. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
G/TBT/N/CAN/350 
11 November 2011  
 (11-5823) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English/ 
 French 
 
 
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6 
 
1. Notifying Member:  CANADA  
If applicable, name of local governme nt involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):     
2. Agency responsible:  Department of the Environment 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above :   Canadian Enquiry 
Point, 200-270 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontari o, Canada, K1P 6N7 Tel.:  +1 613 238 3222, 
Fax:  +1 613 569 7808,  E-mail:  enquirypoint@scc.ca  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [X], 5.7.1 [   ], other:   
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Vehicle emissions  
(ICS: 13.040; 27.020; 43.060; 43.080; 53.100)  
5. Title, number of pages and langua ge(s) of the notified document:  Proposed Amendment 
to the On-Road Vehicle and Engine Emission Re gulations (On-Board Diagnostic Systems for 
Heavy-Duty Engines and Other Amendments ) (13 pages, in English and French). 
6. Description of content:  The On-Road Vehicle and Engine Emission Regulations , notified 
under G/TBT/N/CAN/32, came into effect on 1 January 2004. The purpose of these 
regulations was to establish st andards to reduce air pollutants that contribute to smog-forming 
emissions.  
The proposed Amendments to the On-Road Vehicle and Engine Emission Regulations  are 
designed to align with the U.S. federal on- board diagnostic (OBD) requirements for heavy-
duty engines.  
On 24 February 2009, the United States E nvironmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) 
published a final rule to extend the OBD systems to heavy-duty engines used or intended to 
be used in heavy-duty vehicles that have a gr oss vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of more than 
6,350 kg, which include minibuses, school buses, road tractors and dump trucks.  
While the majority of heavy-duty vehicles and engines sold in Canada would likely already 
comply with U.S. EPA standards, it is important  to recognize that some  of these vehicles or 
engines sold in Canada may not. The proposed  Amendments add the requirement that the 
heavy-duty engines of the 2013 and later model year s used or intended to be used in heavy-
duty vehicles that have a GVWR of more than 6,350 kg be equipped with an on-board G/TBT/N/CAN/350 
Page 2  
 
  diagnostic system that conforms to the standards applicable to engines of that model year set 
out in section 18 of subpart A of the Code of Federal Regulations  (CFR) of the United States. 
This approach seeks to ensure that the specified standards rema in identical in both countries. 
Therefore, the proposed Amendments would cr eate a level playing field for companies 
supplying the North American market with heav y-duty vehicles and engines. At the domestic 
level, the proposed Amendments would ensure  that all manufactur ers, importers and 
operating distributors comply w ith the same standards.  
The proposed Amendments also make administrative changes to the Regulations that are 
intended to ensure consistency between the E nglish and French versions of the Regulations 
and to provide greater clar ity to existing provisions.  
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
Protection of human health and the environment  
8. Relevant documents:   Canada Gazette, Part I, 29 Oc tober 2011, Pages 3367-3379 (available 
in English and French)   
9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force:    Normally within 5 to 8 months of publication in 
the Canada Gazette, Part I. On the date the measure is adopted. 
10. Final date for comments:  12 January 2012 
11. Text available from:  National enquiry point [X], or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addres ses, if available of the other body:    
The electronic version of the regulat ory text can be downloaded at:  
http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/p1/ 2011/2011-10-29/pdf/g1-14544.pdf#page=37  
(Canada Gazette) 
or  http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/ p1/2011/2011-10-29/html/reg1-eng.html  (English)  
http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/ p1/2011/2011-10-29/html/reg1-fra.html  (French)