Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (S.C. 1999, c. 33)

Defence

Marginal note:Defence

312 In a prosecution for a contravention of a provision of Division 5 of Part 7 by a company engaged in the business of assembling or altering vehicles, it is a defence for the company to establish that the contravention occurred as a result of work previously done on a vehicle by another company engaged in the manufacture of the vehicle.

PART 11Miscellaneous Matters

Disclosure of Information

Marginal note:Request for confidentiality

• 313 (1) A person who provides information to the Minister under this Act, or to a board of review in respect of a notice of objection filed under this Act, may submit with the information a request that it be treated as confidential.

• Marginal note:Contents of request

  (2) A request for confidentiality shall be submitted, with reasons taking into account the criteria set out in paragraphs 20(1)(a) to (d) of the Access to Information Act, in writing and contain any supplementary information that may be prescribed.

• Marginal note:Review of requests

  (3) The Minister shall review a statistically valid representative sample of requests granted under subsection (1) and determine whether, in respect of each of those requests, the person who made the request demonstrated that it concerned any of the following:

  • (a) trade secrets of any person;

  • (b) financial, commercial, scientific or technical information that is confidential information and that is treated consistently in a confidential manner by any person;

  • (c) information the disclosure of which could reasonably be expected to result in material financial loss or gain to, or could reasonably be expected to prejudice the competitive position of, any person; or

  • (d) information the disclosure of which could reasonably be expected to interfere with contractual or other negotiations of any person.

• Marginal note:Requests deemed not to have been made

  (4) If the Minister determines that the person who made the request did not demonstrate that the request, in whole or in part, concerned information described in any of paragraphs (3)(a) to (d), then, for the purpose of any part of the request that does not concern such information, the request is deemed not to have been made.

• Marginal note:Report — number of requests

  (5) The Minister shall include in the annual report required under section 342 the number of requests made under subsection (1), the number of requests reviewed, the number of requests that, in whole or in part, were deemed not to have been made and a summary of the information disclosed under sections 315 to 317.2.

• Marginal note:Designation

  (6) The Minister may, by order, designate any person or class of persons to exercise the powers and perform the duties and functions set out in this section.

Marginal note:Prohibition of disclosure

314 The Minister shall not disclose any information in respect of which a request for confidentiality has been made under section 313, except in accordance with any of sections 315 to 317.2.

Marginal note:Disclosure by Minister for public interest

• 315 (1) The Minister may disclose information, other than information in respect of which section 318 applies, where

  • (a) the disclosure is in the interest of public health, public safety or the protection of the environment; and

  • (b) the public interest in the disclosure clearly outweighs in importance

    • (i) any material financial loss or prejudice to the competitive position of the person who provided the information or on whose behalf it was provided, and

    • (ii) any damage to the privacy, reputation or human dignity of any individual that may result from the disclosure.

• Marginal note:Notice of disclosure

  (2) Subject to subsection (3), at least 24 hours before disclosing any information under subsection (1), the Minister shall give notice of the proposed disclosure to the person who provided the information or on whose behalf it was provided.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (3) Notice under subsection (2)

  • (a) is not required where the person to whom it is to be given cannot be found after reasonable efforts have been made to do so; or

  • (b) may be given later than the time required by that subsection where an emergency exists.

Marginal note:Certain purposes for which information may be disclosed

• 316 (1) Information may be disclosed

  • (a) with the written consent of the person who provided it or on whose behalf it was provided;

  • (b) as may be necessary for the purposes of the administration or enforcement of this Act;

  • (c) under an agreement or arrangement between the Government of Canada or any of its institutions and any other government in Canada, the government of a foreign state or an international organization or any of its institutions, or between the Minister and any other minister of the Crown in right of Canada or a board or agency of the Government of Canada, if

    • (i) the purpose of the agreement or arrangement is the administration or enforcement of a law, and

    • (ii) the government, international organization, institution, other minister, board or agency undertakes to keep the information confidential;

  • (d) under an agreement or arrangement between the Government of Canada and the government of a foreign state or an international organization, where the government or organization undertakes to keep the information confidential; or

  • (e) to a physician or prescribed medical professional who requests the information for the purpose of making a medical diagnosis of, or rendering medical treatment to, a person in an emergency.

• Marginal note:Disclosure by physician, etc.

  (2) A physician or prescribed medical professional to whom information is disclosed under paragraph (1)(e) shall not disclose the information except as may be necessary for the purposes referred to in that paragraph.

