Towards Osaka Blue Ocean Vision - G20 Implementation Framework for Actions on Marine Plastic Litter

Canada

Actions and Progress on Marine Plastic Litter
Last Update : 2026/10/28

Policy Framework

National Action Plan

Name:

  1. Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste
  2. Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste (Phase 1 and Phase 2)

Brief Description:
The Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste and its comprehensive Action Plan are moving Canada towards a circular plastics economy and addressing plastic waste and pollution. In 2018, federal, provincial and territorial governments, through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (the Council), approved the Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste, which outlines a vision to keep all plastics in the economy and out of the environment. As such, the Strategy identifies areas where improvements are needed across the plastic lifecycle as well as the opportunities for economic growth at every stage of a circular plastics economy. The Strategy aligns with the Ocean Plastics Charter, which was a key outcome of Canada’s G7 presidency in 2018.

In 2019, the Council adopted Phase 1 of the Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste, which focuses government efforts across a broad range of activities, including: support for recycling infrastructure and innovation in plastics manufacturing, tools for green procurement practices, and guidance on best practices. The following year, the Council adopted Phase 2 of the Action Plan, which outlines further actions to reduce plastic pollution, raise awareness, strengthen science and take global action.

As committed under the Action Plan, as of August 2026, the Council has published the following:

In Preparation

Name:
● Canadian Ghost Gear Action Plan

Brief Description:
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is undertaking a fundamental change in the way Canadian fisheries are managed to address the challenge of abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG, or ‘ghost gear’). As part of this effort, DFO is developing a Canadian Ghost Gear Action Plan, set to be finalized by 2027.
 
The Action Plan will provide a national framework with clear steps to reduce gear loss and improve how ghost gear is managed as part of sustainable fishing practices across Canada. The Action Plan is being shaped by extensive engagement and consultation with fish harvesters, Indigenous partners, industry, and other stakeholders.
 
Between 2020-2024, $58.4 million (CAD) was provided for ghost gear projects, funding 144 projects. Since work began in 2020, DFO supported the retrieval of over 48,000 units of gear, accounting for more than 2,590 tonnes of ALDFG removed from Canada’s waters, as well as over 1,000 km of rope. In 2026, an additional $15 million (CAD) over three years has been allocated to modernize the location, retrieval and disposal of ghost gear. These funded activities also support and inform the development of the Ghost Gear Action Plan.
 
The Action Plan involves changes in gear management regulatory tools, establishing a ghost gear risk assessment matrix for fisheries, and implementing best management practices to prevent gear loss on a fishery by fishery basis.

Legal Framework

Name（Year）:
● Canadian Environmental Protection Act (1999)

  • Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations (2017)
  • Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations (2022)
  • Federal Plastics Registry (2024)

● Fisheries Act (1985)
● Species at Risk Act (2002)

Brief Description:
Among several Canadian federal acts, regulations and agreements that contribute to the prevention of marine plastic litter, including microplastics, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (the Act) is particularly significant in providing the authority for the Government of Canada to enact regulations and other risk-management tools to address the harmful impacts of certain plastics. Following the addition of plastic microbeads to Schedule 1 of the Act, Canada introduced the Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations in 2017 to ban toiletries that contain microbeads, such as bath and body products, skin cleansers, and toothpaste. In 2022, Canada adopted the Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations, following the addition of plastic manufactured items to the Schedule 1 of the Act, to prohibit the manufacture, import and sale of single-use plastic checkout bags, cutlery, foodservice ware made from or containing problematic plastics, ring carriers, stir sticks, and straws (with exceptions). On December 20, 2025, the prohibition under the Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations on the manufacture, import and sale, for the purpose of export, of six categories of single-use plastics came into force.
 
Launched on April 20, 2024, under the Act, the Federal Plastics Registry (FPR) is a tool designed to better understand plastic production, use, and management in Canada. It requires organizations, including producers and other service providers, to report annually on the quantity and types of plastic they manufacture, import, and place on the Canadian market and how it is managed at its end-of-life. The FPR will provide consistent and accessible data and help the Government assess and manage environmental and health risks posed by plastics, support policy development, enable market analysis and investment decisions, and stimulate research and innovation.
 
As well, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, the Canada Shipping Act, and other enabling legislation provide authority for the federal government to enforce the Cross-border Movement of Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Recyclable Material Regulations, which were introduced in 2021 to replace the Export and Import of Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Recyclable Material Regulations. The implementation of these regulations contribute to Canada’s ability to meet its obligations under the Basel Convention (see below) as well as other international and regional agreements.
 
Canada’s Fisheries Act, which prohibits serious harm to fish and fish habitat from the deposit of deleterious substances into domestic waters, and the Species at Risk Act, which seeks to protect critical habitats of at-risk species, including in the marine environment, provide further authorities for the federal government to prevent and reduce marine plastic litter in Canada.
 
The Fisheries Act and Species at Risk Act plays a specific role in preventing deposits of deleterious substances into Canadian waters and protecting species at risk. As part of the Ghost Gear Program’s regulatory review process, the development of tools such as a dedicated ghost gear regulation or policy is being examined.
 
Canada also implements its obligations under several legally binding international agreements that contribute to preventing waste and litter, namely: the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal; the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL); and the London Convention and Protocol to prevent marine pollution by dumping at sea.
 
