Canada Gazette, Part I, Volume 157, Number 13: ORDERS IN COUNCIL
April 1, 2023
DEPARTMENT OF THE ENVIRONMENT
CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ACT, 1999
Order Approving the Interim Order Modifying the Operation of the Heavy-duty Vehicle and Engine Greenhouse Gas Emission Regulations (Trailer Standards)
P.C. 2023-272 March 27, 2023
Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, under subsection 163(3) of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999footnote a, approves the Interim Order Modifying the Operation of the Heavy-duty Vehicle and Engine Greenhouse Gas Emission Regulations (Trailer Standards), made by the Minister of the Environment on March 13, 2023.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Order.)
Proposal
Pursuant to subsection 163(3) of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA), this Order approves the Interim Order Modifying the Operation of the Heavy-duty Vehicle and Engine Greenhouse Gas Emission Regulations (Trailer Standards) [the fifth Interim Order], made by the Minister of the Environment (the Minister) on March 13, 2023. This fifth Interim Order issued by the Minister, and approved by the Governor in Council, serves to extend the suspension of the greenhouse gas (GHG) trailer emission standards found in the Heavy-duty Vehicle and Engine Greenhouse Gas Emission Regulations in Canada, until one year after the order is made.
Objective
The purpose of this fifth Interim Order is to extend the suspension of the application of the trailer GHG emission standards by up to another year in Canada to ensure continued alignment with the United States.
Background
The Regulations
The Heavy-duty Vehicle and Engine Greenhouse Gas Emission Regulations (the Regulations) set GHG emission standards that apply to duty-heavy vehicles and engines beginning with the 2014 model year and to trailers for which the manufacture is completed on or after January 1, 2020. The Regulations apply to companies that manufacture or import new on-road heavy-duty vehicles, engines and trailers for sale in Canada.
The Regulations were amended in 2018 to, among other regulatory changes, introduce new GHG emission standards for trailers hauled by on-road transport tractors. Given the integration of the North American vehicle manufacturing sector, these standards were aligned with corresponding standards and test procedures set out in the United States in the Final Rule: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Medium- and Heavy-Duty Engines and Vehicles—Phase 2 (referred to as Phase 2). However, following the conclusion of a legal challenge, the Phase 2 GHG emission standards for trailers have not been implemented in the United States, creating misalignment with the GHG emission standards for trailers set out in the Regulations. To ensure continued alignment with the United States, a series of four interim orders that suspend the GHG emission standards for trailers in Canada have been made.
Trailer emission standards in the United States
On October 25, 2016, the United States (U.S.) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published Phase 2 under the authority of the Clean Air Act. The Phase 2 standards, which increase in stringency up to model year 2027, build upon the existing standards that were established for model years 2014 to 2018. In addition, Phase 2 introduced new standards for trailers hauled by on-road transport tractors, as trailer design has an impact on the GHG emissions and fuel consumption of the vehicles hauling them.
In December 2016, the Truck Trailer Manufacturers Association (TTMA), which represents the trailer industry in the United States, filed a petition for the review of the Phase 2 trailer standards in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on the grounds that the U.S. EPA and NHTSA lacked the authority to regulate trailers. Throughout 2017, TTMA also sent Petitions for Reconsideration, made under the U.S. rulemaking process, asking that the U.S. EPA reconsider the implementation of the GHG emission standards for trailers scheduled to come into force in the United States on January 1, 2018.
On October 27, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals stayed the implementation of the U.S. EPA Phase 2 trailer provisions. The U.S. EPA has since not implemented its Phase 2 trailer provisions.
California also has GHG emission standards for trailers, at the state level, aligned with the federal standards of the U.S. EPA. In December 2019, the California Air Resources Board published an advisory notice to suspend the enforcement of its GHG trailer emission standards until at least January 1, 2022, in light of the regulatory uncertainty of the court case and legal stay on the U.S. EPA’s trailer standards. This advisory also indicated that California would provide regulated entities with at least six months written notice before starting enforcing the GHG trailer emission standards.
In September 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit also stayed the implementation of the NHTSA trailer fuel efficiency standards. The NHTSA standards were to come into effect in January 2021 and are equivalent to the U.S. EPA’s GHG emission standards.
In November 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals concluded that trailers are not subject to regulation under the Clean Air Act and rescinded the trailer standards established by the U.S. EPA and NHTSA.
In September 2022, a notice of proposed rulemaking was released, where the NHTSA is proposing to remove the trailer provisions from its regulations. The U.S. EPA intends to address the Court’s decision in a future rulemaking.
