This consultation was open from:
May 4, 2021
to August 6, 2021
Decision summary
We have updated our compliance policy to provide greater transparency on how the ministry responds to environmental incidents, reduce burden on the regulated community and enhance the ministry’s ability to swiftly address incidents that pose a higher risk to the natural environment or human health.
Decision details
Ontario is committed to protecting its air, land, water, and drinking water through a comprehensive framework of environmental legislation, policies and standards that support healthier, prosperous communities.
We’re updating our compliance policy on Ontario.ca to clarify our approach, reduce burden on the regulated community and enhance transparency around how the ministry responds to environmental incidents, helping ensure that polluters are consistently held accountable.
1. Changes to the compliance policy
Higher-risk focus
- we are focusing on responding to higher-risk incidents that result, or have the potential to result in impacts to the natural environment or human health (for example, spills)
Approach to low-risk incidents
- we are limiting response on low-risk incidents by considering their suitability for referral to a more appropriate regulatory authority (for example, local municipality, other agency)
- low-risk incidents are those that do not impact human health or the natural environment and relate only to minor ‘loss of enjoyment of property’ or ‘localized interference with the normal conduct of business’ (for example, construction noise)
- when assessing whether an incident should be referred, ministry staff will consider whether the incident meets the low-risk criteria outlined above, as well as whether there is an alternative authority with the mandate, expertise and capacity to respond to the incident
- the ministry will also re-assess its response should a low-risk incident persist long term, become a community-level issue or become linked to health-related impacts
Updated Informed Judgement Matrix
- we are updating the “Compliance History” and “Human Health and Environmental” components of the Informed Judgement Matrix (the matrix assists ministry staff to determine the appropriate compliance tool for a particular incident) to incorporate modern risk principles and case-specific considerations into the matrix to increase its effectiveness and applicability to more situations
- we are revising direction on compliance tools and increasing the number of compliance categories to provide better guidance for compliance tool use
- we are providing clarity on the use of recommended compliance tools
Renaming title of policy
- we are changing the title from “Compliance Policy Applying Abatement and Enforcement Tools” to “Ontario’s Environmental Compliance Policy”
- the change reflects the modernized approach to compliance and updated terminology
Please note, the ministry’s response to an incident will continue to be determined on a case-by-case basis and by considering:
- the facility
- the nature of the impacts being reported to the ministry
This may or may not involve a field response by our staff.
We will also continue to assess:
- the level of risk associated with each incident
- whether there are actual or potential impacts to the natural environment or human health
2. Referral Guide
We have included a referral guide as an appendix within the updated compliance policy. The referral guide provides the public with established examples of low-risk incidents that may be suitable for referral.
The list of incidents included in the referral guide is non-exhaustive and intended to be used for informational purposes only.
3. Service standards
The government remains committed to:
- service excellence
- accountability
- transparency
The ministry will not be adopting the proposed additional service standards for providing responses to reports or calls from the public about incidents.
This decision was made in response to recent updates to the Ontario government service standards under the At Your Service Act, 2022, which overlapped significantly with the proposed additional service standards.
The Ontario government service standards will ensure public concerns are reviewed and responded to in a timely manner.
Effects of consultation
Feedback on the proposal was generally supportive, with some issue-specific concerns. Stakeholders raised the following concerns or questions, to which responses are provided below:
- Low-risk incident referral and the capacity for municipalities to respond
- Use of the Informed Judgement Matrix and discretion
- Concerns about specific facilities
- Why were specific sectors identified in the posting?
- Why was the Endangered Species Act not included?
- Use of administrative penalties
1) Low-risk incident referral and the capacity for municipalities to respond
The ministry heard concerns from stakeholders about the capacity of certain municipalities to respond to low-risk incidents that may be referred.
Response
We revised our approach to ensure the mandate, expertise and capacity of a municipality or other regulatory authority is considered before a decision for incident referral is made by ministry staff. This assessment process is codified in the updated compliance policy.
For all incidents, we will continue to assess:
- the level of risk associated with an incident
- whether there are actual or potential human health or environmental impacts
Note: despite a previous referral, the ministry will re-evaluate its initial assessment should a low-risk incident persist long term, become a community-level issue or become linked to health-related impacts.
Overall, the ministry’s response to an incident will continue to be determined on a case-by-case basis and by considering the facility and the nature of the impacts being reported to the ministry.