Canada’s implementation of other international frameworks for action – such as, the Ocean Plastics Charter, G7 Action Plan to Combat Marine Litter, G20 Action Plan on Marine Litter and Implementation Framework, International Maritime Organisation Action Plan to Address Marine Litter from Ships, and the plastics-related United Nations Environment Assembly resolutions – help to inform and support the legal framework to address marine plastic litter.

In Preparation

Name:
● Proposed Amendments to the Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations

Brief Description:
On December 20, 2025, the Government of Canada published proposed Amendments to the Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations that would remove the prohibition on export while ensuring the Regulations continue to protect the environment from the harms of plastic pollution.

Indicators and/or Targets

Plastic Product Flow
■ Manufactured
■ Consumed
Data collection activities: Data collection on the identity, source and weight in kilograms of resins and plastic products placed on the market, imported, and manufactured in Canada and destined for residential; industrial, commercial and institutional; and construction, renovation and demolition waste streams.

■ Recycled
Data collection activities: Data collection on the identity, source and weight in kilograms of plastics chemically or mechanically recycled in the product categories packaging, single use and disposable products, electronic and electrical equipment, agriculture and horticulture, and tires.

■ Waste (generated/collected)
Data collection activities: Data collection on the identity, source and weight in kilograms of plastic products generated as waste in industrial, commercial and institutional premises; identity, source and weight in kilograms of plastic products managed for diversion and disposal.

Plastic Leakage
■ Biota
Indicators:
The proportion of Northern Fulmars (bird species) with 0.1 grams or more of plastic in their stomachs.
Targets:
The indicator was developed to mirror the long-term goal for the North-East Atlantic under the OSPAR convention (less than 10% of fulmars exceeding a level of 0.1 grams of plastic in their stomachs).

■ Ghost Fishing Gear Recovery
Indicators:
Percentage of wild capture commercial fisheries whose licences are revised for ALDFG (“ghost gear”) best practices based on gear type.
Targets:
20% of wild capture commercial fisheries with revised licences by March 2026 (Target achieved).

■ Ghost Fishing Gear Recovery
Indicators:
Number of commercial fisheries in which in-season ghost gear retrieval and alternatives to plastic gear tags are piloted.
Targets:
3 commercial fisheries for each by March 2025 (Target achieved).

■ Others
Indicators:
Proportion of discarded plastic leaked permanently into the environment (Plastic leaked permanently into the environment / Total discarded plastic in products) * 100).
Targets:
No specific target

Brief Description:
The Ocean Plastics Charter, championed by Canada during its 2018 G7 presidency, includes actions across the plastics lifecycle to reduce plastic waste and pollution. Specific targets identified in the Ocean Plastics Charter include:

  • Working with industry toward 100% reusable, recyclable, or where viable alternatives do not exist, recoverable plastics by 2030;
  • Working with industry toward increasing recycled content by at least 50% in plastic products where applicable by 2030;
  • Working with industry and other levels of government to recycle and reuse at least 55% of plastic packaging by 2030 and recover 100% of all plastics by 2040; and
  • Working with industry toward reducing the use of plastic microbeads in rinse-off cosmetic and personal-care consumer products, to the extent possible by 2020, and addressing other sources of microplastics.

In alignment with the Ocean Plastics Charter and to support the Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste, Phases 1 and 2 of the Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste identify a comprehensive suite of commitments and milestones, providing a framework for collaborative action to address plastic waste and pollution. Key commitments identified in the Action Plan include facilitating consistent extended producer responsibility programs for plastics across the country; supporting the establishment of national performance requirements for plastics; developing guidance for Canada-wide monitoring to achieve consistent data gathering on plastics in the environment; and maintaining Canada-wide data on plastic use, management and fate in the economy.

To facilitate data collection and analysis needed to support advancing a circular plastics economy, Statistics Canada maintains a Physical Flow Account for Plastic Material (PFAPM). The PFAPM estimates the flow of plastic in tonnes through the Canadian economy, including internationally traded plastic products and sorted and baled plastic waste as well as leakage to the environment, and features breakdowns by product category, resin type, and province and territory.

Environment and Climate Change Canada’s new Federal Plastics Registry will also require companies to report annually on the quantity and types of plastic they manufacture, import, and place on the Canadian market and how it is managed at its end-of-life. Plastics data collection and governance within the federal government is supported by a Plastics Data Framework that seeks to coordinate plastics data initiatives to identify, prioritize and fill key data gaps to improve progress reporting, minimize duplication of effort, and better disseminate plastics data to users such as researchers and policymakers.

In an effort to lead by example, the Government of Canada’s Federal Sustainable Development Strategy (FSDS) and Greening Government Strategy also commit to diverting at least 75% by weight of plastic waste from landfills by 2030, eliminate the unnecessary use of plastics, in particular single-use plastics, in government operations, events and meetings, and promote the procurement of goods and services that include criteria that address environmental considerations such as greenhouse gas emissions reduction, plastics waste reduction and/or broader environmental benefits by 2050, to aid the transition to circular plastics economy.

Through the Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators (CESI) program, Canada has established the Plastic particles in the Northern Fulmar indicator. This indicator provides information on the mass of plastic found in the Northern Fulmars’ stomach in birds collected in Canada. The Northern Fulmar is a seabird that feeds exclusively on the surface (top 1 metre) in the open ocean. The indicator reports the proportion of birds with 0.1 g or more of plastic in their stomachs and gives an overview of the situation at the national and the regional levels.

