FEDERAL GOVERNMENT REVERSES SINGLE-USE PLASTIC BAN

With today’s widespread usage of cardboard straws and reusable shopping bags, everyday items made of single use plastic may seem obsolete and a distant memory, yet this might not be the end of such products in Canada According to a recent ruling by the Federal Court, the ban on single use plastics following its classification as a toxic substance under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act was “unreasonable and unconstitutional.”

The federal ban was supposed to be implemented in multiple phases following the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity held in Montreal in December 2022. On December 20, 2022, the federal government announced that the manufacturing and importation of single use plastics such as checkout bags, cutlery and straws would be banned and this decision came into effect in June 2023 while the ban on sales was planned for December 2023. According to the Prime Minister of Alberta, Danielle Smith, this decision “[demonstrated] a continued pattern of federal overreach intended to subvert the constitutionally protected role and rights of provinces.”

She added that this decision would have considerable consequences on Alberta’s economy by costing thousands of jobs and billions of dollars since Alberta’s is home to a petrochemical sector with over $18 billion dollars invested in recent projects. The ban was met with much criticism from plastic manufacturers across Canada before it was even implemented and led to many lawsuits against the federal government. The case, which allowed for the overturn of the federal ban, was brought by the Responsible Plastic Use Coalition, an association including three of the biggest plastic manufacturers in Canada: NOVA Chemicals, Dow, and Imperial Oil.

By Samathar Senso News Editor

For the Environment Minister, Steven Guilbeault, this decision isn’t the end as the government is considering appealing this recent resolution that was passed on November 16, 2023. Lindsay Beck, a lawyer who acted on behalf of environmental groups that intervened in the case, told CBC news that this decision is "disappointing” and that "we know that plastic pollution is one of the major environmental crises of our time and this [ruling] really hampers the federal government's ability to come to grips with this crisis.” In Canada, over 3 million tonnes of plastic waste is generated every year and only 9% of it gets recycled while the rest end up in landfills, garbage power plants or in the environment. This plastic waste has a destructive impact on wildlife as well as our overall planet’s health and by lifting this ban on single use plastic, we’re taking a step into the wrong direction.