Canada to Appeal Court Ruling Deeming Single-Use Plastics Ban Unconstitutional
20 Noviembre 2023 - 2:04PM
Noticias Dow Jones
By Paul Vieira
OTTAWA--Canada said Monday it intends to appeal a Federal Court
of Canada ruling that quashed the Liberal government's ban on some
single-use plastics, like bags, straws and cutlery.
"We are exploring all options to continue leading the fight
against plastic pollution," said a joint statement from the
country's environment and justice ministers.
Last week, a Federal Court justice ruled the ban was
unconstitutional and unreasonable. Canada listed some single-use
plastics as toxic in May of 2022, saying this was part of its plan
to achieve zero plastic waste by 2030, and reduce greenhouse gas
emissions. Canada's Liberal government has highlighted its
initiatives to fight climate change and reduce pollution to appeal
to voters, and differentiate itself from the Conservative
Party.
Two resource-rich provinces, Alberta and Saskatchewan, and a
coalition of chemical and energy producers, including Dow and
Imperial Oil, tried to have the ban reversed in court. Federal
Court Justice Angela Furlanetto - who also holds a postgraduate
degree in biochemistry - said the prohibition was "unreasonable and
unconstitutional," adding the government's decision-making process
was flawed.
"Even if the statement that all plastic-manufactured items have
the potential to become plastic pollution is taken on its face, the
evidence available to [cabinet] did not support the finding that
all [plastic items] are toxic," she wrote. Justice Furlanetto added
the cabinet "acted outside their authority" in listing a broad
category of single-use plastic as toxic "in an unqualified
matter."
The judgment ordered the ban be retroactively quashed and
declared unlawful, as of April 23, 2021. In the joint statement,
the environment and justice ministers said once the ban was
introduced, businesses have pivoted to sustainable alternatives.
"This has already led to significant reductions in plastic
pollution," the minister said, adding that their political
opponents would "undo this progress."
The ruling on the single-use plastics ban marks the second major
setback in as many months for the Liberal government's
environmental policy. In October, the Supreme Court of Canada said
the government's environmental-assessment regime was largely
unconstitutional because it infringed on the exclusive rights of
the country's provinces to manage natural resources.
Write to Paul Vieira at paul.vieira@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 20, 2023 14:49 ET (19:49 GMT)
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