Beyond plastic waste, federal, provincial and territorial governments, through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME), have endorsed a Canada-wide waste reduction goal (for all waste, including plastics): reduce per capita waste (measured in 2014 at 699 kg) by 30% by 2030, and by 50% by 2040. The CESI Solid waste diversion and disposal indicator supports the measurement of progress towards this goal.

Canada has also endorsed relevant international commitments, including the goals and targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This includes Target 11.6 (reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management by 2030), Target 12.5 (substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse by 2030), and Target 14.1 (prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution, by 2025). The Osaka Blue Ocean Vision also aims to reduce additional marine plastic pollution to zero by 2050.

Canada’s 2030 Nature Strategy charts a path for how Canada will implement the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework domestically and includes relevant domestic indicators (e.g., Plastic particles in the Northern Fulmar indicator).

Canada, through the Canadian Indicator Framework (CIF), reports on 86 nationally relevant indicators that include Canadian ambitions and targets to measure progress on the SDGs. The CIF indicators relevant to plastics and waste include;

Technical Standards, Guidelines and Methodologies

Topics:
■ Production / Manufacturing ■ Waste Management / Recycling ■ Leakage Monitoring

Brief Description:
Notice with respect to reporting of plastic resins and certain plastic products for the Federal Plastics Registry for 2024, 2025 and 2026. The Federal Plastics Registry will monitor the quantity and types of plastics placed on the market in the Canadian economy and how it is managed at its end of life. Organizations will report annually.

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Measures

Measures across Value Chain
Actions for encouraging sustainable / circular product design (example: improved durability, reparability, recyclability, reduction of material use per product…etc.) Yes

Specific Measures:
Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste
Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution

Brief Description:
Canada is taking targeted action to improve how plastics are made, used, and managed to keep them in the economy and out of the environment. The Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste prioritizes incentives to enable a circular economy, such as the development and implementation of best management practices as well as agreements and tools with industry partners to reduce plastic waste.

The Action Plan also supports research to promote innovative plastics design, alternatives and technologies that reduce plastic pollution and waste, and enable greater circularity in plastics markets.

The Government of Canada is implementing an ambitious, evidence-based and comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution and move towards a strong, safe and resilient circular plastics economy that works for all. Canada’s plan supports a number of efforts to encourage sustainable and circular design, including:

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Policy actions for encouraging plastic alternatives, recycled materials at production stage. Yes / In Preparation

Specific Measures:
■ Use of Recycled Materials

  1. Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution
  2. Canadian Plastic Innovation Challenge
  3. Ghost Gear Program

Brief Description:

  1. Canada has established guidance for selecting sustainable alternatives to items that are banned under its Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations.
  2. Through the Canadian Plastic Innovation Challenge, the government is supporting Canadian innovators and small and medium-sized businesses to develop solutions for plastics challenges. This includes innovations to find sustainable alternatives to plastic packaging, the development and implementation of reuse applications, and improving the collection and sorting of flexible plastics.
  3. Through Canada’s Ghost Gear Program, projects trialing innovative gear technology such as finding alternatives to plastic tags for fishing gear have been funded.

In 2022, in partnership with the Reducing Plastic Waste in Canada Project, Canada co-hosted a Symposium and Policy Dialogue on Reuse to share knowledge and discuss opportunities and barriers to advance reuse in Canada.

Canada is also investing in innovation internationally, including $20 million to support the G7 Innovation Challenge to Address Marine Plastic Litter.

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Steps taken towards restricting microplastics in/from products. Yes

The Government of Canada introduced the Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations in 2017, under the authority of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA). The regulations prohibit the manufacture, import and sale of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads, including non-prescription drugs and natural health products.

Specific Measures: Government Actions on Microplastics
Addition of microbeads to Schedule 1 of CEPA; Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations
Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution
Canada-wide Strategy and Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste

Brief Description:
Following the addition of plastic microbeads to the Act’s list of toxic substances (Schedule 1), Canada introduced the Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations in 2017 to ban toiletries that contain plastic microbeads, such as bath and body products, skin cleansers, and toothpaste.

Canadian governments, through Canada’s Plastics Science Agenda and the Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste, have also prioritized research to better understand the effects of plastic pollution, particularly microplastics, on wildlife, the environment, and human health.

Since 2018, as part of Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution, Canada has supported domestic partners to conduct research and identify targeted solutions to address microplastics.

Notable projects that focused on microplastics included a study on tackling microfibre pollution primarily from textiles, the development of freshwater plastics detection and removal technology; methods to remove microplastics from biosolids; and community science activities to deploy technology aimed at quantifying and characterizing marine microplastics.

Specific Measures: Community actions on microplastics including individual and wider stakeholder involvement (e.g. businesses, coastal community etc.)

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Reduce single-use plastic (shopping bags, straws etc.) by regulations or voluntary measures (such as ban, levy, others) Yes

Policy Instruments Employed
■ Regulatory Instruments ■ Economic/Financial Instruments
■ Other

■ Regulatory Instruments
Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations
Brief Description:
The Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations (SUPPR) are part of the Government of Canada’s comprehensive plan to address plastic waste and pollution.
 
