Antarctic Environmental Protection Regulations (SOR/2003-363)

Non-native Species

Marginal note:No dogs to be introduced

20 A permit may not be issued for the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act to allow any dog to be introduced into the Antarctic.

Marginal note:Species that may be introduced

21 Permits may be issued for the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act to allow the introduction into the Antarctic of animals or plants of a species listed in Appendix B to Annex II to the Protocol.

Marginal note:Content of permits

22 Any permit issued for the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act must specify

• (a) the species that may be introduced into the Antarctic;

• (b) the number of members of that species that may be introduced;

• (c) if appropriate, the age and sex of the members that may be introduced;

• (d) the precautions to be taken to prevent

  • (i) any escape of the members,

  • (ii) any contact of the members with native fauna and flora, and

  • (iii) any interference with an ecosystem of the Antarctic; and

• (e) the obligations set out in section 23.

Marginal note:Removal or disposal

• 23 (1) Before the expiry of a permit, the permit holder must remove from the Antarctic or dispose of

  • (a) any plant or animal in respect of which the permit is issued and any progeny of the plant or animal; and

  • (b) any other plant or animal that the permit holder has introduced and that is not indigenous to the Antarctic, including the progeny of any such plant or animal, unless the plant or animal poses no risk to native flora or fauna or to an ecosystem of the Antarctic.

• Marginal note:Means of disposal

  (2) The disposal must be

  • (a) in a case to which paragraph (1)(a) applies, by incineration or an equally effective means that eliminates risk to native fauna and flora and to the ecosystems of the Antarctic; and

  • (b) in a case to which paragraph (1)(b) applies, by incineration or an equally effective means that renders the plants or animals sterile.

Marginal note:Plant and animal parts and products

24 A permit holder must keep all parts and products of plants and animals that are introduced into the Antarctic under carefully controlled conditions, and before the expiry of the permit must dispose of them in a manner that eliminates any risk to native fauna and flora and to the ecosystems of the Antarctic.

Specified Substances and Products

Marginal note:Specification

25 The substances and products that are set out in Article 7 of Annex III to the Protocol are specified for the purpose of section 14 of the Act.

Specially Protected Areas

Marginal note:Designation

26 The Antarctic specially protected areas that are designated for the purpose of section 15 of the Act are the ones set out in the list of Antarctic Specially Protected Areas, published by the Secretariat of the Antarctic Treaty on its website, as amended from time to time.

Marginal note:Management Plan

27 In considering whether to issue a permit for the purpose of section 15 of the Act in relation to a specially protected area, the Minister must take into account the Management Plan for the specially protected area.

Marginal note:Content of permits

28 Any permit issued for the purpose of section 15 of the Act in relation to a specially protected area

• (a) must be accompanied by the sections of the Management Plan for the specially protected area that are relevant to the activity for which the permit was sought; and

• (b) must specify

  • (i) the extent and location of the specially protected area,

  • (ii) the activities that are authorized in relation to the specially protected area,

  • (iii) when, where and by whom the activities may be conducted, and

  • (iv) any other conditions that are imposed by the Management Plan.

Marginal note:Area without Management Plan

29 In the case of a specially protected area that does not have a Management Plan, any activities authorized by a permit issued for the purpose of section 15 of the Act must be for a compelling scientific purpose that cannot be served elsewhere and must not jeopardize the natural ecological system in the area.

Waste Management

General Requirements

Marginal note:Application

30 If wastes are mixed with another substance and the substances in the mixture are subject to different requirements under sections 31 to 33 and 37 to 42, the most stringent of the requirements under those sections that apply to any of the substances apply to the mixture.

Marginal note:Storage

31 Each permit holder who must remove wastes from the Antarctic or otherwise dispose of them must store them, until they are removed or disposed of, in such a way as to prevent their dispersal into the environment.

Marginal note:Removal of wastes

32 The permit holder must return wastes that are removed from the Antarctic to the country from which the activities generating the waste were organized or to any other country in which arrangements have been made for the disposal of the wastes in accordance with relevant international agreements.

Marginal note:Field camp wastes

33 The permit holder must take all reasonable steps to move the wastes generated at a field camp to

• (a) the station or vessel from which the field camp is supported; or

• (b) another station or vessel if the permit holder has arranged for the wastes to be managed there in accordance with Annex III to the Protocol.

Waste Management Plan

Marginal note:Contents of plan

34 The waste management plan must apply to all wastes generated by the activities to which the permit relates and must

• (a) include measures for the reduction, recycling, safe storage, removal and disposal of those wastes;

• (b) provide that all reasonable steps must be taken to minimize the amount of waste generated or disposed of in the Antarctic;

• (c) specify current and planned waste management measures, including measures for final disposal;

• (d) specify current and planned measures for analysing the effects of waste and waste management on the Antarctic environment;

• (e) specify other measures to minimize any negative effects of waste and waste management on the Antarctic environment; and

• (f) specify the method used for recording wastes.

Marginal note:Classification of wastes

35 In the waste management plan, wastes produced must be classified as

• (a) sewage and domestic liquid wastes (Group 1);

• (b) other liquid wastes and chemicals, including fuel and lubricants (Group 2);

• (c) solids to be combusted (Group 3);

• (d) other solid wastes (Group 4); and

• (e) radioactive material (Group 5).

