Q-2, r. 26.1 - Regulation respecting the operation of industrial establishments

Updated to 18 July 2013

This document has official status.

chapter Q-2, r. 5

Regulation respecting industrial depollution attestations

Environment Quality Act

(chapter Q-2, ss. 31.10, 31.41, 115.27, 115.34 and 124.1).

The duties prescribed in the Regulation have been indexed as of 1 January 2013 pursuant to the notice published in Part 1 (French) of the Gazette officielle du Québec of 5 January 2013, page 10. (s. 12)

CHAPTER 0.I INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENTS COVERED

O.C. 652-2013, s. 1.

0.1. Subdivision 1 of Division IV.2 of Chapter I of the Environment Quality Act (chapter Q-2) applies to the following industrial establishments, defined in particular on the basis of their primary activity under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS 1998):

(1)  an industrial establishment manufacturing pulp intended for sale or a paper product within the meaning of section 1 of the Regulation respecting pulp and paper mills (chapter Q-2, r. 27);

(2)  an industrial establishment engaged in metal ore mining (2122) and non-metallic mineral mining and quarrying (2123) if the establishment has an ore mining capacity greater than 2,000,000 metric tons per year or an ore or mine tailing processing capacity greater than 50,000 metric tons per year;

(3)  an industrial establishment engaged in clay building material and refractory manufacturing (32712) if the establishment has a refractory brick production capacity greater than 20,000 metric tons per year;

(4)  an establishment engaged in glass manufacturing (327214) if its primary activity is to manufacture flat glass;

(5)  an establishment engaged in cement manufacturing (32731) if its primary activity is to manufacture Portland cement;

(6)  an establishment engaged in lime manufacturing (32741) if its primary activity is to manufacture quicklime;

(7)  an establishment engaged in other non-metallic mineral products manufacturing (3279) if its primary activity is to manufacture silicon carbide;

(8)  an establishment engaged in iron and steel mills and ferroalloy manufacturing (33111) if its primary activity is

(a)  the production of pig iron;

(b)  the production of steel;

(c)  the production of stainless steel; or

(d)  the production of ferroalloys;

(9)  an establishment engaged in the primary production of alumina and aluminum (331313);

(10)  an establishment engaged in non-ferrous metal smelting and refining (33141).

For the purposes of this section, operations that consist in producing precious metals from ore or mine tailings are included in an establishment’s operations, operations that consist in extracting, from ores or mine tailings, an ore concentrate or another substance, and operations involving ore beneficiation, are included in ore processing operations and establishments involved in ore agglomeration are deemed to be extraction establishments.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 1.

CHAPTER I APPLICATION OR REAPPLICATION FOR A DEPOLLUTION ATTESTATION OR APPLICATION TO AMEND A DEPOLLUTION ATTESTATION

1. An application or reapplication for a depollution attestation shall be made on a form supplied by the Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment and Parks.

O.C. 601-93, s. 1.

2. An application or reapplication for a depollution attestation shall contain

(1)  an indication as to whether it is an application for a depollution attestation or a reapplication for a depollution attestation and, in the latter case, the number of the applicant’s depollution attestation;

(2)  in the case of a natural person, the applicant’s name, address and telephone number;

(3)  in the case of a partnership or a legal person, its firm name, its head office, the position of the person signing the application, as well as a certified copy of a document from the board of directors or from the partners authorizing any of the persons referred to in paragraph 1 or 2 of section 4 to file an application;

(4)  in the case of a partnership, the name, domicile and address of the partners, or the name and and head office of any associated legal person;

(5)  in the case of a legal person, the name, domicile and address of the directors and officers;

(6)  the name, address and telephone number of the industrial establishment covered by the application or reapplication;

(7)  the registration number in the central file of enterprises assigned to the industrial establishment by the enterprise registrar;

(8)  the type of industrial activities carried on by the applicant in the industrial establishment covered by the application or reapplication;

(9)  the cadastral designation of the lots on which the applicant carries on the activities referred to in paragraph 8;

(10)  the daily and yearly nominal production capacity of the industrial establishment covered by the application or reapplication;

(11)  a plan showing the location of, and a description of, the points of emission, deposit, release or discharge into the environment of contaminants resulting from the operations of the industrial establishment covered by the application or reapplication, as well as a description of the source of each point;