The SUPPR prohibit the manufacture, import and sale of six (6) categories of single-use plastics:

  • Checkout bags designed to carry purchased goods from a business and typically given to a customer at the retail point of sale.
  • Cutlery, including knives, forks, spoons, sporks, and chopsticks.
  • Foodservice ware designed for serving or transporting food or beverage that is ready to be consumed, and that:
    • Contains expanded polystyrene foam, extruded polystyrene foam, polyvinyl chloride, carbon black, or an oxo-degradable plastic, and
    • are limited to: clamshell containers, lidded containers, boxes, cups, plates, and bowls.
  • Flexible ring carriers designed to surround beverage containers to carry them together.
  • Stir sticks designed to stir or mix beverages, or to prevent a beverage from spilling from the lid of its container.
  • Straws, including straight drinking straws, and flexible straws, which have a corrugated section that allows the straw to bend, packaged with beverage containers (juice boxes and pouches). Exceptions in the Regulations allow single-use plastic flexible straws to remain available, under certain conditions, so people who need them still have access.

■ Economic/Financial Instruments
Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste

Brief Description:
In 2021, federal, provincial and territorial governments, via the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, published Best Management Practices for Disposal Bans, Levies and Incentives for End-of-Life Plastics, which includes guidance on implementing point-of-sale levies that can be applied to specific plastics.

Currently, sub-national governments and communities across Canada are implementing a range of tools to reduce plastic waste, including fees and levies on single-use plastics, extended producer responsibility programs for packaging, deposit-return programs, and measures to avoid waste such as re-use, refill and repair programs.

■ Other

Brief Description:
Federal, provincial, and territorial governments, via the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME), delivering on a commitment made in the Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste Phase 1, published A Roadmap to Strengthen the Management of Single-use and Disposable Plastics in 2022. The roadmap identifies and prioritizes 31 items for management action, outlining a range of instruments to help governments manage SUP items. The document was written to support jurisdictions in reducing the negative environmental and socio-economic impacts of single-use and disposable plastic items.

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Introduce Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Yes

Specific Measures:

Targeted Products Canada does not have EPR programs at the national level but has a range of EPR programs at the subnational level led by provinces and territories
Nature of Responsibility -
Mode of Implementation ■ Producer Responsibility Organisation (PRO)
Modality Mandatory EPR
- 		Voluntary EPR
-
Eco-modulation -
Performance Indicators -
Brief Description Canada does not have EPR programs at the national level. EPR programs are led at the subnational level by individual provinces and territories.

Currently, sub-national governments and communities across Canada are implementing a range of tools to reduce plastic waste, including extended producer responsibility programs for packaging. 12 of 13 provinces and territories in Canada have in place regulated extended producer responsibility programs. By 2027, over 90% of the Canadian population are expected to live in a jurisdiction covered by EPR for plastic packaging.

Federal, provincial and territorial governments, through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) have developed a Canada-wide Action Plan for Extended Producer Responsibility (2009). In 2022, the CCME published Guidance to Facilitate Consistent Extended Producer Responsibility Policies and Programs for Plastics (2022), as committed by federal, provincial and territorial ministers of the environment under the Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste. The guidance includes common material categories and definitions, performance standards for reuse and recycling, options to encourage innovation and reduce costs, and standard monitoring and verification approaches.

The Government of Canada is supporting research and pilot projects to support provinces efforts to expand their EPR programs, including: Textile Transformation Nova Scotia and supported the EPR Alliance, a group of Canadian textile manufacturing industry stakeholders committed to exploring and implementing solutions for recycled fibres in Canada.

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Improve waste management and recycling system Yes

Specific Measures:

  1. Domestic waste management:
    Environmentally sound waste management is a shared responsibility in Canada. A range of policies, programs, and regulatory initiatives at all levels of government drive improvements in the production, use, disposal, and recovery of materials. The federal government has responsibilities for the transboundary movement of hazardous waste and hazardous recyclable materials, identifying best practices to reduce possible toxic pollution from waste, and developing guidance or other supporting measures. The Government of Canada also invests in waste and wastewater infrastructure.
     
    Provincial, territorial and municipal governments have implemented regulatory (e.g., product or landfill bans, incentives, extended producer responsibility programs, litter by-laws) and non-regulatory measures (e.g., educational campaigns, recycling and deposit programs) that target some plastic products and other wastes. These efforts play an important role in collecting plastics from households and other sources that help to reduce marine debris.
  2. Ghost Gear Program:
    Through the Ghost Gear Program, Canada has supported projects focused on the responsible disposal of end-of-life and recovered fishing gear.
  3. Canada’s work internationally to strengthen waste management:
    Internationally, Canada participates in key international fora, such as the G7, G20, Basel Convention Partnership on Plastic Waste, the International Resource Panel, and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), to strengthen resource efficiency and waste management practices globally. Canada invested CA $115 million to support solutions for environmentally sound waste management and plastic pollution mitigation and remediation in developing countries.

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Promoting plastic waste re-use, recycling and recovery opportunities Yes

Specific Measures:

1. Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution:
Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution also includes efforts to promote value-retention processes, such as reuse, remanufacturing, repair, and refurbishment, to facilitate the transition to a circular economy. Efforts include funding agreements to support reuse projects across various sectors such as a National Food Services Reuse Pilot Program, study on reuse and refill of plastic packaging, reusable foodware for quick-service restaurants (QSR) and events, institutions, and take-out, reusable packaging for personal care and cleaning products, and piloted a national campaign to reduce and reuse plastics in Health Care.

