CEPA E2 Compliance – The End of a 5-year Cycle in 2024

In 2019, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) revised the Environmental Emergency Regulations, commonly known as E2 Regulations. At the time, the new regulations brought about numerous changes to how of our clients operate their emergency management programs. It has now been nearly five years since the regulations were introduced and with that comes a requirement to update and/or submit information to the agency. Part of these regulations is the requirement to follow the “Periodic Submission of Notices,” namely:

9 A responsible person must, within five years after the day on which the environmental emergency plan is brought into effect under section 6, submit a notice to the Minister containing the information referred to in Schedule 5 concerning the simulation exercises conducted in relation to an environmental emergency plan.

13 If a notice has been submitted under subsection 3(1), a responsible person must submit a new notice to the Minister that contains the information referred to in Schedule 2 no later than five years after the day on which the most recent notice containing that information was submitted.

14 If a notice has been submitted under section 9, a responsible person must submit a new notice to the Minister that contains the information referred to in Schedule 5 no later than five years after the day on which the most recent notice containing that information was submitted.

What does this mean for you?

For facilities that last submitted a Schedule 2 and/or had E2 Plans come into effect in 2019, the above requirements are due in 2024, and will repeat on a five-year cycle. If you have not done so, prepare to:

• Submit a new Schedule 2 for all registered E2 Sites that have had a Schedule 2 submitted, within five years after the day of your most recent submission. The required information on the Schedule 2 remains unchanged, i.e. facility name, location, contact person, substance stored and quantities etc.
• Submit a Schedule 5 within five years after the day of the E2 Plan coming into effect for all registered E2 Sites requiring an E2 Plan.

The Schedule 5 asks for:

• Confirmation that annual simulation exercises were conducted in accordance with E2 Regulations.
• A description of the full-scale exercise, including date, substance name, hazar category, and a list of external participants.
• Confirmation that the E2 Plan has been updated in accordance with E2 Regulations.

If you require any assistance with designing and facilitating an exercise, submitting Schedules, or general regulatory guidance, do not hesitate to reach out to us.