Q-2 - Environment Quality Act

Section 95.1 Disposition versions

2023-07-01

95.1. The Government may make regulations

(1)  to classify contaminants and sources of contamination;

(2)  to exempt classes of contaminants or of sources of contamination from all or any part of this Act;

(3)  to prohibit, limit and control sources of contamination and the release into the environment of any class of contaminants for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(4)  to determine, for any class of contaminants or of sources of contamination, a maximum quantity or concentration that may be released into the environment, for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(5)  to establish standards for the installation and use of any type of apparatus, device, equipment or process designed to control the release of contaminants into the environment;

(6)  to regulate or prohibit the use of any contaminant and the presence of any contaminant in products sold, distributed or utilized in Québec;

(7)  to define environmental protection and quality standards for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(8)  to establish boundaries for territories and prescribe environmental protection and quality standards specific to each one, in particular to take into account its characteristics, the cumulative effects of its development, the support capacity of its ecosystems, and the human disturbances and pressures affecting its drainage basins;

(9)  to exempt any person or class of activity it determines from all or part of this Act and prescribe, in such cases, environmental protection and quality standards applicable to the exempted persons and activities, which may vary according to the type of activity, the territory concerned or the characteristics of the milieu;

(10)  to require a certificate of compliance with regulatory standards, before or after certain specified classes of activities it determines are carried out, signed by a professional or any other person qualified in the field concerned, and prescribe the applicable terms and conditions;

(11)  to establish measures providing for the use of economic instruments, including tradeable permits, emission, effluent and waste-disposal fees or charges, advance elimination fees or charges, and fees or charges related to the production of hazardous residual materials or the use, management or purification of water, with a view to protecting the environment and achieving environmental quality objectives for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(12)  to establish any rule that is necessary for or relevant to carrying out measures referred to in subparagraph 11 and that pertains, in particular, to the determination of persons required to pay the fees or charges referred to in that subparagraph, the conditions applicable to their collection and the interest and penalties payable if the fees or charges are not paid;

(13)  to determine the terms governing authorization, approval, accreditation or certification applications and any application to amend, renew, maintain, suspend, revoke or cancel those applications and the conditions applicable to such applications;

(13.1)  to determine the terms governing the sending of a notice of transfer required under this Act and the applicable conditions;

(14)  to require a person to provide, for the activities or classes of activities the Government determines or on the basis of an activity’s potential impacts on the environment, a financial guarantee to enable the Minister to meet any obligation imposed on the person by this Act or the regulations that the person has failed to meet and whose cost may be charged to the person, and to determine the nature and amount of the guarantee and the conditions governing its use by the Minister and its remittance; the amount of the guarantee may vary according to the class, nature and potential impacts on the environment of the activity for which the guarantee is required;

(15)  to require a person to take out liability insurance to cover the activities or classes of activities the Government determines or on the basis of an activity’s potential impacts on the environment, determine the scope, term and amount of the insurance, the latter of which may vary according to the class, nature and potential impacts on the environment of the activity for which the insurance is required, and prescribe any other conditions applicable to the insurance;

(16)  to determine the persons that may apply for an authorization or its amendment or renewal, or for an accreditation or certification, and the qualifications required for that purpose;

(17)  (subparagraph repealed);

(18)  to determine the persons authorized to sign any document required under this Act or the regulations;

(19)  (subparagraph repealed);

(20)  to prescribe the records, reports, documents and information to be kept and preserved by any person carrying on an activity governed by this Act or the regulations, prescribe the conditions governing their keeping, and determine their form and content and the conditions governing their preservation, in particular the period;

(21)  to prescribe the reports, documents and information that must be provided to the Minister by any person carrying on an activity governed by this Act or the regulations, determine the terms and conditions governing their sending;

(21.1)  to determine the information and documents that are public and, if applicable, the terms and conditions relating to their dissemination;

(22)  to prescribe, in cases where anyone responsible for a source of contamination has, under sections 124.3 to 124.5, submitted a depollution program to the Minister and received the Minister’s approval, the annual duties payable or the method and factors to be used in calculating such duties, the periods during which the duties must be paid and the terms of payment. The annual duties may vary according to such factors as

(a)  the class of the source of contamination;

(b)  the territory in which the source of contamination is located;

(c)  the nature or extent of the release of contaminants into the environment; and

(d)  the duration of the depollution program;

(23)  to determine the methods for collecting, analyzing, calculating and verifying any release of a contaminant into the environment;

(24)  to prescribe the methods for collecting, preserving and analyzing water, air, soil or residual material samples for the purposes of any regulation made under this Act;