Canada published a socioeconomic and environmental study on remanufacturing and other value-retention processes such as refurbishment, repair and reuse for public comment in summer 2021. Targeted industry consultations were held in the fall of 2021, and complementary internal research was conducted throughout 2022–2023. Building on those, Canada published in December 2024 a consultation document on a proposed roadmap to extend the life of plastics in end-of-use electronics.

In addition, Canada published consultation document on addressing plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector in 2024, followed by a “What We Heard” report in March 2025 summarizing feedback.

Canada contributed to the development of the Canadian Standards Association’s research report on the state of repairability which was published in the fall of 2022. Two Canada-funded studies were published in 2021: Guide to Opening and Running a Bulk-Reuse Refillery in Canada and Barriers and Opportunities for Driving Reuse in Canada.

2. Ghost Gear Program:
Through Canada’s Ghost Gear Program, multiple projects encouraging the reuse and upcycling of end-of-life and recovered fishing gear for use in secondary products have been funded.

3. Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste:
Phase 1 of the Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste focuses government efforts across a broad range of activities, including guidance on performance standards for reuse and recycling programs and support for recycling infrastructure.

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Install capturing trap/filter on drainage/river Yes

Specific Measures:

1. Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution
Between 2018 and 2022, Canada supported domestic partners through the Zero Plastic Waste Initiative to trial and pilot different litter and debris capture devices and clean-up technologies and approaches.

2. Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste and Action Plan
Under the Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste and Action Plan, federal, provincial and territorial governments, through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment, are developing guidance to prevent plastic from entering the environment from known sources and leakage points such as stormwater.

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Conduct clean-up activities in rivers/ wetlands/ beaches/ coasts/ coral reefs/ sea floor, involving local communities Yes

Specific Measures:

1. Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution
Canada has supported Canadian businesses, non-profit organizations, Indigenous communities and researchers to take action on plastic pollution and support the transition to a circular plastics economy. It has funded science, education and awareness raising, circular solutions, testing of technologies and practices, community clean-ups, and actions to prevent and reduce plastic pollution. Between 2018 and 2022, through the Zero Plastic Waste Initiative, over 3 million Canadians were engaged, over 60 litter capture devices were deployed, and over 325 tonnes of litter were removed from Canada’s shorelines, rivers, and nearshore areas. Notable projects that focused on collecting waste from shorelines included the Great Lakes Plastics Cleanup and the Ocean Wise (formerly Great Canadian) Shoreline Cleanup.

The Ghost Gear Program has directly funded and enabled ghost gear clean-up activities in a variety of aquatic habitats and involving local communities, including many Indigenous groups. Between 2020-2024, $58.4 million was provided for ghost gear projects, funding 144 projects. During that time, Canada supported the retrieval of over 48,000 units of gear, accounting for more than 2,590 tonnes of ALDFG removed from Canada’s waters, as well as over 1,000 km of rope.

2. Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste:
Through the Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste and Action Plan, federal, provincial and territorial governments have committed to support prevention, capture and clean-ups efforts, as well as research and development for effective technologies to reduce plastic pollution.

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Issue-specific Measures
＜1＞ Abandoned, Lost and Discarded Fishing Gear (ALDFG)
Taken/to be taken National Level Action and/or Community Level Action on Clean sea initiatives including ghost net retrieval, ocean-bound plastics etc. Yes

Specific Measures:

1. Ghost Gear Program
Through Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution and the adoption of the Canada-wide Strategy and Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste, in 2019, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) launched the Ghost Gear Program to address the growing issue of ghost gear in our oceans. The program follows the Government of Canada's commitments to support national and international efforts to address ghost fishing and to support the global fight to reduce marine litter and plastic pollution from fishing activities by taking measurable action. From 2020-2025, targeted funding was allocated to assist harvesters, environmental groups, Indigenous communities, the aquaculture industry, and coastal communities to take concrete action in the fight against ghost gear. Canada supported third-party led projects under four pillars:

  • Ghost gear retrieval
  • Responsible disposal
  • Uptake of new technologies to prevent or mitigate ghost gear
  • International leadership

Since 2020, over $58.4 million has been invested in 144 projects, 134 domestically and 10 international. $43.3 million was allocated to retrieval projects: 89 in-water, 6 aquaculture, and 7 shoreline cleanups, which have accounted for 3,594 at-sea, shoreline and aquaculture retrieval trips, 45,176 units of gear (or 2,591 tonnes of ALDFG) retrieved, and 1,012 km of rope. Going forward, DFO will focus on the measures to prevent marine pollution from ghost gear, and target removal efforts in our oceans’ high risk areas.
 
In 2026, an additional $15 million over three years has been allocated to modernize the location, retrieval, and disposal of ghost gear.

2. Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution:
As part of Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution, the Zero Plastic Waste Initiative (funded between 2018 and 2022) supported innovative solutions that promoted circularity, informed sustainable behaviour, and prevented, captured and removed plastic pollution, including microplastics.

Notable projects that focused on removing plastic pollution from Canada’s waterways included the establishment of the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup, expanding the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup, Diversion 2.0, a campaign based in the Georgian Bay area of Ontario; the Clean Harbours Initiative in Newfoundland; and the installation of zero waste nets in Quebec.