Interim orders
In January 2019, the Canadian trailer manufacturing and trucking industry reached out to the Department of the Environment (the Department) expressing concerns that they could face adverse economic impacts if Canada implemented the trailer standards while they were not being implemented by the U.S. EPA. The industry also requested a suspension in the implementation until further analysis was conducted by the Department.
The trailer manufacturing industry in Canada, located predominantly in Quebec, Ontario, and the Prairies, is composed of small businesses that manufacture specialty trailers and several larger manufacturers that mainly manufacture box van trailers. Canadian trailer manufacturers are concerned that much larger U.S. trailer manufacturers that serve the Canadian market could more easily absorb the incremental cost of implementing the new technologies required to meet the more stringent standards.
CEPA provides the authority for an interim order to suspend or modify the operation of regulations governing emissions from vehicles, engines, and equipment for a period of up to one year to respond to a decision of a foreign court where the regulations in Canada are aligned with those in the other country. Pursuant to subsection 163(1) of CEPA, the Minister can issue an interim order to maintain alignment.
Since 2019, four interim orders covering the period from May 2019 to April 2023, all entitled Interim Order Modifying the Operation of the Heavy-duty Vehicle and Engine Greenhouse Gas Emission Regulations (Trailer Standards), were successively made by the Minister suspending the application of the standards for trailers, such that the trailer standards have never come into force in Canada. Those interim orders responded to the concerns raised by the trailer manufacturers and the need to assess the economic implications of Canada proceeding with the implementation of the standards for trailers in the Regulations while the standards are not in effect in the United States. The fourth interim order was made on April 19, 2022, and is set to expire on April 19, 2023.
The Department conducted research, and the analysis indicated that Canadian companies would be at a competitive disadvantage if the trailer standards were introduced only in Canada. Most Canadian trailer manufacturers and trucking businesses are small relative to those in the United States and have a lower share of the North American trailer market. These smaller companies have fewer opportunities to spread the costs of compliance with trailer standards across their operations.
Without this fifth Interim Order, companies subject to the Regulations would be required to meet the trailer standards outlined in subsections 16.1(1) or 33.1(1) or (2) of the Regulations, as the case may be. These standards are aligned with those of the U.S. EPA. The Regulations apply to certain trailers,footnote 1 as defined by the Regulations, whose manufacture was completed on or after January 1, 2020.
Implications
Under subsection 163(3) of CEPA, the Minister’s fifth Interim Order would cease to have effect 14 days after it was made unless approved by the Governor in Council. With this Order, the Governor in Council approves the fifth Interim Order to suspend the application of GHG emission standards for trailers in Canada for up to another year from the date that it is made by the Minister. Under subsection 163(5) of CEPA, the fifth Interim Order could cease to have effect earlier than one year if it is repealed or if the Regulations are amended or repealed to give effect to the order before that date, whichever is earlier.
As the current interim order will expire on April 19, 2023, and given the integrated nature of the North American market, a fifth interim order is necessary to maintain alignment with the United States. Issuing another interim order is warranted in this situation and is the most appropriate tool to address regulatory uncertainty and to maintain regulatory alignment with the United States until the status of the trailer standards is clarified in the United States, or until consultations on regulatory options are completed and a decision has been made on the path forward on trailers in Canada.
Suspending the implementation of the standards for trailers in Canada by another model year would decrease the estimated GHG emission reductions of the 2018 amendments to the Regulations by 0.4 megatonnes (Mt) of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) over the lifetime operation of trailers of model year 2024. For trailers of model years 2020 to 2024 combined, delaying the trailer standards by another model year with a fifth interim order would decrease the estimated GHG emission reductions attributable to the 2018 amendments by approximately 2 Mt CO2e in total.
While the fifth Interim Order is in place, the industry would benefit from cost savings (such as compliance costs and investment costs in new technologies), but would also not realize the fuel-saving benefits associated with adopting the technologies required to meet the standards. These expected cost savings would be less than the reduction in benefits associated with fuel savings.
Consultation
The Department continues to engage with the Canadian trailer manufacturing and trucking industry on a regular basis. It is expected that the Canadian industry will support the fifth Interim Order.
Over the course of the next year, the Department will continue to monitor the situation in the United States and will undertake consultations on regulatory options to inform a final recommendation on the path forward for the trailer standards.
The Department is committed to ongoing consultation with all stakeholders, thoroughly considering the relevant issues raised, and communicating decisions with respect to the trailer standards in Canada in a timely manner.
