On March 5, 2026, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) and Health Canada (HC) published the Framework for the Risk Assessment of Manufactured Nanomaterials under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. According to Canada, the document establishes a framework for the risk assessment of nanomaterials under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA), including both existing nanomaterials on the Domestic Substances List (DSL), and new nanomaterials notified under the New Substances Notification Regulations (Chemicals and Polymers). According to the plain language summary of the framework, the framework discusses in detail the nanomaterial-specific considerations for risk assessment, including:
- The key physical and chemical properties specific for nanomaterial identification and used for grouping or classifying nanomaterials for information gathering;
- The data considerations used in a nanomaterial risk assessment such as test data or modeling; and
- The behavior of nanomaterials throughout the lifecycle of the nanomaterial (from production to disposal) and characterizing those potential effects on human health and the environment.
The framework also provides details on the ecological and human health risk characterization of nanomaterials. The one-pager notes that for a nanomaterial assessed under CEPA, the potential to cause harm to the environment or human health may differ from the bulk form of the same substance and may differ among different nanoscale forms of the same substance. The one-pager states that ECCC and HC “use a weight of evidence approach to combine the multiple lines of evidence and their uncertainties to conclude whether a nanomaterial is entering or may enter the environment in a quantity or concentration or under conditions that meet any of the criteria for toxicity as set out under CEPA.”
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