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Taken actions to prevent abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) being generated. Yes

Specific Measures: ALDFG/Ghost Gear
In 2020, Canada implemented mandatory lost gear reporting for all commercial fisheries. Reporting of lost gear is critical to fully understand the amount of gear lost in Canada and the subsequent impacts on marine ecosystems and the environment. Reporting lost gear is part of sustainable management of Canadian fisheries, and as such reporting is an enforceable requirement of commercial licence conditions. The failure to report lost gear is subject to charges under Canada’s Fisheries Act. To support lost gear reporting requirements, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) developed the Fishing Gear Reporting System (FGRS); a user-friendly application for harvesters to report lost and retrieved fishing gear. FGRS has resulted in data that can produce hotspot maps which inform retrieval operations and will be used in future fisheries management decisions, such as areas to avoid due to high levels of gear loss, or potential gear modifications to reduce loss in the future.

A priority for the Ghost Gear Program is to prevent marine pollution from ghost gear. To support this, in 2022 a condition of licence was added for all Canadian commercial fisheries prohibiting the discharge of garbage from fishing vessels. This condition, as well as establishing options for disposal and recycling locations across Canada is of critical importance to ensure end of life fishing gear is not abandoned or disposed of at sea by harvesters but brought to shore and disposed of responsibly.

Going forward, DFO will focus on the measures required to prevent marine pollution from ghost gear through a Canadian Ghost Gear Action Plan, to be finalized in 2027. The Action Plan will include the establishment of regulatory tools and policies designed to effectively prevent or mitigate the loss of gear in Canada. Canada’s long term ghost gear strategy will consider the role of climate change on fishing gear loss, consider methods to strengthen a cyclical approach to the plastics used in fishing gear, address regulatory impediments to facilitate lost gear retrieval, and seek to develop new methodology to reduce the amount of gear loss in Canadian fisheries.

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Created/creating collection/recycling mechanism for ALDFG -

Specific Measures: ALDFG/Ghost Gear
Between 2020-2025, targeted funding was provided by Fisheries and Oceans Canada to ghost gear projects. This included funding projects aimed at responsible disposal and recycling of ALDFG, including augmenting recycling capacity and researching recycling options. $6,291,826 was allocated to 14 projects, which involved:

  • Installing collection bins at wharves.
  • Responsibly disposing or facilitating the recycling of retrieved gear.
  • Purchasing equipment for the transportation and the processing of gear.
  • Researching a reporting on status of old gear and recycling options.
  • Building relationships between the fishing industry and recycling partners.

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Partnership and Innovation
Boost multi-stakeholder involvement/engagement Yes

Specific Measures: Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution
Canada works with all levels of government, industry, Indigenous communities, and civil society to reduce plastic waste and pollution and transition to a circular economy. Since 2018, Canada has supported 75 projects with over $13 million in funding. Leveraged by more than $19 million in public and private investment, the funding helped advance education and awareness, technology, pilot testing, and community clean ups, while supporting circular solutions such as reuse and recycling and actions to prevent and reduce plastic waste and pollution. They continue to help shape policy development and enable more sector-based solutions for reducing plastic waste and pollution in Canada. Examples include: options to reduce agricultural plastic waste, addressing hard to recycle items such as medical PVC, debranding and repair manual, Packaging & Printed Paper Baseline Data Research, National Food Services Reuse Pilot Program, and Guide for businesses on best plastic reduction practices.

Canada consulted Canadians on the key elements of a proposed roadmap for addressing plastic waste and pollution from the textile and apparel sector. A consultation document was published in 2024, followed by a “What We Heard” report in March 2025 summarizing feedback.

In December 2024, the Government of Canada published a consultation document and solicited feedback, through national consultations, on elements of a “Proposed Roadmap to Extend the Life of Plastics in End-of-Use Electronics”. The roadmap is expected to identify priority areas for action to encourage value retention processes (i.e., reuse, repair, refurbishment and remanufacturing) and reduce the quantity of plastics sent to recycling facilities and landfills.

The industry-led Canada Plastics Pact includes over 40 partners, including Environment and Climate Change Canada. The Pact is part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Plastics Pact Network and brings together organizations from the national plastics value chain to collaborate and rethink the way plastic packaging is designed, used and reused to realize a circular economy for plastic in Canada.

Canada will continue to work collaboratively with its partners to advance its comprehensive plan at home and abroad, including by working with provinces and territories through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment to implement the Canada-wide Strategy on Zero Plastic Waste and Action Plan. Work is underway to develop guidance for governments, industry and organizations to help inform consumer behaviours, improve the end-of-life management of fishing gear, strengthen monitoring, and to prevent plastic from entering the environment from known sources and leakage points such as stormwater, industrial releases, organic waste and biosolids, and natural disasters and spills.

Specific Measures: ALDFG/Ghost Gear
Beginning in 2020, through the Ghost Gear Program, targeted funding was provided to assist harvesters, environmental groups, Indigenous communities, the aquaculture industry, and coastal communities take concrete action in the fight against ghost gear. This funding supported third-party led projects under four pillars: ghost gear retrieval, responsible disposal, uptake of new technologies to prevent or mitigate ghost gear, and international leadership. Over $58.4M was allocated to 144 projects, 134 domestically and 10 international. In 2026, an additional $15M over three years has been allocated to modernize the location, retrieval and disposal of ghost gear.

