On January 30, 2026, the Federal Court of Appeal (the “Court”) released a significant decision in Attorney General of Canada v. Responsible Plastic Use Coalition (2026 FCA 17), reshaping the national conversation on plastics regulation and validating the federal government’s authority to list Plastic Manufactured Items (“PMI”) as “toxic” under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA).
While the decision does not immediately impose new obligations on businesses, it cements the federal government’s framework for future plastics regulation and confirms that the federal government can act broadly to address plastic pollution. For businesses that manufacture, use, transport, or dispose of plastics, this ruling signals that plastics governance in Canada is entering a new phase: one where ESG expectations, operational risk, and regulatory compliance are increasingly intertwined.
Below, we break down what this decision means for organizations across the plastics value chain and how your business should be integrating strategic decisions in plastics management.