(12)  information dating back less than 2 years and concerning the type, quantity and concentration of the contaminants emitted, deposited, released or discharged, unless such information has already been sent to the Minister;

(13)  a description of the measures, apparatus or equipment implemented or installed and used to reduce or eliminate the emission, deposit, release or discharge of a contaminant into the environment;

(14)  a list and a brief description of the depollution activities that the applicant is carrying out or plans to carry out, as well as details concerning the objectives of and timetable for the activities, and the progress made; and

(15)  the emergency measures that the applicant takes in the event of the accidental occurrence of a contaminant in the environment, as well as the name and title within the applicant’s undertaking of the person responsible for implementing the emergency measures for the industrial establishment covered by the application or reapplication, unless such measures were sent to the Minister not more than 2 years prior to the filing of the application or reapplication.

O.C. 601-93, s. 2; O.C. 441-2008, s. 1.

3. An application to amend a depollution attestation shall be filed in writing and shall contain

(1)  the number of the depollution attestation in respect of which the application is being filed;

(2)  the information required under paragraphs 2 to 7 of section 2;

(3)  a complete description of the changes which the applicant wishes to make and for which an application to amend a depollution attestation is required under section 31.25 of the Environment Quality Act (chapter Q-2), as well as the reasons for the changes;

(4)  an evaluation of the impact of the changes on the quantity or volume of the emission, deposit, release or discharge of contaminants into the environment and on the type, concentration and quantity of contaminants emitted, deposited, released or discharged into the environment; and

(5)  a description of the measures, apparatus or equipment that are referred to in paragraph 13 of section 2 and that the applicant intends to implement or install in order to comply with the contaminant discharge standards contained in his depollution attestation or in order to reduce or eliminate the emission, deposit, release or discharge of new contaminants into the environment by the industrial establishment.

O.C. 601-93, s. 3.

4. An application or reapplication for a depollution attestation or an application to amend a depollution attestation shall be signed,

(1)  where the applicant is a legal person, by a member of the board of directors or by an officer responsible for production operations or for activities to control and monitor the discharge of contaminants into the environment, provided that the director or officer is domiciled in Québec;

(2)  where the applicant is a partnership, by a partner responsible for production operations or for activities to control and monitor the discharge of contaminants into the environment, provided that the partner is domiciled in Québec; or

(3)  in other cases, by an operator domiciled in Québec.

O.C. 601-93, s. 4.

5. An operator of an industrial establishment referred to in section 0.1 must apply for a depollution attestation or any new application

(1)  within 6 months of the day on which the operator’s establishment becomes subject to this Regulation or, if an establishment begins operation after that date, within 30 days from the date of obtention of the certificate of authorization issued to operate the establishment; or

(2)  at least 6 months before the date of expiry of the operator’s attestation.

O.C. 601-93, s. 5; O.C. 652-2013, s. 2.

CHAPTER II PUBLIC CONSULTATION

6. The Minister shall, in respect of an application, in accordance with section 31.20 of the Act, publish a notice of his intention to issue or to refuse to issue a depollution attestation. He shall publish the notice, within 90 days following the date on which he sends the applicant written notice of the content of the proposed depollution attestation or of his intention to refuse to issue a depollution attestation.

O.C. 601-93, s. 6; O.C. 652-2013, s. 3.

7. For the purposes of public consultation, the application record shall contain

(1)  a document indicating the procedure to be followed by any person, group or municipality sending comments to the Minister;

(2)  the application for a depollution attestation that the applicant filed with the Minister, less the information furnished to the Minister under paragraphs 4, 5 and 10 of section 2;

(3)  the information in the Minister’s possession, other than information furnished when the application was filed under paragraph 12 of section 2, concerning the type, quantity, quality and concentration of contaminants emitted, deposited, released or discharged into the environment by the industrial establishment;

(4)  a copy of the notice published under section 31.20 of the Act; and

(5)  the proposed depollution attestation or, where the Minister intends to refuse to issue a depollution attestation to the applicant, the reasons for the refusal.

O.C. 601-93, s. 7; O.C. 652-2013, s. 4.

8. Sections 31.18 to 31.22 of the Act and sections 6 and 7 of this Regulation apply with the necessary modifications to an application to amend a depollution attestation where the purpose of the application is to

(1)  delay by more than 6 months the date of implementation of a contaminant discharge standard established by the Minister under the first paragraph of section 31.15 of the Act;

(2)  obtain an amendment to a contaminant discharge standard established by the Minister under the first paragraph of section 31.15 of the Act; or

(3)  enable the applicant to make changes to industrial processes or production equipment liable to introduce into the environment a new contaminant or for which no discharge standard is contained in his depollution attestation.

