Organotins: Two Made Subject to SNAc

On August 19, two organotins (tetraphenyltin and fluoro-triphenyltin) currently on the Domestic Substances List under CEPA were made subject to the Significant New Activity (SNAc) provisions of CEPA. Non-pesticidal organotin compounds were initially assessed by the Canadian government in 1993 and found to be not toxic to the environment. However, in the six years following that assessment, nine "new" or "transitional" organotins were assessed by the federal government, which condluded that these nine substances were suspected to be CEPA-toxic. This resulted in a follow-up ecological assessment of organotins already on the Domestic Substances List. As a result of this follow-up assessment, any new use, manufacture of import of tetraphenyltin and fluoro-triphenyltin will be required to undergo ecological and human health risk assessments.