Marginal note:Annual review

36 Within 30 days after each anniversary of the date of issuance of a permit, the permit holder must review and update his or her waste management plan and provide a copy of the updated plan to the Minister.

Marginal note:Wastes to be removed

37 The waste management plan must provide that the permit holder will remove from the Antarctic, before the permit expires, any of the following wastes that the permit holder brought into the Antarctic or produced while there:

• (a) radioactive materials;

• (b) electrical batteries;

• (c) fuel, both solid and liquid;

• (d) wastes containing heavy metals or toxic persistent organic compounds;

• (e) polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyurethane foam, polystyrene foam, rubber, electronic scrap, lubricating oils, treated wood or wood products and other products that contain additives that could produce harmful emissions if incinerated;

• (f) all other plastic wastes, except low-density polyethylene containers (such as bags for storing wastes) if those containers are incinerated in accordance with section 38;

• (g) fuel drums, except if their removal would result in a greater adverse environmental impact than leaving them in their existing locations;

• (h) other solid, non-combustible wastes, except if their removal would result in a greater adverse environmental impact than leaving them in their existing locations;

• (i) the solid residue of combustible wastes burned in an incinerator referred to in section 38;

• (j) unless they are incinerated, autoclaved or otherwise treated to be made sterile,

  • (i) residues of carcasses of imported animals,

  • (ii) laboratory cultures of micro-organisms and plant pathogens, and

  • (iii) introduced avian products;

• (k) any other liquid wastes, including sewage and domestic liquid wastes.

Incineration

Marginal note:Combustible wastes

38 The waste management plan must provide that the permit holder will, before the permit expires, burn all combustible wastes that are not removed from the Antarctic in incinerators that, to the extent practicable, reduce harmful emissions and remove the solid residue of that incineration from the Antarctic.

Other Waste Disposal on Land

Marginal note:Disposal in ice pits

• 39 (1) Despite paragraph 37(k), the waste management plan may allow the permit holder to dispose of the wastes referred to in that paragraph in deep ice pits if the wastes are produced by stations located inland on ice shelves or on the grounded ice sheet and that disposal is the only practicable option.

• Marginal note:Location of pits

  (2) The deep ice pits must not be located on known ice-flow lines that terminate at ice-free areas or in areas of high ablation.

Disposal of Wastes into the Sea

Marginal note:Disposal from vessel

40 Despite sections 37 and 38, the waste management plan may allow the permit holder to dispose of wastes from a vessel into the sea if the disposal is

• (a) in accordance with Annex V to MARPOL 73/78, the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as amended by the Protocol of 1978 relating to it and by any more recent amendment that is in force; or

• (b) under a permit issued under Division 3 of Part 7 of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999.

Marginal note:Sewage and domestic liquid wastes

41 Despite paragraph 37(k), the waste management plan may allow the permit holder to dispose of sewage or domestic liquid wastes, other than sewage or domestic liquid wastes from a vessel, directly into the sea if

• (a) they are disposed of at a place where conditions exist for initial dilution and rapid dispersal of the sewage or wastes; and

• (b) in the case of sewage or wastes that are produced at a station with an average weekly occupancy over the austral summer of at least 30 individuals, they are macerated before disposal.

Marginal note:Treated sewage

42 Despite paragraph 37(k), the waste management plan may allow the permit holder to dispose of the by-product of sewage, other than sewage from a vessel, that has been treated by the rotary biological contact process or a similar process into the sea if the disposal

• (a) does not adversely affect the local environment; and

• (b) is in accordance with Annex IV to the Protocol.

43 [Repealed, SOR/2025-195, s. 13]

44 [Repealed, SOR/2025-195, s. 13]

Records

Marginal note:List of locations

45 Within 30 days after each anniversary of the date of issuance of a permit for a term of more than one year (including the term of any renewal of the permit), and within 30 days after the day on which a permit expires, the permit holder must provide the Minister with a list of all locations where wastes have been incinerated or otherwise disposed of in the Antarctic.

Marginal note:Records

46 A permit holder must record each disposal of wastes, including sewage discharges from vessels, and retain the record for five years.

Emergencies

Marginal note:Reporting

47 The permit holder must, without delay, advise the Minister about all measures undertaken in response to an emergency.

Marginal note:Emergency plan

48 Each emergency plan must

• (a) identify the potential emergencies, including the potential impact on human health and the environment, that could result from the activities to which the permit is to relate;

• (b) include an assessment of the relative risk of occurrence of the potential emergencies;

• (c) set out the names and telephone numbers of personnel and describe their roles and responsibilities during an environmental emergency;

• (d) identify the training required for emergency response personnel;

• (e) list the equipment that will be available to deal with potential emergencies and indicate where it is located;

• (f) identify the procedures by which emergency resources, including personnel, equipment, facilities and financial resources, can be obtained; and

• (g) describe the procedures for implementing, reviewing and updating the plan.

Coming into Force

Marginal note:Coming into force

49 These Regulations come into force on December 1, 2003.