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Encourage/ Incentivize action by the private sector to reduce/ sustainably manage their plastic waste. Yes

Specific Measures: Prevention of littering, illegal dumping and unintentional leakage of waste into the ocean

Brief Description:

  1. Condition of licence in all commercial fisheries prohibiting the depositing of garbage into the ocean from fishing vessels.
    In 2022 a licence condition was added for all Canadian commercial fisheries prohibiting the discharge of garbage from fishing vessels. This condition, as well as establishing options for disposal and recycling locations across Canada, is of critical importance to ensure end of life fishing gear is not abandoned or disposed of at sea by harvesters but brought to shore and disposed of responsibly.
  2. Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste:
    Through the Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste, federal, provincial and territorial governments have committed to develop guidance or identify best practices to reduce plastic waste entering the environment from: natural disasters and spills; stormwater, wastewater and industrial discharges; and food and organic waste processing and sewage biosolids.
  3. Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution:
    The Canadian Environmental Protection Act prohibits the disposal of a substance, including waste, at sea within Canadian jurisdiction and by Canadian ships in international waters and waters under foreign jurisdiction, unless specifically permitted by Environment and Climate Change Canada. This is implemented through Canada’s Disposal at Sea Regulations to prevent ocean pollution.
     
    As part of Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution, since 2018, Environment and Climate Change Canada has supported 75 projects, with various partners including the private sector, with over $13 million in funding. Leveraged by more than $19 million in public and private investment, the funding helped advance education and awareness, technology, pilot testing, and community clean ups, while supporting circular solutions such as reuse and recycling and actions to prevent and reduce plastic waste and pollution.
  4. Domestically, provincial, territorial and municipal governments implement waste programming, including extended producer responsibility programs, to help prevent and reduce plastic waste and pollution. For instance, municipalities implement illegal dumping rules and litter by-laws across Canada to ban throwing, dumping or leaving litter and waste on public and private properties.
  5. Internationally, Canada has invested CA $115 million to support developing countries in preventing the leakage of plastic waste into the environment. This includes advancing gender equity elements in plastic pollution through the World Bank ProBlue Fund and supporting the development of national action plans in Indonesia, Ghana, Vietnam and Nigeria via the Global Plastic Action Partnership.

Commission on Environmental Cooperation (Marine Litter Project):
Through the Commission on Environmental Cooperation, Canada worked with the United States and Mexico on projects to reduce marine litter and prevent litter and waste from entering our waterways through education and community level efforts.

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Encourage/ Incentivize action by local governments and/or communities to reduce/ sustainably manage their plastic waste. Yes

Specific Measures:
As part of Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Advancing a Circular Plastic Economy for Canada funding and Zero Plastic Waste initiative, Canada has supported local governments and municipalities to pilot programs or conduct research. This includes: the Canadian-Led Community Reuse Initiatives and Tax Credit Donation Incentivization project, reuse in Banff National Park through the Borrow a Cup and Borrow a Bag programs, and the City of Gatineau to strengthen their textile recovery infrastructure and guidance for municipal plastic prevention and reuse model policies.

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Encourage public awareness on MPL issues (especially through formal education system) Yes

Specific Measures:

1. Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution:
Canada’s comprehensive plan maintains regular channels (including social media) for public communication to educate, inform and raise awareness about plastic waste and pollution as well as to monitor public behaviours and views through public opinion research.

Since 2018, Canada has supported innovative solutions that promoted circularity, raised awareness and deployed educational and outreach efforts, informed sustainable behaviour, and prevented, captured and removed plastic pollution, including microplastics. Notable national projects that focused on raising awareness about marine plastic pollution included the 10,000 Changes campaign to encourage Canadians to commit to reduce plastic waste; the development of an educational toolkits; launch of a youth educational online game; a plastics specific museum exhibit in Ottawa, the Plastic Wise pledge to reduce one’s plastic footprint, and youth education on environmental impacts of tobacco and vaping.

To inform Canada’s voice in international negotiations to develop a global treaty on plastics, consultation activities to engage the public as well as key stakeholders provide opportunities for the federal government to raise awareness about plastic waste and litter.

Municipal governments and local organizations also promote campaigns to raise awareness about, and address, local and regional issues related to plastic waste and pollution.

2. Education system and/or curriculum for encouraging public awareness on MPL issues:
The Ghost Gear Program engages in advisory committee meetings with the fishing industry to raise awareness on the importance of preventing and recovering ghost gear. Videos and information are also shared on social media as part of awareness campaigns. An educational guide and activity book on ghost gear has been produced and is shared on the DFO website and at meetings to raise awareness with students.

As part of Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution, the Zero Plastic Waste Initiative (funding completed in 2022) supported innovative solutions that promoted circularity, informed sustainable behaviour, and prevented, captured and removed plastic pollution, including microplastics. Notable examples of curriculum development and educational programs include: the Anthropocene Educational Program, the Ocean Plastic Education Kit, the Waste Literacy Education Program, and Climate Kids online game about plastics and oceans.

3. Awareness-raising campaigns related to MPL -International/Regional:
Through the Commission on Environmental Cooperation, Canada supported efforts to reduce marine litter and to educate and empower local communities to prevent, minimize and manage waste before it finds its way to waterways and oceans.

As a member of the Global Partnership on Marine Litter and Plastic Pollution and having pledged to the UN Clean Seas campaign, Canada supports broader efforts to educate the public and raise awareness.

