BC announces changes to Environmental Management Act to regulate single-use products

November 25 marked the coming into force of the BC government’s Environmental Management Amendment Act, 2021 (the Act), which amends the Environmental Management Act to enhance the province’s ability to regulate single-use products. The Act:

• adds “single-use product” – a product that is “ordinarily” disposed of after a single use or short-term use, even if it can be reused – as a new category of product subject to regulation;
• expands the definition of “packaging” to include materials sold or distributed separately from the product it will protect, contain, or transport; and
• creates new powers to make regulations designed to prohibit or restrict the use, distribution, and sale of packaging and single-use products.  

The Act’s passing does not immediately affect the regulatory landscape for single-use products. Instead, new regulations must first be enacted to create fresh restrictions or bans. 

On their face, the amendments allow the province to regulate all packaging and single-use products regardless of what material they are produced from. But according to Environment Minister George Heyman, the legislation will specifically support the government’s commitment to phase out single-use plastics. Regulations addressing single-use plastics are therefore expected to be amongst the first implemented, with the government saying it plans to do so by early 2023 following a consultation process.

This legislation comes on the heels of recent changes to regulations under the Community Charter that allow municipalities to enact bylaws to ban single-use plastics without prior approval from the provincial government. These changes were required in the wake of the BC Court of Appeal striking down the City of Victoria’s ban on plastic bags because the city failed to first obtain such approval. Several municipalities have since implemented bylaws banning single-use plastics, and many others are in the process of doing so.  

What remains to be seen is to what extent the province will coordinate with municipalities to ensure their regulation of single-use plastics avoids a potential patchwork of regulation across different localities. While the phase out of single-use plastics has been recognized as an important step to achieve the government’s environmental objectives, given the far reach of any regulation, it is critical that the government also ensures consistency and transparency to minimize the regulatory burden of any changes it makes while achieving those objectives.

The author wishes to thank articling student Mackenzie Hayden for his help in preparing this legal update.