May 7, 2024

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

Feds to investigate tire chemical implicated in mass salmon deaths, but urgent action needed, environmental groups react

VANCOUVER/ xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (MUSQUEAM), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (SQUAMISH) AND səlilwətaɬ (TSLEIL-WAUTUTH) TERRITORIES – Environmental groups are encouraged by the federal government’s decision to grant their request to prioritize the tire chemical 6PPD for assessment, an important first step towards regulating this toxic chemical.   

In February, Ecojustice, on behalf of Raincoast Conservation Foundation, Watershed Watch Salmon Society, and Pacific Salmon Foundation, formally requested the federal government assess the harms caused by 6PPD, a chemical linked to mass die-offs of coho salmon. 

Prioritizing 6PPD for assessment under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) is a crucial step to ensuring 6PPD is regulated and coho salmon are protected. Environment and Climate Change Canada has committed to releasing their plan to prioritize assessments by June 2025, and a regulatory intervention – should it proceed – would occur at a future date to be determined. While there is no set timeline for regulatory intervention under CEPA, an expedited assessment is strongly needed to protect salmon.

6PPD is an additive that manufacturers use to prevent tires from degrading. Over time, tires release particles and chemicals that enter waterways.  The breakdown product of 6PPD, called 6PPD-quinone (6PPD-q), has been linked to mass deaths of coho salmon when they pass through urban streams. An estimated 40-90 percent of adult coho salmon returning to spawn in urbanized watersheds could die from exposure to this chemical each year. Since a seminal study in December 2020 first identified 6PPD-q as the cause of coho deaths in Washington State, similar impacts are being observed in other fish, including chinook salmon, rainbow trout and lake trout. The full scope of harm is unclear, but the lethal effects of 6PPD-q requires urgent action and government regulation. 

 

 Quotes 

Daniel Cheater, Ecojustice lawyer:  

“We commend the government for taking appropriate action and granting our request to prioritize 6PPD for assessment. It is now critical that this toxic chemical be assessed as soon as possible.  

“The longer this process takes, the longer 6PPD will cause mass die-offs of this keystone species. Coho salmon need swift action to ensure they are given a fighting chance.”   

 Dr. Peter S. Ross, Senior Scientist at Raincoast:

“Getting 6-PPD out of vehicle tires is critically important and time sensitive if we are to stop the mass die-offs of coho salmon as they head upstream to spawn. The Minister’s decision to prioritize regulatory scrutiny of this acutely toxic chemical is an important step forward, but we need to accelerate regulatory intervention. Without prompt action, tires will continue to release 6PPD and its breakdown product 6-PPD-q into fish habitat and kill salmon for years to come.”

Lina Azeez, Habitat Programs Director at Watershed Watch Salmon Society: 

“The federal government has an opportunity to do the right thing. We hope they act quickly to ban a substance known to be deadly to salmon and other fish. Doing so will showcase strong environmental leadership, something we all desperately need the government to step up to and be a leader in right now.”

Michael Meneer, President & CEO, Pacific Salmon Foundation: 

“On behalf of the Pacific Salmon Foundation, I thank the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada for making the decision to review 6PPD and 6PPDQ, a critical first step in protecting our wild salmon from this tire chemical known to kill coho salmon. I recently attended a meeting with a network of 120 community and First Nations partners who have been monitoring this chemical and its impact on salmon survival for years and are actively looking at solutions to mitigate its impacts. This decision is an important first step to protect Pacific salmon and our environment from this toxic chemical.”

Contact:

Venetia Jones, communications manager | Ecojustice
vjones@ecojustice.ca, 613-903-5898 ext. 719 

Dr. Peter S. Ross, Senior Scientist and Healthy Waters Director / Raincoast Conservation Foundation / peter@raincoast.org / 250-217-3755

About section 

Ecojustice uses the power of the law to defend nature, combat climate change, and fight for a healthy environment. Its strategic, public interest lawsuits and advocacy lead to precedent-setting court decisions and law and policy that deliver lasting solutions to Canada’s most urgent environmental problems. As Canada’s largest environmental law charity, Ecojustice operates offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa, and Halifax. 

 

The Pacific Salmon Foundation, founded in 1987, is a non-profit environmental organization dedicated to the conservation and restoration of wild Pacific salmon and their habitats in B.C. and the Yukon. For us, it’s salmon first, salmon always and we never go it alone. We work with First Nations, Government, ENGO partners, industry and all people for salmon who share the desire to save and restore these iconic species. 

 

Raincoast Conservation Foundation is comprised of scientists and conservationists whose work focuses on the land, waters and wildlife of coastal British Columbia. Their area of research includes a program addressing threats facing the survival of wild salmon, a group of species that play a foundational role in marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Raincoast’s work also includes the Healthy Waters program, carried out in partnership with Indigenous communities and other partners to build pollution monitoring capacity in salmon watersheds.  

 

Watershed Watch Salmon Society is a federally registered charity established in 1998 to advocate for the conservation and restoration of B.C.’s wild salmon and their habitats. Diverse and abundant wild salmon runs are essential for the healthy function of coastal and riparian ecosystems across B.C., vital to the culture and food sovereignty of First Nations, and highly valued by people across our province for food, culture, commerce and recreation. Watershed Watch is working to raise awareness and push for systemic change for the many populations of wild salmon that are in steep decline, driven by the cumulative effects of climate change, habitat loss and degradation, overfishing, pollution, and harmful aquaculture practices.  

 

Additional resources 

Response to Request to Assess 6PPD under section 76 of CEPA 

Request to Assess 6PPD under Section 76 of CEPA 

 Background information 

• This is the first time the Section 76 amendment to the CEPA legislation has been used to successfully request prioritization. It is also the first time Canada has taken action to address 6PPD.
• When 6PPD comes into contact with ozone in the air it turns into 6PPD-quinone (6PPD-q), highly toxic to coho salmon. While the source of mass coho deaths in urban areas was unknown for decades, a seminal 2020 study confirmed 6PPD-q as the cause. 
• Through tire wear on roadways, 6PPD particles make their way into urban rivers and streams through rain run-off, turning waterways toxic.    
  • 6PPD has also been found in sediments and soils, household dust and human urine.