Release of Lead to the Atmosphere

Act: Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, c. 33, S.C.
Regulation: Secondary Lead Smelter Release Regulations, SOR/91-155, as amended

To Whom Does This Apply?

Plants or factories in which lead-bearing scrap or lead-bearing materials, other than lead-bearing concentrates derived from a mining operation, are processed by metallurgical or chemical process into refined lead, lead alloys or lead oxide.

Eligible Activities

Processing of lead-bearing materials.

Summary

Environment Canada administers the Act on behalf of the federal government. However, for the assessment of substances that are new to Canada and for toxic substances, regulations are developed jointly with Health Canada. Health Canada also has a role in determining whether or not a Canadian source is contributing to international air or international water pollution. All enforcement activities for the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA 1999) and its regulations are, however, under the authority of Environment Canada.

The original regulations became effective on August 1, 1976 in accordance with Section 7 of the Clean Air Act. Consequent to the  Canadian Environmental Protection Act of 1988, the Secondary Lead Smelter Regulations were published on 21 February, 1991. The regulations limit discharges of particulate matter, and define monitoring and reporting requirements. The regulations ensure that all regulated sources in Canada apply limits based on the best practical technology available at the time the original regulations were promulgated in 1976 and limit emissions to the limits specified.

The specified limits are: (a) 0.046 grams per normal cubic metre, in the case of operations involving the use of blast furnaces, coupolas or reverberatory furnaces and (b) 0.023 grams per normal cubic metre, in the case of operations involving the use of holding furnaces, kettle furnaces or lead oxide production units or involving scrap handling and material handling, crushing, furnace tapping, furnace slagging, furnace cleaning or casting, whether released separately or in combination with releases from other sources, measured dry and undiluted in accordance with the method described in Standard Reference Methods for Source Testing.

Products Exempted

Lead-bearing concentrates derived from mining operations.

Requirements

The Regulations limit the concentration of lead in particulates emitted from specified sources.

DISCLAIMER
Information contained in this section is of a general nature only and is not intended to constitute advice for any specific fact situation. For particular questions, the users are invited to contact their lawyer. For additional information, see contact(s) listed below.

Manitoba Contact(s):
See National Contact.

 

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National Contact(s):

Environmental Protection Publications Centre
Environment Canada
Telephone: 613-953-5921 or 613-953-5750
Fax: 819-953-7253
Web site: http://www.ec.gc.ca/envhome.html
 

 

Serge Langdeau
Program Manager
Mining and Processing
Environment Canada
Place Vincent Massey
351 Saint-Joseph Boulevard
Gatineau, Quebec  K1A 0H3
Telephone: 819-994-0457
Fax: 819-953-5053
E-mail: serge.langdeau@ec.gc.ca
Web site: http://www.ec.gc.ca/envhome.html