(25)  to prescribe the collection, analyses, calculations and verifications that must be done wholly or partly by a person accredited or certified by the Minister under this Act and specify the statements of analysis results that must be prepared and sent to the Minister;

(25.1)  to prescribe the terms according to which and the format in which the data, samples and analyses must be collected, compiled and sent to the Minister and the terms according to which and the format in which the calculations, verifications and any other monitoring measure must be done and sent to the Minister;

(26)  to regulate or prohibit the growing, sale, use or transportation of specified invasive plant species whose establishment or propagation in the environment is likely to harm the environment or biodiversity;

(27)  to require a land reclamation plan for certain specified classes of projects, activities or industries likely to harm the surface of the soil or destroy the soil, as well as the payment of any guarantee, and prescribe the applicable standards and terms and conditions;

(28)  to prescribe, for specified activities or classes of activities, the measures to be implemented on their cessation, as well as monitoring and post-closure management measures; and

(29)  to prescribe any measure aimed at promoting the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and require that climate change impact mitigation and adaptation measures be put in place.

A regulation made under this section may also prescribe any transitional measure necessary for its implementation.

Any regulatory provisions made under subparagraphs 11 and 12 of the first paragraph that concern charges payable for the use of water must, at least every five years, be evaluated to ensure the sustainable use of water resources.

1982, c. 25, s. 8; 1988, c. 49, s. 38; 2017, c. 4, s. 126; 2022, c. 8, s. 108; 2023, c. 17, s. 9.

2022-05-12

95.1. The Government may make regulations

(1)  to classify contaminants and sources of contamination;

(2)  to exempt classes of contaminants or of sources of contamination from all or any part of this Act;

(3)  to prohibit, limit and control sources of contamination and the release into the environment of any class of contaminants for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(4)  to determine, for any class of contaminants or of sources of contamination, a maximum quantity or concentration that may be released into the environment, for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(5)  to establish standards for the installation and use of any type of apparatus, device, equipment or process designed to control the release of contaminants into the environment;

(6)  to regulate or prohibit the use of any contaminant and the presence of any contaminant in products sold, distributed or utilized in Québec;

(7)  to define environmental protection and quality standards for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(8)  to establish boundaries for territories and prescribe environmental protection and quality standards specific to each one, in particular to take into account its characteristics, the cumulative effects of its development, the support capacity of its ecosystems, and the human disturbances and pressures affecting its drainage basins;

(9)  to exempt any person or class of activity it determines from all or part of this Act and prescribe, in such cases, environmental protection and quality standards applicable to the exempted persons and activities, which may vary according to the type of activity, the territory concerned or the characteristics of the milieu;

(10)  to require a certificate of compliance with regulatory standards, before or after certain specified classes of activities it determines are carried out, signed by a professional or any other person qualified in the field concerned, and prescribe the applicable terms and conditions;

(11)  to establish measures providing for the use of economic instruments, including tradeable permits, emission, effluent and waste-disposal fees or charges, advance elimination fees or charges, and fees or charges related to the production of hazardous residual materials or the use, management or purification of water, with a view to protecting the environment and achieving environmental quality objectives for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(12)  to establish any rule that is necessary for or relevant to carrying out measures referred to in subparagraph 11 and that pertains, in particular, to the determination of persons required to pay the fees or charges referred to in that subparagraph, the conditions applicable to their collection and the interest and penalties payable if the fees or charges are not paid;

(13)  to determine the terms governing authorization, approval, accreditation or certification applications and any application to amend, renew, maintain, suspend, revoke or cancel those applications and the conditions applicable to such applications;

(13.1)  to determine the terms governing the sending of a notice of transfer required under this Act and the applicable conditions;

(14)  to require a person to provide, for the activities or classes of activities the Government determines or on the basis of an activity’s potential impacts on the environment, a financial guarantee to enable the Minister to meet any obligation imposed on the person by this Act or the regulations that the person has failed to meet and whose cost may be charged to the person, and to determine the nature and amount of the guarantee and the conditions governing its use by the Minister and its remittance; the amount of the guarantee may vary according to the class, nature and potential impacts on the environment of the activity for which the guarantee is required;

(15)  to require a person to take out liability insurance to cover the activities or classes of activities the Government determines or on the basis of an activity’s potential impacts on the environment, determine the scope, term and amount of the insurance, the latter of which may vary according to the class, nature and potential impacts on the environment of the activity for which the insurance is required, and prescribe any other conditions applicable to the insurance;

(16)  to determine the persons that may apply for an authorization or its amendment or renewal, or for an accreditation or certification, and the qualifications required for that purpose;

(17)  (subparagraph repealed);

(18)  to determine the persons authorized to sign any document required under this Act or the regulations;

