Winnipeg Free Press By: Stephanie Taylor, The Canadian Press Posted:
Last Modified: 2:48 PM CDT Tuesday, Apr. 13, 2021 Save to Read Later
OTTAWA - The Liberal government is proposing long-awaited changes to an environmental protection law that include a recognition every person living in Canada has a right to a healthy environment.
Minister of Environment and Climate Change Jonathan Wilkinson, left, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hold a press conference at the Ornamental Gardens in Ottawa on Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA - The Liberal government is proposing long-awaited changes to an environmental protection law that include a recognition every person living in Canada has a right to a healthy environment.
It s one of the proposed amendments the Liberals have put forward to the act in Bill C-28, tabled in the House of Commons Tuesday.
The 1999 law outlines how the federal government regulates toxic chemicals as well as other polluting materials, with the goal to protect the environment and people from their harmful effects.
It s through CEPA that commercial substances are assessed based on their risk and determined whether or not to be toxic.
Scientists and environmentalists have been calling on the Liberals to make what they say have been badly-needed modernizations to the law, such as requiring substance assessments to include the cumulative effects of repeated exposures.
Liberals propose enshrining the right to a healthy environment in legislation cbc.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from cbc.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.