Quebec Hog Farms
Submission ID: SEM-97-003
Party concerned: Canada
Date filed: April 9, 1997
Submission Status: Closed
Latest Update: May 16, 2000
The Council voted not to instruct the Secretariat to prepare a factual record.
Summary of the matter addressed in the submission:
The Submitters allege “the occurrence of failure to enforce several environmental standards related to hog production on the territory of the Province of Quebec. Specifically, that the Quebec Government has failed, for many years, to enforce certain environmental protection standards regarding agricultural pollution originating from animal production facilities, mainly from hog farms.”
Summary of the response provided by the Party:
Canada supports the process of submissions on enforcement matters under Articles 14 and 15 of the NAAEC. It considers that these are essential provisions of the Agreement. Canada refutes allegations to the effect that there has been a failure to effectively enforce its environmental laws in the agricultural sector contrary to the provisions of the NAAEC. It furthermore considers that preparing a factual record is not justified for the following reasons:
- Canada, particularly Quebec, effectively enforces the Environmental Quality Act and the Regulation respecting the prevention of water pollution in livestock operations;
- all the environmental measures put forward in the agricultural sector meet the objectives and obligations contained in the NAAEC, particularly Articles 2, 4 and 5;
- the government of Quebec has just adopted new regulations with respect to agricultural pollution and new measures to improve the enforcement of the Environmental Quality Act. In this context, it is not appropriate to prepare a factual record since the initiative is part of the process to improve the Act and the regulations in accordance with Article 3 of the Agreement;
- preparing a factual record would not produce any new information nor would it shed any new light in view of the elements and details provided in this response.
Names and citations of the environmental laws in question:
Laws of the Province of Quebec:
- Secciones 19(1), 20, 22, y 122.1 de la Environment Quality Act, L.R.Q. 1985, c. Q-2;
- Secciones 3-4, y divisiones IV, V, VI y VII del Regulation respecting the prevention of water pollution in livestock operations, R.R.Q. 1981, c. Q-2, r.18.
Submitter(s):
Centre québécois du droit de l'environnement
Submission Timeline
The Secretariat received a submission and began a preliminary analysis of it under the guidelines.
Submission - Submission authored by Submitter(s) on 09/04/1997
Acknowledgement - Communication to Submitter(s) authored by Secretariat on 15/04/1997
The Secretariat began reviewing the submission under Article 14(1)
The Secretariat determined that the submission met the Article 14(1) criteria and the Secretariat began considering whether to request a response from the concerned government Party.
Determination - Secretariat Determination under Article 14 (1) authored by Secretariat on 08/05/1997
The Secretariat determined that the submission met the Article 14(2) criteria and requested a response from the concerned government Party.
Determination - Secretariat Determination under Article 14(2) authored by Secretariat on 09/07/1997
The Secretariat received a response from the concerned government Party and began considering whether to recommend a factual record.
Party Response - Response from the Party under Article 14 (3) authored by Canada on 09/09/1997
The Secretariat requested additional information from the concerned government Party under Article 21(1)(b).
Secretariat Information Request - Secretariat Request to the Party for Additional Information under Article 21(1)(b) authored by Secretariat on 16/02/1998
The Secretariat received the requested information from the concerned government Party.
Party Response - Other document authored by Canada on 08/04/1998
The Secretariat informed Council that the Secretariat considers that the submission warrants development of a factual record.
Recommendation - Secretariat Notification to Council under Article 15(1) authored by Secretariat on 29/10/1999
The Council voted not to instruct the Secretariat to prepare a factual record.
Resolution - Council decision concerning the development of a Factual Record authored by Council on 16/05/2000