Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Concentration Limits for Architectural Coatings Regulations (SOR/2009-264)

Conditions of Issuance

Marginal note:Conditions for issuing permit

• 10 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the Minister must issue the permit if the following conditions are met:

  • (a) the applicant has provided evidence that, at the time of the application, it is not technically or economically feasible for the applicant to reduce the VOC concentration in the product to the limit set out in column 2 of the schedule for that product;

  • (b) the applicant has prepared a plan to identify the measures that will be taken by the applicant such that the VOC concentration in the architectural coating for manufacture or import is within the limit set out in column 2 of the schedule for that coating; and

  • (c) the period within which the plan is to be fully implemented does not exceed four years after the day on which the first permit is issued to the applicant.

• Marginal note:Grounds for refusing permit

  (2) The Minister must refuse to issue a permit if

  • (a) the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe that the applicant has provided false or misleading information in support of their application; or

  • (b) information required under subsections 9(2) or (5) has not been provided or is insufficient to enable the Minister to process the application.

• Marginal note:Expiry and permit renewal

  (3) A permit expires 24 months after the day on which it is issued unless, within the period of 30 days before the day on which the permit expires, the applicant submits a new application in accordance with section 9. The validity of the first permit may only be extended once for an additional 24 months for a given architectural coating and the same use.

Revocation

Marginal note:Grounds for revocation

• 11 (1) The Minister must revoke a permit if the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe that the implementation of the plan set out in paragraph 10(1)(b) will not be completed within the specified period or that the permit holder has provided false or misleading information.

• Marginal note:Conditions for revocation

  (2) The Minister must not revoke a permit unless the Minister has provided the permit holder with

  • (a) a written reason for the revocation; and

  • (b) an opportunity to be heard, by written representation, in respect of the revocation.

Determination of VOC Concentration

Marginal note:General formula

• 12 (1) Subject to subsection (2), the VOC concentration of an architectural coating set out in the schedule, diluted to the maximum recommendation of the manufacturer, importer or seller, excluding the volume of any water and excluded compounds, must be determined using the following equation:

  VOC concentration = (Ws - Ww - Wec) ÷ (Vm - Vw - Vec)

  where

  VOC concentration

  is the VOC concentration of an architectural coating, in grams of VOC per litre of coating;

  Ws

  is the weight of volatiles, in grams;

  Ww

  is the weight of water, in grams;

  Wec

  is the weight of excluded compounds, in grams;

  Vm

  is the volume of architectural coating, in litres;

  Vw

  is the volume of water, in litres; and

  Vec

  is the volume of excluded compounds, in litres.

• Marginal note:Low solids coating

  (2) The VOC concentration of a low solids coating set out in the schedule, diluted to the maximum recommendation of the manufacturer, importer or seller, including the volume of any water and excluded compounds, must be determined using the following equation:

  VOC_ls concentration = (Ws - Ww - Wec) ÷ Vm

  where

  VOC_ls concentration

  is the VOC concentration of a low solids (ls) coating, in grams of VOC per litre of coating,

  Ws

  is the weight of volatiles, in grams,

  Ww

  is the weight of water, in grams,

  Wec

  is the weight of excluded compounds, in grams, and

  Vm

  is the volume of architectural coating, in litres.

• Marginal note:Colourant

  (3) The VOC concentration of an architectural coating must be determined excluding any colourant that is added after the tint base is manufactured or imported, as the case may be, and packaged for sale.

Test Methods

Drying Times

Marginal note:Quick-dry enamel

• 13 (1) The set-to-touch, tack-free and dry-hard times of a quick-dry enamel set out in the schedule must be determined in accordance with ASTM D 1640–03, entitled Standard Test Methods for Drying, Curing, or Film Formation of Organic Coatings at Room Temperature, except that the standard must be read as excluding references to any agreement between the purchaser and the seller as well as the following:

  • (a) sections 2, 2.1, 4 and 4.1 with the exception of Table 1 of section 4.1;

  • (b) sections 7.3, 7.3.1, 7.5, 7.5.1, 7.5.2, 7.7, 7.7.1, 7.8 and 7.8.1;

  • (c) sections 10, 10.1, except the expression “duplicate determinations should agree within 10% of the time of drying”, and 10.2.

• Marginal note:Excluded methods

  (2) For the purpose of these Regulations, standard ASTM D 1640–03 must be read as excluding the following referenced standards:

  • (a) ASTM D 823; and

  • (b) ASTM D 1005.

• Marginal note:Reference to standards

  (3) Any reference to a standard in this section is a reference to the version of that standard that is in effect at the time the determination under subsection (1) is made.

