Huge victory for animals from the Federal Court of Appeal! The Court overturned a previous lower court ruling, and confirmed that the federal government can regulate plastic-manufactured items under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) in order to prevent pollution that kills millions of animals each year.
In 2021, the government listed plastic-manufactured items as “toxic” under CEPA. This move allowed for bans on harmful single-use plastics like straws and grocery bags, and opens the door for the government to use tools under CEPA to address other forms of plastic pollution such as fishing gear. However, a coalition of large plastic companies sued to overturn the listing decision that allows for these protections to be put in place.
The Federal Court initially sided with the industry in 2023. Animal Justice intervened in the case, to give a voice to the millions of animals harmed by plastic pollution each year. We joined forces with AEL Advocacy to intervene in the appeal, and argued that industry attempts to overturn the listing of plastic-manufactured items as toxic were out of step with science, as well as the clear wording and purposes of CEPA—Canada’s most important environmental law.
“… the chemical content of PMI [plastic manufactured items] is irrelevant to the sea otter choking on a plastic straw.” — Justice Rennie, Federal Court of Appeal
The Court of Appeal has now rejected the industry’s logic. The Court emphasized that 29 kilotonnes of plastic manufactured items enter the Canadian environment as pollution each year, and that, because it degrades slowly, this pollution is accumulating. Plastic pollution is causing significant environmental damage, including harm to millions of animals in the form of “death by strangulation, suffocation, internal hemorrhaging, disease transmission and habitat destruction.”
A Safer Future for Canadian Wildlife
Every year, thousands of tonnes of plastic enter the environment in Canada. This waste suffocates turtles, entangles whales, and kills seabirds. Without bold, science-based action, millions of animals will continue to face injury and death.
The court’s decision ensures that the federal government can use the tools available to it under CEPA, including current bans on certain single-use plastics, to reduce plastic pollution. This ruling also clears the way for the government to expand these protections. As a result, we can move closer to a future free from devastating plastic waste.
Animal Justice remains committed to protecting animals from the plastic pollution crisis. We will continue to advocate for science-based steps that safeguard wildlife and their habitats across the country.
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