• Marginal note:Disclosure of personal information

  (3) Personal information as defined in section 3 of the Privacy Act may not be disclosed under paragraph (1)(b) or (c) unless

  • (a) the disclosure is in the interest of public health, public safety or the protection of the environment; and

  • (b) the public interest in the disclosure clearly outweighs in importance any damage to the privacy, reputation or human dignity of any individual that may result from the disclosure.

Marginal note:Disclosure by Minister

• 317 (1) The Minister may disclose information in respect of which a request for confidentiality has been made under section 313 where the Minister determines that the disclosure would not be prohibited under section 20 of the Access to Information Act.

• Marginal note:Application of certain provisions of Access to Information Act

  (2) Where the Minister intends to disclose information under subsection (1), sections 27, 28 and 44 of the Access to Information Act apply, with any modifications that the circumstances require, and, for that purpose, that information is deemed to be contained in a record that the Minister intends to disclose and any reference in those sections to the person who requested access shall be disregarded.

• Marginal note:Protection from civil proceeding or prosecution

  (3) Despite any other Act of Parliament, no civil or criminal proceedings lie against the Minister, or against any person acting on behalf of or under the direction of the Minister, and no proceedings lie against the Crown for the disclosure in good faith of any information under this Act, for any consequences that flow from that disclosure or for the failure to give any notice required under section 27 or any other provision of the Access to Information Act if reasonable care is taken to give the required notice.

Marginal note:Disclosure — substance

• 317.1 (1) The Minister may disclose the explicit chemical or biological name of a substance in respect of which a request for confidentiality has been made if the Minister takes or has taken any of the following measures:

  • (a) to permit, under paragraph 84(1)(a), the manufacture or importation of the substance, subject to any conditions that are specified;

  • (b) to prohibit the manufacture or importation of the substance under paragraph 84(1)(b);

  • (c) to publish, in respect of the substance, a notice under subsection 85(1) or (4); or

  • (d) to amend the Domestic Substances List in respect of the substance under subsection 87(3) or (4.1).

• Marginal note:Disclosure — living organism

  (2) The Minister may disclose the explicit biological name of a living organism in respect of which a request for confidentiality has been made if the Minister takes or has taken any of the following measures:

  • (a) to permit, under paragraph 109(1)(a), the manufacture or importation of the living organism, subject to any conditions that are specified;

  • (b) to prohibit the manufacture or importation of the living organism under paragraph 109(1)(b);

  • (c) to publish, in respect of the living organism, a notice under subsection 110(1) or (4); or

  • (d) to amend the Domestic Substances List in respect of the living organism under subsection 112(3) or (5).

• Marginal note:Disclosure — Ministers’ recommendation

  (3) The Minister shall disclose the explicit chemical or biological name of a substance or the explicit biological name of a living organism in respect of which a request for confidentiality has been made if the Ministers recommend or have recommended to the Governor in Council the addition of the substance or the living organism to Part 1 or 2 of the list of toxic substances in Schedule 1 under subsection 90(1).

Marginal note:Disclosure after expiry

• 317.2 (1) The Minister may disclose the explicit chemical or biological name of a substance or the explicit biological name of a living organism after the expiry of a period of 10 years after the day on which a request for confidentiality under section 313 is made.

• Marginal note:Publication — notice of intent

  (2) The Minister shall publish a notice in the Canada Gazette of the Minister’s intention to disclose the explicit chemical or biological name under subsection (1) at least 60 days before the proposed disclosure.

• Marginal note:Comments

  (3) Within 60 days after the publication of the notice, the person who made the request for confidentiality or the person’s successor or assign may file with the Minister comments respecting

  • (a) whether the public interest in the disclosure of the name clearly outweighs in importance

    • (i) any material financial loss or prejudice to the competitive position of the person or the person’s successor or assign, and

    • (ii) any damage to the privacy, reputation or human dignity of any person that may result from the disclosure of that name; and

  • (b) whether the disclosure is prohibited under section 20 of the Access to Information Act.

• Marginal note:Notice of disclosure

  (4) At least 24 hours before disclosing the name under subsection (1), the Minister shall give notice of the proposed disclosure to the person who made the request for confidentiality or the person’s successor or assign. The notice is not required if the person to whom it is to be given cannot be found after reasonable efforts have been made to do so.

• Marginal note:Emergency

  (5) If an emergency exists, subsections (2) and (3) do not apply and the notice of disclosure required in subsection (4) may be given later than the time provided for in that subsection.