(19)  (subparagraph repealed);

(20)  to prescribe the records, reports, documents and information to be kept and preserved by any person carrying on an activity governed by this Act or the regulations, prescribe the conditions governing their keeping, and determine their form and content and the conditions governing their preservation, in particular the period;

(21)  to prescribe the reports, documents and information that must be provided to the Minister by any person carrying on an activity governed by this Act or the regulations, determine the terms and conditions governing their sending;

(21.1)  to determine the information and documents that are public and, if applicable, the terms and conditions relating to their dissemination;

(22)  to prescribe, in cases where anyone responsible for a source of contamination has, under sections 124.3 to 124.5, submitted a depollution program to the Minister and received the Minister’s approval, the annual duties payable or the method and factors to be used in calculating such duties, the periods during which the duties must be paid and the terms of payment. The annual duties may vary according to such factors as

(a)  the class of the source of contamination;

(b)  the territory in which the source of contamination is located;

(c)  the nature or extent of the release of contaminants into the environment; and

(d)  the duration of the depollution program;

(23)  to determine the methods for collecting, analyzing, calculating and verifying any release of a contaminant into the environment;

(24)  to prescribe the methods for collecting, preserving and analyzing water, air, soil or residual material samples for the purposes of any regulation made under this Act;

(25)  to prescribe the collection, analyses, calculations and verifications that must be done wholly or partly by a person accredited or certified by the Minister under this Act and specify the statements of analysis results that must be prepared and sent to the Minister;

(25.1)  to prescribe the terms according to which and the format in which the data, samples and analyses must be collected, compiled and sent to the Minister and the terms according to which and the format in which the calculations, verifications and any other monitoring measure must be done and sent to the Minister;

(26)  to regulate or prohibit the growing, sale, use or transportation of specified invasive plant species whose establishment or propagation in the environment is likely to harm the environment or biodiversity;

(27)  to require a land reclamation plan for certain specified classes of projects, activities or industries likely to harm the surface of the soil or destroy the soil, as well as the payment of any guarantee, and prescribe the applicable standards and terms and conditions;

(28)  to prescribe, for specified activities or classes of activities, the measures to be implemented on their cessation, as well as monitoring and post-closure management measures; and

(29)  to prescribe any measure aimed at promoting the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and require that climate change impact mitigation and adaptation measures be put in place.

A regulation made under this section may also prescribe any transitional measure necessary for its implementation.

1982, c. 25, s. 8; 1988, c. 49, s. 38; 2017, c. 4, s. 126; 2022, c. 8, s. 108.

2018-03-23

95.1. The Government may make regulations

(1)  to classify contaminants and sources of contamination;

(2)  to exempt classes of contaminants or of sources of contamination from all or any part of this Act;

(3)  to prohibit, limit and control sources of contamination and the release into the environment of any class of contaminants for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(4)  to determine, for any class of contaminants or of sources of contamination, a maximum quantity or concentration that may be released into the environment, for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(5)  to establish standards for the installation and use of any type of apparatus, device, equipment or process designed to control the release of contaminants into the environment;

(6)  to regulate or prohibit the use of any contaminant and the presence of any contaminant in products sold, distributed or utilized in Québec;

(7)  to define environmental protection and quality standards for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(8)  to establish boundaries for territories and prescribe environmental protection and quality standards specific to each one, in particular to take into account its characteristics, the cumulative effects of its development, the support capacity of its ecosystems, and the human disturbances and pressures affecting its drainage basins;

(9)  to exempt any person, municipality or class of activity it determines from all or part of this Act and prescribe, in such cases, environmental protection and quality standards applicable to the exempted persons, municipalities and activities, which may vary according to the type of activity, the territory concerned or the characteristics of the milieu;

(10)  to require a certificate of compliance with regulatory standards, before or after certain specified classes of activities it determines are carried out, signed by a professional or any other person qualified in the field concerned, and prescribe the applicable terms and conditions;

(11)  to establish measures providing for the use of economic instruments, including tradeable permits, emission, effluent and waste-disposal fees or charges, advance elimination fees or charges, and fees or charges related to the production of hazardous residual materials or the use, management or purification of water, with a view to protecting the environment and achieving environmental quality objectives for all or part of the territory of Québec;

(12)  to establish any rule that is necessary for or relevant to carrying out measures referred to in subparagraph 11 and that pertains, in particular, to the determination of persons or municipalities required to pay the fees or charges referred to in that subparagraph, the conditions applicable to their collection and the interest and penalties payable if the fees or charges are not paid;