O.C. 601-93, s. 8.

9. The second paragraph of section 31.19 of the Act, sections 31.20 to 31.22 of the Act and sections 6 and 7 of this Regulation apply with the necessary modifications to a reapplication for a depollution attestation containing an application referred to in paragraph 1, 2 or 3 of section 8.

O.C. 601-93, s. 9.

CHAPTER III DEPOLLUTION ATTESTATION

DIVISION I CONTENT

10. In addition to the elements referred to in paragraphs 1 to 6 of section 31.12 of the Act and, where applicable, in section 31.13 of the Act, a depollution attestation shall contain

(1)  the number of the depollution attestation;

(2)  the name and address of the holder of the depollution attestation;

(3)  the name and address of the industrial establishment for which the depollution attestation is issued; and

(4)  the registration number in the central file of enterprises assigned to the holder’s industrial establishment by the enterprise registrar.

O.C. 601-93, s. 10.

DIVISION II ANNUAL DUTIES

O.C. 601-93, Div. II, c. III; O.C. 441-2008, s. 2.

11. (Revoked).

O.C. 601-93, s. 11; O.C. 441-2008, s. 3.

12. The annual duties exigible from a holder of a depollution attestation are $2,851 per industrial establishment, in addition to the sum of the amounts obtained by applying the formula in Schedule B for each parameter in Tables I and II of Schedule A.

The duties shall be calculated annually for the period from 1 January to 31 December. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the annual tonnage for each parameter shall be calculated only for the portion of the period from 1 January to 31 December during which the operator holds a depollution attestation.

The duties are payable by cheque or money order made out to the Minister of Finance and shall be paid prior to 1 April of the year following the calendar year during which they are exigible.

The cheque or money order shall be accompanied by a report containing a detailed calculation of the annual duties exigible under this section, including the method used to determine the annual tonnage for each parameter in Tables I and II of Schedule A.

The data needed for a detailed calculation of the annual duties and to calculate the annual tonnage for each parameter shall be kept in a record for at least 5 years.

O.C. 601-93, s. 12.

13. The annual duties provided for in this Regulation shall be indexed on 1 January of each year on the basis of the rate of increase in the general Consumer Price Index for Canada, as determined by Statistics Canada for the 12-month period ending on 30 September of the preceding year.

The annual duties indexed in the prescribed manner shall be reduced to the nearest dollar where they contain a fraction of a dollar less than $0.50; they shall be increased to the nearest dollar where they contain a fraction of a dollar equal to or greater than $0.50.

The Minister shall inform the public of the indexing calculated under this section, through Part 1 of the Gazette officielle du Québec and, where he considers it appropriate, by any other means.

O.C. 601-93, s. 13; O.C. 441-2008, s. 4.

CHAPTER IV OBLIGATIONS OF THE HOLDER

DIVISION I RECORD AND ANNUAL REPORT

14. A holder of a depollution attestation shall keep an up-to-date record in which he shall enter any infringement of the contaminant discharge standards applicable to him and established by the Minister under the first paragraph of section 31.15 of the Act.

The record shall contain, for each infringement,

(1)  the exact time at which the holder became aware of the infringement;

(2)  the exact location and time at which the infringement occurred;

(3)  the causes of the infringement and the circumstances in which it occurred; and

(4)  the measures taken or planned by the holder to reduce or eliminate the effects of the infringement and to eliminate and prevent its causes.

A holder of a depollution attestation shall send to the Minister, within 30 days of the end of each calendar month, a copy of the information entered in the record during the previous month.

The information in the record shall be conserved by the holder for at least 2 years from the date on which the information is sent to the Minister.

O.C. 601-93, s. 14.

15. The last holder of a depollution attestation during a calendar year shall send to the Minister, prior to 1 April of the following year, an annual report updated to 31 December and containing

(1)  the number of the depollution attestation;

(2)  any amendments to the information furnished to the Minister under paragraphs 2 to 8 and 13 of section 2;

(3)  information on progress made in the holder’s activities in regard to the requirements and dates of application established by the Minister in the depollution attestation under the second paragraph of section 31.15 of the Act;

(4)  information on progress made in the corrective program imposed by the Minister under section 31.15.1 of the Act at the time of issue of the depollution attestation; and

(5)  information on progress made in the studies required by the Minister in the depollution attestation under section 31.15.4 of the Act.

