Resources

Legislation

Ministry of Environment

Slaughter and Poultry Processing Industries Code of Practice

The Ministry of Environment established a "code of practice" (Minister's regulation) in July 2007 that addresses discharges to the environment from the slaughter and poultry processing industries under provisions of the Environmental Management Act (EMA) and the Waste Discharge Regulation (WDR).

The code of practice establishes province-wide regulations for the slaughter and poultry processing industries.  Operations included in the definition of "slaughter and poultry processing industries" under WDR are required to comply with all relevant provisions of EMA, WDR and this code of practice.    

The slaughter and poultry processing industries include operations which provide food for human consumption.  The Ministry considers it appropriate to regulate waste discharges from these industries by a code of practice.  Although slaughter and poultry processing operations do not generally pose high threats to the environment, there are a number of environmental risks that may be realized if appropriate environmental management practices are not followed, including contamination of groundwater and/or surface water, and air emissions of fine and/or coarse particulates.  

The code addresses air quality management, discharge of wastewater and the management of waste solids and semi-solids — as well as registration, monitoring and record keeping. Registration under this code of practice is required as of September 30, 2007.

Recent Amendments

The Ministry of Environment has recently amended the code of practice.  The amendments include:

  1. i) an exemption for farmers with very small quantities of slaughter wastes from having to register and follow the requirements under the code of practice – these farmers still must comply with the Agricultural Waste Control Regulation to manage their wastes;

  2. ii) the addition of a composting section for handling small quantities of solid and semi-solid slaughter and poultry processing wastes on farms;

  3. iii) clarification of the subsurface wastewater discharge requirements; and

  4. iv) revised and new definitions.

Guidance Documents

The ministry has developed a technical guideline and four fact sheets to assist with understanding the requirements of the code of practice.

Other Resources

Composting requirements under the Organic Matter Recycling Regulation.

Further information and resources developed by the Ministry of Agriculture for nutrient management planning and best management practices (found in the Environmental Farm Planning Reference Guide) that will help in meeting the requirements under the Code can be found on the Ministry of Agriculture’s website at the following links:

Nutrient Management Reference Guide

Environmental Farm Planning Best Management Practices

Background Information

In 2006, the ministry commenced a pre-scoping jurisdictional review and the scoping phase for the development of the Slaughter and Poultry Processing Industries Code of Practice.

In May 2007, the ministry posted an Intentions Paper (PDF/328 KB) and a Response Form (PDF/68 KB) to provide information about the proposed Slaughter and Poultry Processing Industries Code of Practice.

In response to comments received, the ministry posted an Addendum (PDF/59 KB) to the Intentions Paper in early June 2007.

Comments, responses and submissions regarding development of the new code of practice received before July 16, 2007 were provided in a Consultation Summary Report (PDF/145 KB).

The ministry would like to thank all those who contributed. The information was invaluable with respect to developing the final drafts and the code of practice.

Substitution Application Package

A person who has an effective registration under a Code of Practice for discharge of waste to the environment may apply for a substitution of a different requirement to a requirement contained in a code of practice. The following link should be used for information and the steps to be followed when making an application:


UPDATED: august 2011