The Federal Court has quashed a cabinet order that listed plastic manufactured items as toxic under Canada's environmental protection because the category was too broad and the government overstepped its constitutional bounds. Plastic straws are pictured in North Vancouver, B.C., Monday, June 4, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward

By Canadian Press

Feds lose court case over plastics ban

Federal court quashes cabinet order underlying single-use plastics ban

Nov 16, 2023 | 2:13 PM

OTTAWA – The Federal Court has quashed a cabinet order that listed plastic manufactured items as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

The court says in a decision released today that it was not reasonable to say all plastic manufactured items are harmful because the category is too broad.

The decision has implications for the government’s ban of six single-use plastic items, including straws, grocery bags and takeout containers.

The government is only able to regulate substances for environmental protection if they are listed as toxic under the act.

The regulations banning those items are already being phased in, with a ban on manufacturing and importing six different categories already in place, and a full ban on their sale and export planned by the end of 2025.

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The case was brought by the Responsible Plastic Use Coalition and several chemical companies that manufacture plastics.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 16, 2023.