O.C. 601-93, s. 15.

16. The annual report and a copy of the information contained in the record shall be sent to the Minister by a person referred to in section 4 and authorized by the holder of the depollution attestation to send such documents.

O.C. 601-93, s. 16.

DIVISION II NOTICE

17. A holder of a depollution attestation shall send the Minister a written notice of any derogation from the provisions of an element referred to in section 31.13 of the Act and contained in the depollution attestation, and of the reasons for the derogation. The holder shall so notify the Minister within 30 days of learning of the event that gave rise to the derogation.

The notice shall also specify the measures taken or planned by the holder to reduce or eliminate the effects of the event that gave rise to the derogation.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, this section does not apply where the event that gave rise to the derogation constitutes an accidental occurrence of a contaminant in the environment referred to in subparagraph 3 of the first paragraph of section 31.23 of the Act or where the event is an infringement of a contaminant discharge standard for which the holder must keep and conserve a record in accordance with section 14.

O.C. 601-93, s. 17.

18. The notice shall be sent by a person referred to in section 4 and authorized by the holder of the depollution attestation to send the notice.

O.C. 601-93, s. 18.

DIVISION III TECHNICAL REPORT

19. The technical report that a holder of a depollution attestation must file in the cases provided for in the second paragraph of section 31.23 of the Act shall contain

(1)  a technical description of the solution chosen;

(2)  the location of the site at which the solution is to be implemented;

(3)  an attestation approved by an engineer within the meaning of section 1 of the Engineers Act (chapter I-9) and concerning the degree to which the solution chosen meets the regulatory standards or any other standard, condition, requirement, deadline or terms contained in the depollution attestation;

(4)  information on the environmental impact of the implementation and use of the solution chosen and any means provided for to reduce the negative impact of the solution on the environment; and

(5)  the schedule for completion of the implementation work.

O.C. 601-93, s. 19.

DIVISION IV CESSATION OF THE ACTIVITIES OF AN INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENT

20. The holder of a depollution attestation must apply to the Minister for the revocation of the attestation, as provided for in section 31.31 of the Environment Quality Act (chapter Q-2), within 90 days following the permanent cessation of the operations of the industrial establishment covered by the attestation.

O.C. 601-93, s. 20; O.C. 652-2013, s. 9.

CHAPTER IV.1 PENALTIES

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

DIVISION I MONETARY ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.1. A monetary administrative penalty of $250 in the case of a natural person or $1,000 in the other cases may be imposed on any person who fails to

(1)  comply with the time limit or terms and conditions prescribed by section 5 to file an application for a depollution attestation with the Minister;

(2)  send the Minister a report containing the information prescribed by the fourth paragraph of section 12;

(3)  keep up-to-date a register containing the information prescribed by sections 14 and 14.1 or to keep it for the period of time indicated therein;

(4)  send the Minister an annual report containing the information and documents prescribed by section 15, on the conditions and at the frequency indicated therein;

(5)  submit to the Minister a technical report containing the information prescribed by section 19;

(6)  comply with the time limit prescribed by section 20 to apply for the revocation of the depollution attestation in the case provided for therein.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.2. A monetary administrative penalty of $350 in the case of a natural person or $1,000 in the other cases may be imposed to every person who fails to send the Minister a notice containing the information prescribed by section 17, within the time limit provided for therein.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.3. A monetary administrative penalty of $500 in the case of a natural person or $2,500 in the other cases may be imposed on every person who fails to pay the annual duties payable in accordance with the third paragraph of section 12.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

DIVISION II PENAL SANCTIONS

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.4. A person who contravenes section 5, the fourth paragraph of section 12 or section 14, 14.1, 15, 19 or 20 commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $1,000 to $100,000 in the case of a natural person, or from $3,000 to $600,000 in the other cases.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.5. A person who contravenes section 17 commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $2,000 to $100,000 in the case of a natural person, or from $6,000 to $600,000 in the other cases.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.6. A person who contravenes the third paragraph of section 12 commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $2,500 to $250,000 in the case of a natural person, or from $7,500 to $1,500,000 in the other cases.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.7. A person who, pursuant to this Regulation, makes a declaration, communicates information or files a document that is false or misleading commits an offence and is liable, in the case of a natural person, to a fine of $5,000 to $500,000 or, despite article 231 of the Code of Penal Procedure (chapter C-25.1), to imprisonment for a maximum term of 18 months, or to both the fine and imprisonment, or, in the other cases, to a fine of $15,000 to $3,000,000.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

