame retardants in electronics. But waging such a battle over every hazardous product is far beyond our reach.

The Canada Consumer Products Safety Act will give the government the much needed power to remove unsafe products from store shelves, make mandatory product recalls and order product safety tests if there may be serious danger to human health.

Both the Europe Union and United States have already enacted similar legislation making Canada a potential haven for hazardous products.

In Ecojustice’s opinion the Canada Consumer Products Safety Act is a positive step forward. There is a need in Canada to renew and modernize federal product safety legislation to better reflect the globalized marketplace, to be consistent with societal and consumer expectations for health and safety, and to ensure that Canada does not become a haven for unsafe products rejected by the American and European markets.

We are writing to you today to ask for your please pass this critical law and ensure Canadians the same public health protection as Europeans and Americans. We don't want to become a dumping ground for products no longer eligible for sale elsewhere.

Yours truly,

Hugh Wilkins, Co-ordinating Lawyer, Toronto Office
Elaine MacDonald, Senior Scientist

Stopping Soot in Canada's Arctic

Today, Ecojustice launches its first video campaign - stopsoot.ca.

Soot, or black carbon, is is the second-leading cause of global warming after carbon dioxide, and is one of the biggest causes of melting sea ice and warming temperatures in the Canadian Arctic. When black carbon falls on polar ice and snow, the tiny particles darken these surfaces and absorb more heat from the sun. Produced by diesel engines, industrial smokestacks and residential cooking and heating stoves, black carbon is also the leading cause of respiratory illness and deaths.

We have the technology to fix this massive problem, and we need the political will to make it happen. You can send Harper a letter, telling him we need better emission standards for transportation and industry here in Canada, and stronger support for developing nations to bring cleaner diesel, cooking and heating technologies to the global poor.

This is a climate change solution that Canada can and should lead. Please do your part to help and send this letter.

A Supreme Day in Court

Friday was Ecojustice's day before the highest court in the country, and the conclusion of a 5 year legal battle over a proposed copper & gold mine in BC's north. At stake is the fate of BC's Black Lake (which could become a storage pond for toxic mine tailings), and the health of the fish bearing Sacred Headwaters rivers (the Stikine, Nass and Skeena).

But beyond the risks to natural world itself, this is a case about the rights of the Canadian people to participate in the decisions that impact the Canadian environment. The federal government excluded public input from its evaluation of the controversial proposed Red Chris Mine, and this was the issue that we brought before Canada's Supreme Court.

A decision is expected in the next couple of months. For now, here are some photo highlights from Ecojustice's day at the Supreme Court of Canada...



See more at our Flickr page.

The long road to Canada's highest court

We're at the the Supreme Court of Canada this week with our client MiningWatch Canada to defend public participation in environmental reviews.

The case revolves around the contentious Red Chris mine, an open-pit copper and gold mine proposed for northwestern B.C. The mine would be built adjacent to an area christened by local First Nations the “Sacred Headwaters” – the birthplace of three major salmon-bearing rivers of the Stikine, Nass and Skeena.

The project’s proponent, Imperial Metals, proposes to destroy fish-bearing streams by damming them and using these natural waters to store toxic mine waste. Not only would the project destroy waterbodies used by local residents for fishing, but it risks contaminating the watershed for hundreds of years with toxic mine waste.

More than a year after we filed an application over the proposed Red Chris Mine in northern BC the Federal Court sided with us in September 2007, maintaining that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans cannot scope projects so as to evade a comprehensive study and public participation. In addition to declaring the DFO’s actions unlawful, the court prohibited issuance of any federal permits to the mining company.

In 2008, the Respondents and the government successfully appealed the decision.

The Supreme Court hears our appeal this Friday, October 16th. You can watch the proceedings here, and we'll keep you posted on the decision.

Windsor to Get Major Sewage Upgrade

Our most recent report is being cited as the City of Windsor announces a major upgrade to their sewage system. They’ll be investing $60 million to construct a new water retention basin that will capture and store untreated sewage that would previously be released into the water system.

"This is the solution," St. Louis said. "It's very good for our environment and our city -- that's for sure."

For years, environmental groups have criticized Windsor as one of the top polluters of the Great Lakes when it comes to raw sewage.

According to the group Ecojustice, Windsor dumped 4.3 billion litres of untreated sewage and stormwater into the Detroit River from 2006 to 2007.

The basin will provide temporary storage for wastewater overflows until proper treatment can be performed - a strategy that should stop up to 90% of the overflow sewage currently escaping treatment in Windsor’s sewage system. In our recently release report Flushing Out the Truth, Windsor was cited as one of the provinces worst sewage offenders. This also might end up being the first of many such improvements across Canada. The federal government has announced that they'll be tabling new national, legally binding, wastewater standards before the end of the year. And like this solution in Windsor, they'll be offering municipalities federal infrastructure money to put major upgrades in place.

For now, this needed upgrade to Windsor's treatment infrastructure will go a long way towards improving their performance, and the health of the Detroit River.