Revocation of Ontario Regulation 323/94 (Dry Cleaners) under the Environmental Protection Act

Ontario is proposing to revoke unnecessary regulations under the Environmental Protection Act regarding mandatory training requirements for dry cleaning businesses.

Revoking these requirements will reduce administrative burden and costs for Ontario businesses, while ensuring strong environmental protections.

Ontario Regulation 323/94 (O. Reg. 323/94) requires operators of dry cleaning establishments using dry cleaning equipment to employ a person trained in the management of contaminants and waste in connection with the operation of dry cleaning equipment. The trained person must have completed a training course within the last five years.

O. Reg. 323/94 applies to dry cleaning facilities that use perchloroethylene, methyl chloroform or petroleum solvents and requires them to have a trained person on staff.

In the nearly 25-year period since O. Reg. 323/94 was implemented, additional regulatory requirements have been introduced regarding the environmental management of dry cleaning establishments. These include:

• A federal regulation introduced in 2003 that requires dry cleaners across Canada that use perchloroethylene specifically, to:
  • Have closed loop systems to reduce emissions of perchloroethylene to air and to manage the collection and disposal of residue and wastewater from the dry cleaning process. Many facilities replaced their dry cleaning equipment to comply with this requirement.
  • Report annually to Environment and Climate Change Canada on their equipment types, purchase of perchloroethylene, and the management of waste from the facility.
• The federal regulation also imposes additional requirements on the businesses that supply perchloroethylene to dry cleaning establishments.
• Municipal by-laws (e.g. City of Toronto) that require dry cleaning facilities to report on their use and release of toxics and to wastewater.

Dry cleaning facilities must continue to adhere to these federal and municipal requirements, in addition to on-going provincial requirements with respect to environmental protection and workplace health and safety, to ensure environmental and human health remain protected.

Reducing regulatory burden while maintaining strong environmental protections is part of our Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan to balance a healthy environment with a healthy economy.