(13)  to determine the terms and conditions governing authorization, accreditation or certification applications made under this Act, and those governing applications to amend, suspend or revoke an existing authorization, accreditation or certification, including the use of a specific form; those terms and conditions may vary according to the type of structure, works, industrial process, industry, work or other activity;

(14)  to require a person or municipality to provide, for the activities or classes of activities the Government determines or on the basis of an activity’s potential impacts on the environment, a financial guarantee to enable the Minister to meet any obligation imposed on the person or municipality by this Act or the regulations that the person or municipality has failed to meet and whose cost may be charged to the person or municipality, and to determine the nature and amount of the guarantee and the conditions governing its use by the Minister and its remittance; the amount of the guarantee may vary according to the class, nature and potential impacts on the environment of the activity for which the guarantee is required;

(15)  to require a person or municipality to take out liability insurance to cover the activities or classes of activities the Government determines or on the basis of an activity’s potential impacts on the environment, determine the scope, term and amount of the insurance, the latter of which may vary according to the class, nature and potential impacts on the environment of the activity for which the insurance is required, and prescribe any other conditions applicable to the insurance;

(16)  to determine the persons or municipalities that may apply for an authorization or its amendment or renewal, or for an accreditation or certification, and the qualifications required for that purpose;

(17)  to determine how section 115.8 is to be applied, in particular the conditions for filing the declaration provided for in that section, and the persons or municipalities that are exempted from the obligation to file such a declaration;

(18)  to determine the persons authorized to sign any document required under this Act or the regulations;

(19)  to determine the form of any authorization, accreditation or certification issued under this Act or any regulation made under it;

(20)  to prescribe the records to be kept and preserved by any person or municipality carrying on an activity governed by this Act or the regulations, prescribe the conditions governing their keeping, and determine their form and content and the period for which they must be preserved;

(21)  to prescribe the reports, documents and information that must be provided to the Minister by any person or municipality carrying on an activity governed by this Act or the regulations, determine their form and content and the conditions governing their preservation and sending;

(22)  to prescribe, in cases where anyone responsible for a source of contamination has, under sections 124.3 to 124.5, submitted a depollution program to the Minister and received the Minister’s approval, the annual duties payable or the method and factors to be used in calculating such duties, the periods during which the duties must be paid and the terms of payment. The annual duties may vary according to such factors as

(a)  the class of the source of contamination;

(b)  the territory in which the source of contamination is located;

(c)  the nature or extent of the release of contaminants into the environment; and

(d)  the duration of the depollution program;

(23)  to determine the methods for collecting, analyzing, calculating and verifying any release of a contaminant into the environment;

(24)  to prescribe the methods for collecting, preserving and analyzing water, air, soil or residual material samples for the purposes of any regulation made under this Act;

(25)  to prescribe the collection, analyses, calculations and verifications that must be done wholly or partly by a person or municipality accredited or certified by the Minister under this Act and specify the statements of analysis results that must be prepared and sent to the Minister;

(26)  to regulate or prohibit the growing, sale, use or transportation of specified invasive plant species whose establishment or propagation in the environment is likely to harm the environment or biodiversity;

(27)  to require a land reclamation plan for certain specified classes of projects, activities or industries likely to harm the surface of the soil or destroy the soil, as well as the payment of any guarantee, and prescribe the applicable standards and terms and conditions;

(28)  to prescribe, for specified activities or classes of activities, the measures to be implemented on their cessation, as well as monitoring and post-closure management measures; and

(29)  to prescribe any measure aimed at promoting the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and require that climate change impact mitigation and adaptation measures be put in place.

A regulation made under this section may also prescribe any transitional measure necessary for its implementation.

1982, c. 25, s. 8; 1988, c. 49, s. 38; 2017, c. 4, s. 126.

1989-02-22

95.1. No person may undertake to carry out a project contemplated by regulation of the Government without first filing with the Minister the plans and specifications for the execution of the project and a declaration attesting to their conformity with the norms provided by regulation of the Government.

The attestation must also be signed by any professional within the meaning of the Professional Code (chapter C-26) and any consultant who participated in the preparation of the project in the case where his participation deals with a matter contemplated in the regulatory norms applicable to the project.

1982, c. 25, s. 8; 1988, c. 49, s. 38.

1982-06-23

95.1. No person may undertake to carry out a project contemplated by regulation of the Government without first filing with the Deputy Minister the plans and specifications for the execution of the project and a declaration attesting to their conformity with the norms provided by regulation of the Government.

The attestation must also be signed by any professional within the meaning of the Professional Code (chapter C-26) and any consultant who participated in the preparation of the project in the case where his participation deals with a matter contemplated in the regulatory norms applicable to the project.

1982, c. 25, s. 8.