Bilateral agreements

All levels of government share responsibility for wastewater releases in Canada. The Fisheries Act allows the Minister to enter into agreements with:

  • Provincial governments
  • Territorial governments
  • Indigenous governing bodies
  • Any body created under a land claims agreement

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) use bilateral agreements to help reduce regulatory overlap. As of today, ECCC has entered into these agreements with three provinces and Yukon. 

Administrative agreements

With an administrative agreement, the province, rather than ECCC, administers activities of the Regulations. This allows a single point of contact for regulatees for the Regulations.

Wastewater systems in provinces with this type of agreement are subject to both provincial and federal regulations. There are two administrative agreements under the Regulations with New Brunswick and Saskatchewan.

New Brunswick administrative agreement

Saskatchewan administrative agreement

Equivalency agreement and Order in Council

Under the Fisheries Act, if a provincial or territorial regulatory regime is considered equivalent in effect to the federal Regulations, an equivalency agreement can be concluded. An equivalency agreement allows the Governor in Council to declare that the federal Regulations do not apply in that jurisdiction.

There are two equivalency agreements with the Regulations, one with Yukon (signed in 2014) and one with Quebec (signed in 2018).

Quebec equivalency agreement

Yukon equivalency agreement

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