Surface Chalkiness

Marginal note:Specialty primer, sealer or undercoater

• 14 (1) The chalkiness of a surface to be conditioned by the application of a specialty primer, sealer or undercoater set out in the schedule must be determined in accordance with ASTM D 4214–07, entitled Standard Test Methods for Evaluating the Degree of Chalking of Exterior Paint Films, except that the expression “as agreed upon between the producer, user, or other interested parties” must be excluded as well as the following:

  • (a) sections 2, 2.1 and 2.2;

  • (b) sections 6.2.3 and 6.4; and

  • (c) sections 8, 8.1 and 8.2.

• Marginal note:Excluded methods

  (2) For the purpose of these Regulations, standard ASTM D 4214–07 must be read as excluding the following referenced standards:

  • (a) ASTM D 622; and

  • (b) ASTM E 1347.

• Marginal note:Interpretation

  (3) Wherever the expression “degree of chalking” appears in ASTM D 4214–07, it must be read to mean “chalkiness” as set out in these Regulations.

• Marginal note:Reference to standards

  (4) Any reference to a standard in this section is a reference to the version of that standard that is in effect at the time the determination under subsection (1) is made.

Marginal note:Documents incorporated by reference — interpretation

15 For the purposes of interpreting the documents incorporated by reference into these Regulations, “should” must be read to mean “must” and any recommendation and suggestions must be read as an obligation.

Accredited Laboratory

Marginal note:Accredited laboratory

16 Any laboratory that performs an analysis for the purposes of these Regulations must be accredited under the International Organization for Standardization standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005, entitled General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories and its accreditation must include the analysis in question within its scope of testing.

Labelling

Marginal note:Required information — manufacturer or importer

• 17 (1) Any person that manufactures or imports an architectural coating set out in the schedule must indicate, at the place specified below on the container in which the architectural coating is to be sold, the following information:

  • (a) on the container’s label, lid or bottom, the date on which the architectural coating was manufactured or a code representing that date;

  • (b) on the container’s label or lid, the instructions regarding dilution of the architectural coating with solvents other than water or, if dilution or thinning of the architectural coating prior to use is not necessary, a statement that the coating is to be applied without dilution or thinning;

  • (c) in the case of an industrial maintenance coating, on the container’s label or lid, one or more of the following statements:

    • (i) “For industrial use only”,

    • (ii) “For professional use only”,

    • (iii) “Not for residential use”, or

    • (iv) “Not intended for residential use”;

  • (d) in the case of a clear brushing lacquer, on the container’s label or lid, the statement “For brush application only” and either

    • (i) “This product must not be diluted or sprayed”, or

    • (ii) “This product must not be thinned or sprayed”;

  • (e) in the case of a rust preventive coating, on the container’s label or lid, one of the following statements:

    • (i) “For metal surfaces only”, or

    • (ii) “For metal substrates only”;

  • (f) in the case of a specialty primer, sealer or undercoater, on the container’s label or lid, one or more of the following statements:

    • (i) “For blocking stains”,

    • (ii) “For fire-damaged surfaces” or “For fire-damaged substrates”,

    • (iii) “For smoke-damaged surfaces” or “For smoke-damaged substrates”,

    • (iv) “For water-damaged surfaces” or “For water-damaged substrates”, or

    • (v) “For excessively chalky surfaces” or “For excessively chalky substrates”;

  • (g) in the case of a quick-dry enamel, on the container’s label or lid, the dry–hard time and the words “Quick dry”;

  • (h) in the case of a high-gloss coating, on the container’s label, the words “High gloss”; and

  • (i) in the case of a traffic marking coating with a VOC concentration greater than 150 g/L, on the container’s label or lid, the statement “Not for application for the period beginning on May 1 and ending on Oct 15”.

• Marginal note:Required information — seller

  (1.1) A person that offers for sale or sells an architectural coating set out in the schedule must indicate the information in accordance with subsection (1) on the container in which the coating is to be sold if the manufacturer or importer has failed to do so in accordance with that subsection.

• Marginal note:Effective date

  (2) Subject to subsection 4(2), subsections (1) and (1.1) take effect in respect of each architectural coating set out in the schedule

  • (a) for the manufacturer or the importer, on the corresponding anniversary of the day on which these Regulations come into force as set out in column 3; or

  • (b) for the seller or the person offering for sale, two years after the corresponding anniversary of the day on which these Regulations come into force as set out in column 3.

• Marginal note:Readability

  (3) The information must be displayed legibly and conspicuously and in the same manner in both official languages.

• Marginal note:Date code

  (4) Every manufacturer or importer of an architectural coating set out in the schedule must provide the Minister, on request, with an explanation of any date code indicated on the coating’s container to represent the date of manufacture.

Marginal note:Information concerning VOC concentration

18 If a person manufactures, imports, sells or offers for sale an architectural coating set out in the schedule and indicates the VOC concentration on the container in which the architectural coating is to be sold, then the VOC concentration of the coating must be calculated in accordance with section 12.