2) Use of the Informed Judgement Matrix and discretion
- We received comments regarding the use of the Informed Judgement matrix (IJM), including:
- concerns about the practicality of using the IJM
- wanting to ensure that the IJM is used consistently and doesn’t introduce burden on businesses
Response:
The updated IJM builds upon the existing matrix while incorporating modern risk principles to improve the effectiveness of the IJM as a resource for ministry staff and guideline for the regulated community and public. Specifically, the updated IJM will:
- enhance the ministry's ability to respond to incidents consistently and predictably across the province
- provide clarity to the regulated community on the approach the ministry will take to address non-compliances – reducing burden associated with regulatory complexity
We will provide training to ministry staff to support consistency across the ministry when implementing the changes and monitor use of compliance tools.
3) Consistency in the use of the policy
We received comments highlighting the need for a consistent approach in how the policy is used across the province.
Response:
Updating our compliance policy will result in more consistent compliance practices for industry and businesses across Ontario. We will train ministry staff to support consistency across the ministry when implementing the changes and monitor use of compliance tools.
Ministry staff follow the province’s Regulator's Code of Practice when conducting their duties. The Code:
- outlines the government’s commitment to be clear about how the government works with industry and businesses
- promotes fair treatment and respect during an inspection, audit, investigation or other regulated activity
4) Concerns about specific facilities
We received concerns about specific regulated entities and the ministry’s approach to addressing compliance.
Updating our compliance policy will result in more consistent compliance practices for industry and businesses across Ontario. Concerns regarding specific facilities should be directed to the local district office. Please refer to the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks district locator | ontario.ca to locate the local ministry office.
5) Why were specific sectors identified in the posting?
We were asked why the following sectors were used as an example in the posting:
- landfills
- organic waste facilities
- energy from waste facilities
- steel manufacturing
Response
The sectors above were identified in the posting since they are known sectors within the province that require ministry permission.
6) Why was the Endangered Species Act not included?
We were asked why the Endangered Species Act, 2007 was not included in the proposed compliance policy.
Response
The updated compliance policy now includes the Endangered Species Act, 2007. As a result, the compliance policy will now inform how ministry staff administer that Act.
7) Use of administrative penalties
We received comments related to the use of expanded administrative penalties (also referred to as “administrative monetary penalties”).
Response
This compliance policy update addresses the use of “environmental penalties,” which are a type of administrative penalty currently in use by the ministry.
This compliance policy update does not address the proposed expansion of administrative penalties
Supporting materials
View materials in person
Some supporting materials may not be available online. If this is the case, you can request to view the materials in person.
Get in touch with the office listed below to find out if materials are available.
Connect with us
Contact
Shannon Boland
135 ST CLAIR AVENUE WEST
FLOOR 8
TORONTO,
ON
M4V 1P5
Canada
Original proposal
Proposal details
Review of MECP’s compliance policy
We are updating the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) decade-old environmental compliance policy and modernizing compliance practices to focus more resources on high-risk incidents and better hold polluters accountable.
This work supports priorities set out in the Made-in-Ontario Environment Plan and Ontario’s Open for Business Plan commitments made with the passing of Bill 197, COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act, 2020.
Our proposed changes include updated tools and resources for environmental officers to help determine the level of intervention needed, apply more stringent tools in cases where organizations and individuals have repeatedly broken environmental laws.
The proposed new compliance policy continues to support and build on the ministry’s strong approach in responding to:
- high-risk human-health or environmental incidents
- noise and odour incidents from facilities that require a ministry permission and have established requirements, including landfills, organic waste facilities, energy from waste facilities and steel manufacturing
The new compliance policy being proposed continues to direct use of an informed judgement matrix and a risk-based approach during case-by-case reviews of complaints and responses to incidents.
We are also proposing public service standards and a referral tool for:
- responding to incidents
- providing the public with information on the incident referral tool
Ministry staff will use this new, proposed tool when referring low-risk incidents to more appropriate agencies or levels of government. This will ensure transparency in the ministry’s decision-making processes.
How we currently respond to incidents
When an incident is reported to the ministry, we undertake an assessment to determine the level of risk associated with that incident. We assess whether there are actual or potential human health or environmental impacts, or whether impacts are limited to those of a low-risk (nuisance) type.
This assessment is informed by the compliance policy and supporting procedures. The ministry’s response to an incident is determined on a case-by-case basis and by considering the facility and the nature of the impacts being reported to the ministry. This may or may not involve a site visit by our staff.
If our compliance staff determine an incident is not related to a facility regulated by a ministry permission (e.g. an Environmental Compliance Approval) and is low risk, no further actions will be taken. We may refer the complaint to another responsible agency or the local municipality. All incidents reported to the ministry will be documented.
