Plant Protection Act (S.C. 1990, c. 22)

Short Title

Marginal note:Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the Plant Protection Act.

Purpose

Marginal note:Purpose of the Act

2 The purpose of this Act is to protect plant life and the agricultural and forestry sectors of the Canadian economy by preventing the importation, exportation and spread of pests and by controlling or eradicating pests in Canada.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

3 In this Act,

Assessor

Assessor means the Assessor or any Deputy Assessor appointed under Part II of the Pesticide Residue Compensation Act; (évaluateur)

conveyance

conveyance means any aircraft, carriage, motor vehicle, trailer, railway car, vessel, cargo container or other contrivance used to move persons or things; (véhicule)

dispose

dispose includes destroy; (Version anglaise seulement)

document

document means anything on which information that is capable of being understood by a person, or read by a computer or other device, is recorded or marked; (document)

inspector

inspector means a person designated as an inspector pursuant to section 21; (inspecteur)

justice

justice means a justice as defined in section 2 of the Criminal Code; (juge de paix)

Minister

Minister means the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food; (ministre)

peace officer

peace officer means a peace officer as defined in section 2 of the Criminal Code; (agent de la paix)

penalty

penalty means an administrative monetary penalty imposed under the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act for a violation; (sanction)

pest

pest means any thing that is injurious or potentially injurious, whether directly or indirectly, to plants or to products or by-products of plants; (parasite)

place

place includes a conveyance; (lieu)

plant

plant includes a part of a plant; (végétal)

prescribed

prescribed means prescribed by regulation; (Version anglaise seulement)

thing

thing includes a plant and a pest; (choses)

Tribunal

Tribunal means the Review Tribunal continued by subsection 27(1) of the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act; (Commission)

violation

violation means any of the following that may be proceeded with in accordance with the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act:

• (a) any contravention of any provision of this Act or of a regulation made under this Act,

• (b) any contravention of any order made by the Minister under this Act, and

• (c) any refusal or neglect to perform any duty imposed by or under this Act. (violation)

Her Majesty

Marginal note:Binding on Her Majesty

4 This Act is binding on Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province.

Control of Pests

General

Marginal note:Duty to notify Minister

5 Where a person becomes aware of the existence of a thing that the person suspects to be a pest in an area where the pest has not previously been known to exist, the person shall immediately notify the Minister of the suspected pest and provide the Minister with a specimen of it.

Marginal note:Prohibition

• 6 (1) Except as permitted under this Act or the regulations, no person shall move, grow, raise, culture or produce any thing that there are reasonable grounds to believe is a pest, that is or could be infested with a pest or that constitutes or could constitute a biological obstacle to the control of a pest.

• Marginal note:Prohibition of movement

  (2) Where an inspector believes on reasonable grounds that a thing is a pest, is or could be infested with a pest or constitutes or could constitute a biological obstacle to the control of a pest, the inspector may prohibit the owner of the thing or the person having the possession, care or control of it from moving it without the written authorization of an inspector.

• Marginal note:Notice

  (3) A prohibition under subsection (2) shall be communicated by personal delivery of a notice to the owner or person having the possession, care or control, or by sending the notice to the owner or person.

Marginal note:Recall order — Canadian Food Inspection Agency Act

6.1 No person shall sell a thing regulated under this Act that is the subject of a recall order referred to in subsection 19(1) of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Act.

Importation and Exportation

Marginal note:Prohibition

7 No person shall import or admit into Canada or export from Canada any thing that is a pest, that is or could be infested with a pest or that constitutes or could constitute a biological obstacle to the control of a pest, unless

• (a) the person has produced to an inspector all permits, certificates and other documentation required by the regulations;

• (b) the thing is or has been presented to an inspector — if required by the regulations or an inspector — in the manner and under the conditions specified by the inspector and at a place designated by the regulations or an inspector; and

• (c) the thing is imported or exported in accordance with any other requirements of the regulations.

Marginal note:Removal or destruction of unlawful imports

• 8 (1) An inspector who has reasonable grounds to believe that an imported thing has been imported in contravention of a provision of this Act or the regulations, is a pest, is or could be infested with a pest or constitutes or could constitute a biological obstacle to the control of a pest or that a requirement imposed by or under the regulations in respect of an imported thing has not been met may, by notice, whether the thing is seized or not, order its owner or importer or the person having possession, care or control of it to remove it from Canada or, if removal is not possible, to destroy it.

