European and Canadian environmental law

Additional funding was provided by the Law for the Future Fund of the Canadian Bar Association, and the Health and Environment Fund of the Canadian Auto Workers. [...] The analysis of chemical law and policy has been used to inform the Parliamentary review of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and the National Policy Consultation sponsored by the Canadian Partnership for Children’s Health and the Environment. [...] One of its main objectives is to remedy the lack of knowledge about the toxicity of existing chemicals and the slow pace of filling in the data gaps. [...] REACH will replace the Dangerous Substances Directive (67/548/EEC), the Dangerous Preparations Directive (88/379/EEC), the Existing Substances Regulation (EEC 793/93) and the Limitations Directive (76/769/EEC).16 The stated purpose of REACH is “to ensure a high level of protection of human health and the environment, including the promotion of alternative methods for assessment of hazards of subst [...] Furthermore, the provisions of REACH “are underpinned by the precautionary principle”.18 The main elements of REACH are the registration process for all chemicals manufactured or imported into Europe above a certain threshold, the evaluation of selected registered chemicals to determine whether they pose a risk to human health or the environment, and the requirement for an authorization or approva