Citizen Submissions on Enforcement Matters

Canada, Mexico and the United States cooperating to protect North America's shared environment.

Air Pollution in suburban Montreal

Submmission ID: SEM-08-002
Party concerned: Canada
Date filed: 29/08/2008
Status: Closed

Latest update: 28/10/2008
The thirty-day term expired without the Secretariat receiving a submission that conformed to Article 14(1). Under guideline 6.2, the process was therefore terminated.

Summary of the matter addressed in the submission:

The Submitter alleges that the government of Quebec, and more precisely, the Communauté Métropolitaine de Montréal (CMM) is failing to effectively enforce its environmental law with regard to gasoline vapour emissions from service stations in suburban Montreal.

In submission SEM-08-002 (Air Pollution in suburban Montreal), the Submitters assert that the CMM (of which Montreal, Laval, and Longueuil are members) is subject to two different bylaws on atmospheric emissions, “which results in different protection for the citizens of suburban parts of the CMM compared to that received by those on the island itself.” The Submitter asserts that on the island of Montreal, but not elsewhere in the CMM, gasoline vapour emissions produced during resupply of service stations have been subject to containment since 1990. He adds that the rules applied in the suburbs are those of the Quebec Ministry of Sustainable Development, Environment, and Parks. According to the Submitter, the CMM is delaying carrying out a task with which it has been entrusted by law since its inception in 2001.

Submitter(s)
Yvon Otis

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A Guide to Articles 14 and 15 of the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation
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Submission timeline

29/08/2008

The Secretariat acknowledged receipt of a submission and began a preliminary analysis of it under the guidelines.
	Annex — Other document authored by Submitter(s) on 28/07/2008
	Annex — Other document authored by Individual or entity named in submission on 1/08/2008
	Submission — Submission authored by Submitter(s) on 28/08/2008

29/09/2008

The Secretariat notified the submitter(s) that the submission did not meet all of the Article 14(1) criteria and the submitter(s) had 30 days to provide the Secretariat with a revised submission that conforms with Article 14(1).
	Determination — Secretariat Determination under Article 14 (1) authored by Canada on 26/09/2008

28/10/2008

The thirty-day term expired without the Secretariat receiving a submission that conformed to Article 14(1). Under guideline 6.2, the process was therefore terminated.