These measures must be operational within an additional 18 months. This will protect Canadians from impacts of toxic substances much more quickly than the current legislation. Such actions will always take into consideration valid technical, social, and economic factors in determining how fast and far we, as a society, should move. But each step will always bear in mind the ultimate objective of virtual elimination. The new Act provides a clear legislative basis for mandatory reporting to the National Pollutant Release Inventory.
Citizens have a right to know what substances are being released into the environment.
The Inventory also gives industry an opportunity to demonstrate its increasing efforts and its successes in reducing those releases through responsible stewardship. The fourth major focus of the Act will be of particular interest to this group and concerns air quality. It will not be a surprise to this audience to hear that one of the largest contributors to that pollution are motor vehicle emissions. The government is taking steps to bring those levels down through the reduction of pollutants in gasoline such as sulphur. Industry is also taking steps to reduce pollutants in gasoline.