Vol. 146, No. 17 — August 15, 2012
Registration
SOR/2012-155 July 26, 2012
HEALTH OF ANIMALS ACT
Regulations Amending the Health of Animals Regulations
P.C. 2012-1001 July 26, 2012
His Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, pursuant to paragraph 64(1)(m) of the Health of Animals Act (see footnote a), makes the annexed Regulations Amending the Health of Animals Regulations.
REGULATIONS AMENDING THE HEALTH OF
ANIMALS REGULATIONS
AMENDMENT
1. Schedule VII to the Health of Animals Regulations (see footnote 1) is amended by adding the following after item 7:
Item |
Disease |
|---|---|
7.1 |
bluetongue (serotypes 2, 10, 11, 13 and 17) |
COMING INTO FORCE
2. These Regulations come into force on the day on which they are registered.
REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT
(This statement is not part of the Regulations.)
1. Background
This miscellaneous regulatory proposal corrects errors identified by the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations.
Notifiable diseases are set out in Schedule VII of the Health of Animals Regulations (HAR), while reportable diseases are listed in the Reportable Diseases Regulations (RDR). The key distinction between the two disease categories relates to the reporting requirements and the response actions for each. Any person who suspects that an animal may have a reportable disease is required to promptly notify the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). In the case of notifiable diseases, only Canadian laboratories must alert CFIA.
The detection of reportable diseases normally triggers CFIA disease control actions, which are intended to rapidly contain and, if possible, eradicate disease outbreaks. In most cases, CFIA does not implement specific disease controls in response to notifiable diseases. CFIA involvement in notifiable diseases is usually limited to notifying trading partners and the World Organisation for Animal Health.
Bluetongue is a viral disease of domestic and wild ruminant animals that can only be transmitted by biting insects of certain species of Culicoides (also known as midges). Bluetongue virus cannot be spread directly from one infected animal to another animal. Infection in cattle, goats and elk is generally unapparent or mild, but sheep and white-tailed deer may be severely infected and death is possible. Bluetongue does not pose any human health risk.
In April 2010, bluetongue serotypes 2, 10, 11, 13 and 17 were added to the list of immediately notifiable diseases in Schedule VII of the HAR. All other bluetongue serotypes remained on the list of reportable diseases maintained in the RDR.
Subsequently, in December 2010, the five bluetongue serotypes that had been previously added to the list of notifiable diseases in Schedule VII of the HAR were inadvertently omitted from the new list produced when HAR was amended to address Canada’s National Aquatic Animal Health Program. The result of this error is that these serotypes no longer appear on either the notifiable diseases list in the HAR, or the reportable diseases list in the RDR. There is also a reference in the RDR to a section of Schedule VII of HAR that no longer exists.
Correcting these errors by including the five bluetongue serotypes in Schedule VII of HAR would result in minor re-numbering. The RDR is also being amended to correct a reference to that section which appears in the HAR.
2. Issue
This regulatory package corrects errors identified by the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations.
3. Objectives
This regulatory amendment corrects the error identified above by amending the list of notifiable diseases listed in Schedule VII of the HAR to include the appropriate bluetongue serotypes.
4. Description
The five omitted bluetongue serotypes will be added to Schedule VII of HAR.
The RDR will be amended to remove the reference to item 6.1 in Schedule VII of HAR. In its place, the RDR will list bluetongue as a reportable disease, except for those serotypes listed in Schedule VII of the HAR.
5. Consultation
Since these amendments correct an oversight and do not change regulatory intent, no direct consultations have taken place. In addition, no comments were received in April 2010 when the five serotypes were first introduced into the HAR and the RDR.
6. Rationale
This regulatory proposal is to correct an error by amending the list of notifiable diseases listed in Schedule VII of the HAR to include the appropriate bluetongue serotypes. This amendment will update the Regulations so that they are as intended in the amendment made in April 2010.
7. Implementation, enforcement and service standards
This amendment will not affect CFIA’s current enforcement activities or service standards.
8. Contact
David Spicer
Director
Regulatory, Legislative and Economic Affairs
Canadian Food Inspection Agency
1400 Merivale Road
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0Y9
Telephone: 613-773-5889
Fax: 613-773-5960
Email: David.Spicer@inspection.gc.ca
Footnote a
S.C. 1990, c. 21
Footnote 1
C.R.C., c. 296; SOR/91-525