20.8. A person who contravenes any other obligation imposed by this Regulation also commits an offence and is liable, if no other penalty is provided for in this Division or the Environment Quality Act (chapter Q-2), to a fine of $1,000 to $100,000 in the case of a natural person, or from $3,000 to $600,000 in the other cases.

O.C. 652-2013, s. 10.

CHAPTER V FINAL PROVISIONS

21. (Revoked).

O.C. 601-93, s. 21; O.C. 652-2013, s. 11.

22. This Regulation applies to immovables in a reserved area or an agricultural zone established under the Act respecting the preservation of agricultural land and agricultural activities (chapter P-41.1).

O.C. 601-93, s. 22.

23. (Omitted).

O.C. 601-93, s. 23.

SCHEDULE A

(s. 12)

TABLE I

List of parameters for discharge into water, together with their weighting factors

 _____________________________________________________
|                                  |                  |
|           Water                  |     Weighting    |
|                                  |      factor      |
|__________________________________|__________________|
|                                  |                  |
|    Discharge “into system” (1)   |                  |
|                                  |                  |
|- Suspended matter (SM)           |           .2     |
|- Biochemical oxygen demand       |                  |
|  BOD5)                           |           .4     |
|__________________________________|__________________|
|    Discharge “outside system” (2)|                  |
|                                  |                  |
|- Suspended matter (SM)           |          1       |
|- Biochemical oxygen demand       |                  |   
|  (BOD5)                          |          2       |
|__________________________________|__________________|
|   Discharge “into and            |                  |
|    outside system” (3)           |                  |
|                                  |                  |
|- Heavy metals, comprising        |                  |
|  copper (Cu), lead (Pb),         |                  |
|  zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni) and      |                  |
|  aluminium (AL)                  |         50       |
|                                  |                  |
|- Cyanides                        |        100       |
|- Absorbable halogen compounds    |                  |
|  (AHC)                           |        100       |
|                                  |                  |
|- Polycyclic aromatic             |                  |
|  hydrocarbons (PAH)              |      1,000       |
|__________________________________|__________________|            

(1) Parameters for discharge into a sewer system by the industrial establishment and treatment by municipal waste water treatment installations.

(2) Parameters for discharge by the industrial establishment outside a sewer system or without treatment by municipal waste water treatment installations.

(3) Parameters for discharge into or outside a sewer system by the industrial establishment.

TABLE II

List of parameters for discharge into the atmosphere, together with their weighting factors

 _____________________________________________________
|                                  |                  |
|           Atmosphere             |     Weighting    |
|                                  |      factor      |
|__________________________________|__________________|
|                                  |                  |
|- Particulate matter              |          1       |
|                                  |                  |
|- Sulphur dioxide (SO2)           |          2       |
|                                  |                  |
|- Fluorine (F)                    |          2       |
|                                  |                  |
|- Volatile organic compounds      |                  |
|  (VOC)                           |         20       |
|                                  |                  |
|- Total reduced sulphur           |                  |
|  compounds (TRS)                 |         50       |
|                                  |                  |
|- Polycyclic aromatic             |                  |
|  hydrocarbons (PAH)              |      1,000       |
|_____________________________________________________|            

O.C. 601-93, Sch. A.

SCHEDULE B

(s. 12)

CALCULATION FORMULA FOR EACH INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENT

(Tp × Fp × $2/ton) where

T = annual tonnage for each parameter listed in Tables I and II of Schedule A, calculated for the portion of the period from 1 January to 31 December during which the operator holds a depollution attestation

F = weighting factor

P = each parameter listed in Tables I and II of Schedule A

O.C. 601-93, Sch. B.

REFERENCES

O.C. 601-93, 1993 G.O. 2, 2672

S.Q. 2002, c. 45, s. 536

O.C. 441-2008, 2008 G.O. 2, 1331

O.C. 652-2013, 2013 G.O. 2, 1726