Oct. 13, 2010
Canada adds BPA to toxic substances list
By Amy Minsky, Postmedia News

OTTAWA – The federal government has made good on a two-year-old promise to add bisphenol A to the country’s list of toxic substances, in spite of industry opposition.

In 2008, Canada became the first country in the world to ban BPA in baby bottles, after finding that the chemical mimicked the hormone estrogen, and could eventually lead to prostate and breast cancer.

The next step for the government was to designate the chemical as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, which happened Wednesday.

The delay in its listing was due to a formal notice of objection from the American Chemistry Council, filed on July 15, 2009, which maintained BPA is safe.

Ottawa rejected the request on July 27, 2010, on the grounds that it did not “bring forth any new scientific data or information with respect to the nature and extent of the danger posed by bisphenol A.”