• Marginal note:Notice

  (2) The notice must either be delivered personally to the owner or importer of the thing or to the person having possession, care or control of it or be sent by registered mail to the owner’s, importer’s or person’s address in Canada.

• Marginal note:Forfeiture

  (3) If the thing is not removed from Canada, or destroyed, within the period specified in the notice — or, if no period was specified, within 90 days after the day on which the notice was delivered or sent — it is, despite subsection 32(1), forfeited to Her Majesty in right of Canada and may be disposed of as the Minister may direct.

• Marginal note:Suspension of application of subsection (3)

  (4) An inspector may, for a period that he or she specifies, suspend the application of subsection (3) if he or she is satisfied that

  • (a) harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment is unlikely to result;

  • (b) the thing will not be sold within that period;

  • (c) the measures that should have been taken for the thing not to have been imported in contravention of a provision of this Act or the regulations will be taken within that period; and

  • (d) if the thing does not meet the requirements of the regulations, it will be brought into compliance with the regulations within that period.

• Marginal note:Cancellation

  (5) An inspector may cancel the notice if he or she is satisfied that

  • (a) harm to human, animal or plant health or the environment is unlikely to result;

  • (b) the thing has not been sold within the period referred to in subsection (6);

  • (c) the measures referred to in paragraph (4)(c) were taken within that period; and

  • (d) if the thing did not meet the requirements of the regulations when it was imported, it was brought into compliance with the regulations within that period.

• Marginal note:Period

  (6) The period for the purposes of subsection (5) is

  • (a) if the application of subsection (3) was suspended under subsection (4), the period of the suspension; and

  • (b) if the application of subsection (3) was not suspended, the period specified in the notice or, if no period was specified, the period that ends 90 days after the day on which the notice was delivered or sent.

Marginal note:Prohibition of possession or disposition

• 9 (1) No person shall possess or dispose of a thing that the person knows was imported in contravention of this Act or the regulations.

• Marginal note:Presumption

  (2) In any prosecution for an offence under subsection (1), an accused who is found to have been in possession of a thing that was imported in contravention of this Act or the regulations shall be considered, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, to have known that the thing was so imported.

International Assistance

Marginal note:Assistance in controlling or eradicating pests outside Canada

10 The Minister may provide financial or technical assistance to any person or government outside Canada in controlling or eradicating a pest that affects or could affect plants, or products or by-products of plants, in Canada.

Infested Places

Marginal note:Declaration of infested place

• 11 (1) Where an inspector suspects or determines that a place is infested with a pest and is of the opinion that the pest could spread, the inspector may in writing declare that the place is infested.

• Marginal note:Delivery of declaration

  (2) When the declaration is delivered to the occupier or owner of the place to which it relates, the place, together with all contiguous lands, buildings and other places occupied or owned by the occupier or owner, constitutes an infested place until the Minister determines otherwise.

Marginal note:Further declaration

• 12 (1) Where an inspector declares under section 11 that a place is infested and is of the opinion that the pest could spread to any other land, building or place, the inspector may in writing declare that the other land, building or place is infested.

• Marginal note:Delivery of declaration

  (2) When a declaration is delivered to the occupier or owner of any land, building or place mentioned in subsection (1), the land, building or place, together with all contiguous lands, buildings and places occupied or owned by the same occupier or owner, constitutes part of the infested place.

Marginal note:Interim powers of inspector

• 13 (1) Where an inspector is of the opinion that immediate action is required to control a pest, the inspector may, in a declaration under section 11 or 12, and for a period of not more than ninety days, prohibit or restrict the movement of persons and things within, into or out of the infested place for the purpose of controlling the pest.

• Marginal note:Cessation of prohibition or restriction

  (2) A prohibition or restriction contained in a declaration under section 11 or 12 ceases to have effect where

  • (a) the inspector rescinds the prohibition or restriction; or

  • (b) the declaration is revoked by the Minister under subsection 15(2).