Contact
Stéphane Couroux
Director
Transportation Division
Environment and Climate Change Canada
351 Saint-Joseph Boulevard, 13th Floor
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 0H3
Telephone: 819‑420‑8020
Email: Stephane.Couroux@ec.gc.ca
PUBLIC HEALTH AGENCY OF CANADA
QUARANTINE ACT
Order Repealing the Minimizing the Risk of Exposure to COVID-19 in Canada Order
P.C. 2023-234 March 16, 2023
Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Health, makes the annexed Order Repealing the Minimizing the Risk of Exposure to COVID-19 in Canada Order under section 58 of the Quarantine Act footnote b.
Order Repealing the Minimizing the Risk of Exposure to COVID-19 in Canada Order
Repeal
1 The Minimizing the Risk of Exposure to COVID-19 in Canada Order footnote 2 is repealed.
Coming into Force
2 This Order comes into force at 00:01:00 Eastern Daylight Time on March 17, 2023, but if it is made after that day, it comes into force on the day on which it is made.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Order.)
Proposal
This Order in Council, entitled Order Repealing the Minimizing the Risk of Exposure to COVID-19 in Canada Order, is made pursuant to section 58 of the Quarantine Act.
This Order repeals the requirements for persons entering Canada on a flight itinerary originating from the People’s Republic of China (China), Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (Hong Kong) or Macao Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (Macao).
The Order comes into force at 00:01:00 EDT on March 17, 2023, but if it is made after that day, it comes into force on the day on which it is made.
Objective
This Order repeals the current border measures in place under Order in Council P.C. 2023-75.
Background
COVID-19 is caused by a novel coronavirus capable of causing severe illness, named Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Although it is part of a family of viruses that includes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), SARS-CoV-2 is more contagious.
SARS-CoV-2 spreads from an infected person to others through respiratory droplets and aerosols that vary in size when an infected person breathes, coughs, sneezes, sings, shouts, or talks. Large droplets fall to the ground rapidly (within seconds or minutes) near the infected person, while smaller droplets, sometimes called aerosols, linger in the air, especially in indoor spaces.
COVID-19 can be a severe, life-threatening disease. Patients with COVID-19 may present with symptoms that may include fever, malaise, dry cough and shortness of breath. In more severe cases, infection can cause pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and death. Older individuals, unvaccinated persons and those with a weakened immune system or an underlying medical condition are at a higher risk of severe disease. Over the past three years, advancements in vaccine technology, population immunity and a decline in the severity and lethality of the SARS-CoV-2 have allowed the Government of Canada to ease and lift border measures.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared an outbreak of what is now known as COVID-19 to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on January 30, 2020, and a pandemic on March 11, 2020. Most recently, on January 27, 2023, the WHO determined that COVID-19 continues to constitute a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Effective February 28, 2022, the Government of Canada issued a Travel Health Notice, Level 2, meaning that the Government is advising travellers to practise enhanced health precautions when travelling internationally.
COVID-19 situation globally
The cumulative number of COVID-19 cases reported globally is over 759 million and the number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 exceeds 6.8 million, as of March 8, 2023. Though SARS-CoV-2 continues to circulate around the world, due to an increase in vaccination coverage and population immunity, most countries, including Canada, lifted many of their COVID-19 restrictions during the fall months of 2022. The numbers of cases and hospitalizations have decreased or stabilized in most G7 countries.
On December 7, 2022, China lifted its most strict “zero-COVID” policies and further removed measures effective January 8, 2023. These measures included the requirement to quarantine or isolate for all inbound travellers, post-arrival testing, and restrictions on the number of international passenger flights into China. Following the initial easing of measures, the WHO stated that there were insufficient data provided by China to validate and assess the epidemiological situation in the country.
In response to the epidemiological situation in China and relevant data or supporting information at that time, several countries, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Germany, Israel, Chile, Greece, Ghana, India, Qatar, Malaysia, Spain, Sweden and Canada, introduced border measures for travellers entering from China and its regions. On January 5, 2023, Canada implemented the requirement for most air travellers who are two years of age and older entering Canada on flights originating from China, Hong Kong or Macao to provide to the airline, prior to boarding, evidence of a COVID-19 test.
Since Canada and like-minded global partners enacted border measures in the early months of 2023, the reported epidemiological situation in China and data made available to the international community have improved. At present, recent reports from the WHO and other international sources indicate that COVID-19 case counts and numbers of hospitalizations and deaths appear to be decreasing in China.
Several G7 countries are removing or considering removing border measures for China and its regions. European Union countries agreed to phase out predeparture testing by the end of February 2023 and eliminate random testing of travellers arriving from China by mid-March 2023. The United States has rescinded its border measures for flights arriving from China and its regions as of March 10, 2023, at 3:00 p.m. (EST).