A wide variety of compliance and enforcement tools are used by ministry staff to:
- address the breaking of environmental laws
- bring businesses, facilities and individuals back into compliance
For minor types of violations, where the person or business has demonstrated a willingness to comply, the ministry recommends tools such as warnings, tickets, letters, notice of violation, inspection reports and compliance promotion.
For known and potential violations of a more serious nature and for repeat offenders, the ministry can take the steps of issuing an order, administrative monetary penalty, investigating the incident or suspending or revoking a permission.
Proposed updates
We are proposing to update the following:
- Compliance policy (draft)
- Referral tool (draft)
- Service standards (draft)
1. Compliance policy
Intended outcomes of proposed changes to the compliance policy
We are committed to addressing environmental challenges in a responsible, effective, and balanced way by ensuring polluters are held accountable, while reducing regulatory burden for responsible businesses.
By updating the compliance policy to better enforce regulatory rules associated with ministry permissions and requirements and referring low-risk incidents related to noise and odour outside of this scope to agencies and municipalities, we are focusing the province’s resources on addressing higher impact incidents more quickly and effectively.
Updating our compliance policy will result in more consistent compliance and business operation practices for industry and businesses across Ontario.
At the same time, our case-by-case and risk-based approach for assessing and responding to incidents will continue to reflect our commitment to protecting and supporting the province’s air, water, and land.
Proposed changes to the compliance policy
Renaming title of policy
- changing title from “Compliance Policy Applying Abatement and Enforcement Tools” to “Ontario’s Environmental Compliance Policy”
- the change reflects the modernized approach to compliance and updated terminology
Higher-risk focus/lower-risk (referral)
- we are focusing on responding to higher-risk incidents and to facilities that require a ministry permission and have established requirements
(e.g. landfills, organic waste facilities, energy from waste facilities and steel manufacturing) - incidents that are determined to be lower-risk noise and odour incidents (those that cause nuisance types of impacts) or any incidents related to facilities not regulated by a permission will be referred to the appropriate level of government or agency, such as municipalities that have authority under the Municipal Act, 2001 to address these incidents through bylaws
Updated informed judgement matrix
- update the “Compliance History” and “Environmental and Human Health” components of the informed judgement matrix to incorporate modern risk principles and case-specific considerations into the matrix to increase its effectiveness and applicability to more situations
- revised compliance tools and increased number of compliance categories to provide better guidance for compliance tool use
Addressing lower-risk incidents
We know that low-risk noise and odour incidents can interfere with the day-to-day life of Ontario families and businesses. Although these interferences can be a nuisance, they do not impact human health or the environment.
Examples of these types of incidents may include:
- intermittent noise from small-scale industrial or commercial exhaust fans
- intermittent noise from commercial truck refrigeration units
- temporary and/or localized odour impacts from a retail bakery or a coffee roasting facility
Please note, under the new Compliance Policy being proposed, we would not change how we regulate low-risk noise and odour incidents from facilities that require a permission from the ministry and have established requirements, including landfills, organic waste facilities, energy from waste facilities and steel manufacturing.
2. Referral tool
Increasing transparency of incident assessment processes
We are proposing a referral tool for triaging reports or calls received from the public so that incidents can be efficiently referred to other agencies or levels of government, as applicable. For more detailed information on what types of incidents would be referred and other details, please refer to the referral tool in the supporting documents section.
3. Service standards
Proposed service standards
Along with our review of the compliance policy, we are creating service standards for providing responses to reports/calls from the public about incidents. These standards will ensure that public concerns are reviewed and responded to in a timely manner.
The government is committed to:
- service excellence
- accountability
- transparency
Service standards support these core commitments, increasing the confidence of Ontarians, industry, and businesses in government.
Refer to the service standards in supporting documents section for full details.
Other Public Consultation Opportunities
In addition to updating our environmental compliance policy, we’re also improving tools and creating clear and consistent guidelines for municipalities to use during land-use planning decisions to reduce noise and odour impacts from existing industry.
Refer to the ‘Related links’ section in this notice for additional information on these postings.
Supporting materials
View materials in person
Some supporting materials may not be available online. If this is the case, you can request to view the materials in person.
Get in touch with the office listed below to find out if materials are available.
Comment
Commenting is now closed.
This consultation was open from May 4, 2021
to August 6, 2021
Connect with us
Contact
Shannon Boland
135 ST CLAIR AVENUE WEST
FLOOR 8
TORONTO,
ON
M4V 1P5
Canada
Comments received
Through the registry
25By email
16By mail
0