WORLD TRADE G/TBT/Notif.97.196
16May1997
ORGANIZATION
(97-2048)
Committee onTechnical Barriers toTrade
NOTIFICATION
Thefollowing notification isbeing circulated inaccordance withArticle 10.6.
1. Member toAgreement notifying: CANADA
Ifapplicable, name oflocalgovernment involved (Articles 3.2and7.2):
2. Agency responsible: Department oftheEnvironment
Agency orauthority designated tohandle comments regarding thenotification canbe
indicated ifdifferent from above:
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X],2.10.1 [],5.6.2 [],5.7.1 [],other:
4. Products covered (HSorCCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading.
ICSnumbers maybeprovided inaddition, where applicable): Benzene
5. Title, number ofpages andlanguage(s) ofthenotified document: Benzene inGasoline
Regulations andOrder Adding aSubstance totheListofToxic Substances inSchedule I
totheCanadian Environmental Protection Act(pages 1425-1462)
6. Description ofcontent: ThegoaloftheRegulations istoreduce releases ofbenzene, a
known human carcinogen, from gasoline-powered vehicles byimproving the
environmental performance ofCanadian gasoline. Benzene wasdetermined tobetoxic
under theCanadian Environmental Protection Act(CEPA) on22January 1994. The
keypoints ofcompliance areatrefineries, blending facilities andimport points, although
capsonthelevel ofbenzene ingasoline alsoapply throughout thedistribution system.
Flexibility totheregulated industry isprovided through theoption touseannual pool
averages andaperformance model thatrelates gasoline composition totailpipe
emissions. Based ontheUnited States 'Environmental Protection Agency 's(EPA)
Complex Model, theBenzene Emissions Number (BEN) isdefined asafunction of
several gasoline parameters suchasbenzene, aromatics andsulphur. These innovative
concepts, endorsed bytheCanadian Council ofMinisters oftheEnvironment (CCME),
other government departments (OGDs) andthepetroleum industry, allow investments for
compliance tobeminimized butalsocause theregulations andtheadministration oftheir
provisions tobecomplicated. TheRegulations introduce afreeze ontheBEN andare
structured suchthattheycaneasily beamended toaddress additional substances from the
second Priority Substances List (PSL2) [i.e., 1,3-butadiene, formaldehyde and
acetaldehyde] should theybedetermined tobe"toxic" under CEPA inthefuture.
./.G/TBT/Notif.97.196
Page2
7. Objective andrationale: Protection oftheenvironment
8. Relevant documents: Canada Gazette, PartI,3May1997
9. Proposed dateofadoption:
Proposed dateofentry intoforce:Notstated
10. Final dateforcomments: 2July1997
11. Texts available from: National enquiry point [X]oraddress andtelefax number ofother
body: