Pest Control Products Act (S.C. 2002, c. 28)

Marginal note:Forfeiture on consent

• 55 (1) At the election of Her Majesty in right of Canada, a pest control product or other thing seized under this Act by an inspector is forfeited to Her Majesty in right of Canada if the owner consents to its forfeiture. The pest control product or other thing that is forfeited may be disposed of, as the Minister directs, at the owner’s expense.

• Marginal note:Forfeiture by court order

  (2) If the Review Tribunal, continued by subsection 27(1) of the Agriculture and Agri-Food Administrative Monetary Penalties Act, decides that a person has committed a violation, or if an offender is convicted of an offence under this Act, the Tribunal or the court, as the case may be, may, in addition to imposing a penalty or punishment, order that the pest control product or other thing that was involved in the violation or offence be forfeited to Her Majesty in right of Canada, regardless of whether the product or thing was seized under this Act or not.

• Marginal note:Directions of Minister

  (3) A pest control product or other thing that is forfeited under subsection (2) may be disposed of as the Minister directs, at the expense of,

  • (a) if it was not seized, its owner; or

  • (b) if it was seized, its owner or the person having possession, care or control of it at the time of its seizure.

Marginal note:Return of seized things

• 56 (1) A seized pest control product or other thing shall be returned to its owner or the person having possession, care or control of the product or thing at the time of its seizure if it has not been forfeited at the final conclusion of proceedings in respect of a violation or an offence under this Act.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (2) A seized pest control product or other thing may be

  • (a) detained pending the payment of any fine or penalty imposed on its owner or the person having possession, care or control of it at the time of seizure; or

  • (b) sold in satisfaction of the fine or penalty.

Marginal note:Forfeiture on application of inspector

• 56.1 (1) A judge of a superior court of the province in which a pest control product or other thing is seized under this Act may, on the application of an inspector, order that the pest control product or other thing be forfeited to Her Majesty in right of Canada.

• Marginal note:Notice and inquiry

  (2) The order may be made only if any notice to any persons that the judge directs was given and the judge finds, after making any inquiry that he or she considers necessary, that the pest control product or other thing is one by means of or in relation to which any of the provisions of this Act or the regulations have been contravened.

• Marginal note:Disposition

  (3) A pest control product or other thing that is forfeited under subsection (1) may be disposed of, as the Minister may direct, at the expense of its owner or the person having possession, care or control of it at the time of its seizure.

Compliance Measures

Marginal note:Inspector may order measures

• 57 (1) If an inspector has reasonable grounds to believe that a person has contravened this Act or the regulations, he or she may order the person

  • (a) to stop or shut down any activity or thing involved in the contravention; and

  • (b) to take any other measures that the inspector considers necessary to prevent further contravention, including

    • (i) modifying a pest control product or its labelling or disposing of the product so as to comply with this Act and the regulations, and

    • (ii) manufacturing, handling, storing, transporting, importing, exporting, packaging, labelling, distributing or using a registered pest control product in accordance with the conditions of registration.

• Marginal note:Validity period

  (2) An order under subsection (1) may apply for a specified period or until the inspector is satisfied that no further contravention is likely to take place.

• Marginal note:Notice

  (3) An order under subsection (1) shall be communicated by delivering a written notice to the registrant or, as the case may be, to the owner or person having possession, care or control of the pest control product, activity or thing that was involved in the contravention and the notice must be accompanied by a statement of the reasons for the order.

• Marginal note:Offence and punishment

  (4) Every person who fails to comply with an order in a notice delivered under subsection (3) is guilty of an offence and liable

  • (a) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $200,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or to both; or

  • (b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of not more than $500,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than three years, or to both.

• Marginal note:Prosecutions

  (5) An order under subsection (1) may be given whether or not the person has been charged with an offence relating to the contravention, but if the person is charged, the order may be confirmed, varied or rescinded by the court that tries the offence.

Disposal and Risk-control Measures

Marginal note:Disposal of samples

58 A sample taken under this Act or the regulations may be disposed of as an inspector or analyst may direct.

Marginal note:Inspectors may take measures to control risks

• 59 (1) Despite subsection 6(8), an inspector may take any measures described in subsection (2) if he or she has reasonable grounds to believe that there has been a contravention of this Act or the regulations and that a pest control product, or any other thing that has been treated or contaminated by a pest control product, poses a health or environmental risk that the Minister considers is unacceptable.

• Marginal note:Measures

  (2) The inspector may

  • (a) order an owner or a person having possession, care or control of the pest control product or other thing to dispose of it or do anything else that the inspector considers necessary to reduce or eliminate the risks it poses;

  • (b) dispose of the product or other thing or do anything else that the inspector considers necessary to reduce or eliminate the risks it poses, at the expense of its owner or the person having possession, care or control of the product or thing; or

  • (c) authorize any other person to exercise the powers described in paragraph (b).

• Marginal note:Notice

  (3) An order under paragraph (2)(a) shall be communicated by delivering a written notice to the owner or person having possession, care or control of the product or thing and the notice

  • (a) must include a statement of the reasons for the order; and

  • (b) may specify the period within which and the manner in which the required action must be taken.

• Marginal note:Offence and punishment

  (4) Every person who fails to comply with an order in a notice delivered under subsection (3) is guilty of an offence and liable

  • (a) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $200,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than six months, or to both; or

  • (b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of not more than $500,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than three years, or to both.

Review of Inspectors’ Orders

Marginal note:Request for review

• 60 (1) Subject to this section, an order in respect of which notice has been delivered under subsection 53(2), 57(3) or 59(3) shall be reviewed on the written request of the person to whom the notice was delivered.

• Marginal note:Contents of and time for making request

  (2) A request under subsection (1) shall state the grounds for the request and the decision that is requested and must be delivered to the Minister within 10 days after the date on which the notice referred to in that subsection was delivered to the person who made the request.

• Marginal note:Reviewer

  (3) A review requested under subsection (1) may be conducted by the inspector who delivered the notice or by any other inspector or official to whom the review is assigned.

• Marginal note:Refusal when grounds already considered

  (4) A review requested under subsection (1) may be refused if the request does not comply with subsection (2) or if the grounds stated in the request were presented to and considered by the inspector before the notice was delivered.

• Marginal note:Refusal in case of emergency

  (5) If the reasons in a notice referred to in subsection (1) include the existence of an emergency concerning risks to human health or safety or the environment, the reviewer may refuse to undertake the review until he or she is satisfied that there has been sufficient compliance with the order in the notice to address the emergency.

• Marginal note:Refusal not affected by inspector’s prior knowledge of emergency

  (6) For the purposes of subsection (5), the reviewer may refuse to undertake the review no matter how long before delivery of the notice the inspector had known of the circumstances concerning the emergency.

• Marginal note:Reasons for refusal

  (7) A refusal under subsection (4) or (5) shall be communicated in writing to the person who made the request, with reasons for the refusal.

• Marginal note:Review initiated by inspector

  (8) An inspector who delivers a notice referred to in subsection (1), or any other inspector or official assigned to do so, may review the order included in the notice regardless of whether a request has been made under that subsection.

• Marginal note:Conduct of review

  (9) A review referred to in subsection (1) or (8) shall be conducted in accordance with the regulations, if any.

• Marginal note:Decision on completion of review

  (10) On completion of a review, the reviewer shall make a decision to confirm, amend, terminate or cancel the order.

• Marginal note:Notice

  (11) Written notice of the reviewer’s decision under subsection (10), with reasons, shall be delivered to the person who made the request or, if there was no request, to the person to whom the notice referred to in subsection (1) was, or could have been, delivered.

• Marginal note:Delay in proceedings under section 61

  (12) An application shall not be made under section 61 in relation to an order until

  • (a) the expiry of the 10-day period referred to in subsection (2) without a review having been requested under subsection (1);

  • (b) a request for a review has been refused under subsection (4) or (5); or

  • (c) a review that has been requested under subsection (1) and has not been refused under subsection (4) or (5), or a review that has been undertaken under subsection (8), has been completed and action has been taken under subsection (10).

• Marginal note:Effect of amendment

  (13) When the decision under subsection (10) is to amend an order, the notice of that decision under subsection (11) is deemed, for the purpose of section 61, to have been delivered under subsection 53(2), 57(3) or 59(3), as the case may be, and the amended order is subject to review under this section.

Court Orders

Marginal note:Application for court order

61 If a person fails to comply with an order in respect of which notice has been delivered under subsection 53(2), 57(3) or 59(3), the Minister may apply to the Federal Court or any other court of competent jurisdiction for an order requiring the person to comply with the notice or authorizing an inspector to take any measures the court considers necessary to ensure compliance with the notice.

Delivery of Documents

Marginal note:Method of delivery

• 62 (1) Notices or other documents required or authorized to be delivered under this Act may be delivered by any method that provides proof of delivery or by any prescribed method.

• Marginal note:Representative in Canada

  (2) An applicant for registration of a pest control product or a registrant, who does not reside in Canada, shall

  • (a) designate a representative who resides in Canada to whom correspondence and any notices or documents referred to in subsection (1) can be sent; and

  • (b) inform the Minister in writing of the designation.

• Marginal note:Presumption

  (3) Any correspondence, notices or documents received by the representative designated under subsection (2) are deemed to have been received by the applicant or registrant who designated the representative.

• Marginal note:Requirement to communicate through designated representative

  (4) The Minister may require an applicant or registrant referred to in subsection (2) to conduct any communications with the Minister through the designated representative of the applicant or registrant.

• Marginal note:Refusal of communications

  (5) Despite any other provision of this Act, the Minister may refuse to receive or act on any communication that is not made in compliance with a requirement made by the Minister under subsection (4).

• Marginal note:Statutory Instruments Act does not apply

  (6) For greater certainty, the Statutory Instruments Act does not apply in respect of notices or other documents delivered under this Act.

Fees, Charges and Costs

Marginal note:Recovery of fees

63 Her Majesty in right of Canada may recover, as a debt due to Her Majesty in right of Canada, any fee or charge that applies in relation to the administration of the provisions of this Act or the regulations.

Marginal note:Recovery of costs

64 Her Majesty in right of Canada may recover, as a debt due to Her Majesty in right of Canada, any costs incurred by Her Majesty in right of Canada in relation to anything required or authorized under this Act, including

• (a) the inspection, treatment, testing or analysis of a place, pest control product or other thing or the storage, movement, seizure, detention, forfeiture, disposition or return of a pest control product or other thing;

• (b) any enforcement or risk-control measures taken by the Minister or an inspector under this Act.

Marginal note:Time limit

64.1 Proceedings to recover a debt due to Her Majesty in right of Canada under this Act shall not be commenced later than five years after the debt became payable.

Marginal note:Certificate of default

• 64.2 (1) Any debt that may be recovered under section 63 or 64 in respect of which there is a default of payment, or the part of any such debt that has not been paid, may be certified by the Minister.

• Marginal note:Judgment

  (2) On production to the Federal Court, a certificate made under subsection (1) shall be registered in that Court and, when registered, has the same force and effect, and all proceedings may be taken on the certificate, as if it were a judgment obtained in that Court for a debt of the amount specified in the certificate and all reasonable costs and charges attendant in the registration of the certificate.