Science and Research Committee on June 18th, 2024

[The Chair, Liberal, Valerie Bradford]

You can send that in written form. Thank you so much.

Now we will turn to MP Kelloway for six minutes.

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Thank you, Chair.

Hello, colleagues and witnesses. Thanks for coming today.

I'm a bit of a newbie to this committee. I usually deal with fish and marine life, but I find this a very fascinating study from a whole host of perspectives.

I'm going to focus on three questions. If we have time, Mr. Drouin, maybe you can finish your opening statement.

I'm wondering if you can elaborate on how Canada's policies on the recycling of plastics have evolved over the last 10 to 15 years. What I'm getting at, I suppose, is this: Are we in a better position today to deal with plastics and waste management? That would be number one.

In your opening statement, you talked about the circular plastics economy. I'm wondering—for me at least, and for people watching at home—what you mean by that. Can you unpack the circular plastics economy? That's the second question.

The third question is about getting plastics out of landfills. We often talk about the environmental importance of that. Obviously, we should, but I'm wondering if you could speak to the health benefits of doing that and the socio-economic possibilities. What results from that? It may tie in with your circular plastics economy definition.

It's over to you. If you have enough time, you can finish off your opening statement.

[Dany Drouin]

There are a lot of plastics in the oceans, and fishery stocks are being impacted, so you're not far from the issue when you're in the other committee.

We are in a better place than we were 10 to 20 years ago in Canada because of both the policies and the technologies used to sort and recycle. We're still far off from a full circular plastics economy, with only 8% to 9% of our plastics being recycled and about 40,000 tonnes of plastics leaked permanently into the environment each year. We're far off, but we're in a better place than we were.

The circular economy, in a sense, recognizes that the value of the products is so important that you need to keep them in the economy as long as possible through the reusing, refilling, repairing and refurbishing of the products. Then when you come to their real end of life, recycling puts the resource back in the economy. That's what we mean by a circular economy. You try to avoid the end of life. That's linked to the socio-economic aspect you were talking about.

Thank you for allowing me to finish my introductory remarks.

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Do you mind if I ask you one more question?

[Dany Drouin]

Yes, of course.

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

You talked about marine litter, which is obviously important in the Great Lakes, on the west coast, on the east coast and in the Arctic. Can you very briefly, because you have a bit of time, highlight for me the landscape of where we were and where we are? I'm guessing it's similar to what you mentioned in your answer to my first question—that we're doing better—but we have a long way to go.

[Dany Drouin]

That's correct. You find plastics in the Canadian environment everywhere—on every shore, in every park, in the Arctic and in the water. It is worsening in some ways because the influx of pollution is greater than the progress toward the circular economy I was referring to. That has an important implication for birds, animals and ecosystems.

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

When it comes to marine, the trend line would be a little different than, say, on land.

[Dany Drouin]

Not necessarily. It's worsening. What I was saying at the beginning is that recycling is better than it was 30 years ago.

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Okay.

[Dany Drouin]

The problem is that we produce more and more plastics that end up in the environment. That is a bit different from the recycling of plastic, which is improving because of technologies and the EPR in the provinces and territories. This is exactly—

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

I'm a man of my word. I want to make sure you finish your statement.

[Dany Drouin]

Your point is exactly why the international community is working together to develop an international, legally binding treaty. We hosted in Ottawa not long ago the fourth session. The treaty is supposed to be agreed to in 2025. There's still a lot of work to do. The aim is to level the playing field across the world.

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Okay. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Valerie Bradford]

Do you want to finish your statement? You have 43 seconds left.

[Dany Drouin]

I finished it. I think we're okay.

[The Chair, Liberal, Valerie Bradford]

That's wonderful.

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

That's very clever. It was within the answers. Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Valerie Bradford]

We will now turn to MP Blanchette-Joncas for six minutes.

[Maxime Blanchette-Joncas, Bloc, Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I'd like to welcome the witnesses who are with us today.

Mr. Drouin, I read Statistics Canada data and a study conducted in 2019. From what I read, Canada produced or imported 7.1 million tonnes of plastic in 2020, which is a 28% increase over 2012. This is no trivial matter. Packaging accounted for nearly one third of the plastic used, and construction plastics accounted for one fifth. That same year, nearly five million tonnes of plastic were thrown into landfills. About a sixth was recycled, but the data doesn't show how much was actually recycled or how much ended up in the landfill.

That same study, done for the federal government, found that less than one tenth of plastic waste in Canada is recycled. That's one in ten. In school, that kind of mark does not pass muster.

What has the federal government done to address this deplorable situation?

[Dany Drouin]

Thank you for your question.

You're referring to a report that analyzed the status of plastics in the Canadian economy. That report laid a bit of a foundation for understanding the problem and finding potential solutions discussed with the provinces and territories.

The figures you have are the same as the ones I mentioned earlier when I mentioned that approximately—

[Maxime Blanchette-Joncas, Bloc, Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Mr. Drouin, I really like numbers, but I prefer actions.

What has your department done to counter this situation, as illustrated by the deplorable figures in the report I just quoted to you?

[Dany Drouin]

It has done a number of things.

First, the Government of Canada has invested in science and data collection in order to validate the figures you mentioned over time. That work is being done.

Then, more data will be collected and entered in the recently announced registry, which will provide the information needed for concrete action.

Draft regulations have also been put in place, one of which aims to prohibit six single‑use items that will join 140 others elsewhere in the world, including in the provinces.

We also have draft regulations for recycled content and labelling.

Since 2021, we have also controlled the export of plastic waste. You need a permit to be able to export that waste. The permit is only issued if the receiving country wants the plastic.

So a lot has been done, and that's just at the federal level. The provinces are doing a lot as well.

[Maxime Blanchette-Joncas, Bloc, Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

It's the federal side that interests me, and that's what concerns you, Mr. Drouin.

How do you rate your goal of achieving zero plastic waste by 2030, on a scale of 1 to 10?

[Dany Drouin]

In fact, it's a common goal, and it was set as part of the Canadian strategy adopted by the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, or CCME. The federal, provincial and territorial governments are working together to achieve this objective, which isn't just a federal one.