Variants of concern
Over the past three years, SARS-CoV-2 has mutated into many variants of interest and variants of concern. Variant sequences from China submitted to the Global Initiative on Sharing Avian Influenza Data are similar to those found in other parts of the world, including Canada. The three main lineages reported to be circulating in China (BA.5.2.48, BA.5.2.49, and BF.7.14) are not expected to have any impact on the epidemiological situation in Canada.
Population immunity
Virus transmission is linked to population immunity. The higher the level of transmission, the more chances the virus has to evolve. The emergence of variants of concern may be less likely to occur in more highly vaccinated populations.
The Canadian population is highly vaccinated. Over eighty percent (80.7%) of the population has completed the primary series of vaccination. Of the total population, over twenty-three percent (23.9%) has received a booster dose since August 1, 2022. In addition to acquiring immunity through vaccination, a great proportion (>76.0%) of the Canadian population has also acquired post-infection immunity, as shown by seroprevalence data to the end of December 2022, since the arrival of the Omicron variant in late 2021. There are high levels of hybrid immunity and ongoing Omicron transmission domestically.
COVID-19 situation in Canada
Domestic case counts of COVID-19 remain stable. Nationally, hospitalization numbers remain elevated, but stable, with modelling forecasting a further plateau and then a slight increase. China’s reopening and high case activity has resulted in no observable impact on Canada’s health care system.
Overall, the national case trend has been relatively stable in recent weeks, averaging around 10 000 cases per week. Total numbers of deaths have been decreasing since early January 2023. National-level laboratory test positivity remained stable at 11.8% over the last three weeks (from February 12 to March 3, 2023).
Traveller volumes
Between January 5 and February 28, 2023, a combined total of 93 941 travellers entered Canada from mainland China, Hong Kong and Macao via air points of entry. Together, these travellers represent 1.9% of the overall total incoming air volume (from all countries) into Canada during the same period. Arrivals in Canada from the regions mentioned above are numbered at 33 867 travellers (an approximate average of 4 200 arrivals per week) from China (Mainland); 59 870 travellers (an approximate average of 7 500 arrivals per week) from Hong Kong; and 204 travellers (an approximate average of 26 arrivals per week) from Macao.
Government of Canada response to COVID-19 pandemic
The Government of Canada’s top priority is the health and safety of Canadians. To limit the introduction and spread of COVID-19 in Canada, the Government of Canada took unprecedented action to implement a comprehensive strategy with layers of precautionary measures. Between February 3, 2020, and June 27, 2022, 80 emergency orders were made under the Quarantine Act to minimize the risk of exposure to COVID-19 in Canada — to reduce the risk of importation from other countries, to repatriate Canadians, and to strengthen measures at the border to reduce the impact of COVID-19 in Canada. Together, these measures were effective in significantly reducing the number of travel-related cases.
On January 5, 2023, the Government of Canada re-introduced border measures for travellers entering Canada on a flight itinerary originating from China, Hong Kong, or Macao. The limited information on the COVID-19 situation in China after the lifting of the COVID-19 measures was a cause for concern due to the high number of infections being reported at the time. Since then, the reported COVID-19 epidemiological situation in China continues to show signs of improvement, and genomic surveillance conducted by Canada and partner countries generally demonstrates alignment between reported sequences and samples from other testing sources. No new variants of concern originating from China have been detected.
The Government of Canada has reassessed the temporary border measures as more data and evidence have become available and there is a diminishing rationale for maintaining the current border measures. Changes to international travel restrictions and advice are based on national and international evidence-based risk assessments.
Implications
The Order repeals the current border measures in place under Order in Council P.C. 2023-75, namely the entirety of the requirement for most air travellers who are two years of age and older, entering Canada on flights originating from China, Hong Kong or Macao, to provide to the airline, prior to boarding, evidence of a COVID-19 test result.
The Order comes into force at 00:01:00 EDT on March 17, 2023, but if it is made after that day, it comes into force on the day on which it is made.
Consultation
The Government of Canada has engaged provinces and territories to coordinate efforts, where applicable. In addition, there has been consultation across multiple government departments and agencies, including the Canada Border Services Agency; Transport Canada; Global Affairs Canada; Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada; and Public Safety Canada, given linkages to departmental mandates and other statutory instruments.
Contact
Pamela Arnott
Public Health Agency of Canada
Telephone: 343‑574‑2194
Email: pamela.arnott@phac-aspc.gc.ca