As host of the 4th session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, Canada co-hosted (with the World Wildlife Fund for Nature) a Partnerships Day, which featured high-level representatives from all levels of government, Indigenous Peoples, youth, civil society, and the private sector, to spread awareness and foster collaboration and collective action to end to plastic pollution. Canada also hosted a Plastic Action Zone side events for key partners and stakeholders to raise awareness and showcase innovative action to end plastic pollution.

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Promote innovative solutions through Research & Development (e.g., subsidy program, investment fund etc.) Yes

Specific Measures:

1. Canadian Plastics Innovation Challenge program:
Through the Canadian Plastics Innovation Challenge program, Canada continues to provide funding to Canadian businesses to spur innovation and the development of technologies that address issues such as reuse to replace single-use plastics and difficult to recycle film and flexible plastic. Since 2018, Canada has committed over $26.8 million to innovators through 18 challenges, while Environment and Climate Change Canada, as the sole sponsor, has invested over $8.3 million in eight of these challenges, which have leveraged over $5 million in external funding, including:

Canada also funded innovation challenges that target specific plastic waste and pollution sources, such as fishing gear and fiberglass vessels.

2. Specific Measures: ALDFG/Ghost Gear:
Between 2020-2025, targeted funding was provided by DFO’s ghost gear program, including projects to pilot innovative technologies that prevent, reduce and retrieve ghost gear. Since 2020, $6,291,826 was allocated to 18 projects which purchased and trialed:

  • 38 side scan sonars
  • 4 multibeam sonars
  • 33 remotely operated vehicles
  • 950 backup buoy systems
  • 573 smart buoys
  • 7,584 electronic tracking tags

In February 2025, Canada hosted the 2nd International Fishing Gear Innovation Summit, bringing together global experts, including Indigenous and non-Indigenous harvesters, to address fishing gear loss through innovative solutions that support sustainable and prosperous fisheries and communities.

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Monitoring, Data Management, Understanding Flow of Plastics/MPL
Conduct Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of plastic products. What are the challenges if LCA is not conducted? -

Scope: ■ Local

Brief Description:
Between 2020-2026, Canada has used life cycle thinking to better understand the flow of plastics. As an example, Environment and Climate Change Canada reviewed available lifecycle assessments comparing single-use plastics with alternatives in order to assess the potential environmental effects of the Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations (SUPPR) at each stage in the product lifecycle.

Canada has supported LCAs in several targeted areas including: (1) comparing the environmental impacts of single-use and reusable PET bottles to better understand environmental solutions that are upstream from recycling; (2) single-use vs reuse LCAs that assess specific products and venues, including beverage containers used in public events and e-commerce packaging; and (3) to help fill LCA data gaps, Canada commissioned a study by Western University on the pyrolysis of flexible plastics from residential plastic collections.

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Conduct Material Flow Analysis (MFA) on plastics. What are the challenges if MFA is not conducted? Yes

Scope: ■ National

Brief Description:
The Federal Plastics Registry will produce an inventory of data that will support Material Flow Analysis on plastics from resin production to end of life.
 
Statistics Canada maintains a Physical Flow Account for Plastic Material (PFAPM) to support efforts to prevent and reduce plastic waste and pollution in Canada. The PFAPM is an environmental-economic account that estimates the flow of plastic through the Canadian economy. The account provides annual estimates by product category, resin type, and province and territory. The time-series starts in 2012 and now includes 2022. The flow begins with production, continues with use, and then recycling, landfill and incineration. It also accounts for plastic leaked into the environment.
 
The PFAPM in addition to the Federal Plastics Registry (the FPR) are the primary national tools that provide insights into the volume and flow of plastic in Canada.

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Conduct monitoring / estimation / scientific research on leakage of plastics/microplastics to the natural environment and/or flow of ocean surface.
What are the challenges if these actions are not conducted? 		Yes

Specific Measures:
■ Established a Monitoring/Reporting Program/Mechanism
■ Regularly Conduct Monitoring/Estimation/Scientific Research
■ Conduct Monitoring/Scientific Research

Scope:
■ National ■ Regional

Brief Description:

1. Canada’s Plastics Science Agenda:
Canada’s Plastics Science Agenda (CaPSA), published in 2019, provides a framework across the plastics lifecycle to inform and provide direction to Canada’s science and research activities, such as detecting plastics in the environment, and understanding and mitigating their potential impacts on wildlife, human health and the environment. Canada continues to conduct and invest in plastics science to fill knowledge gaps, inform actions and measure progress over time.
 
Canada is investing in research via the:

  • Increasing Knowledge on Plastic Pollution Initiative provided approximately $2.3 million to 16 research projects to advance knowledge on environmental impacts of plastic pollution (2020–2022; completed).
  • Plastics Science for a Cleaner Future invested $7 million to 7 projects to detect and characterize plastics in the environment and assess exposure and effects of plastics on wildlife and potentially human health (2020–2023; completed).
  • Northern Contaminants Program $7.2 million to support research, monitoring and communications activities related to plastic pollution in the Canadian Arctic (2020–2027). This work focuses on understanding the sources and pathways of plastics, including both local and global contributions, and assessing their impacts on Arctic ecosystems, wildlife, and traditional foods consumed by Northern communities. It also builds capacity and collaboration by providing resources, training, and tools to local researchers and communities while fostering partnerships among Northern stakeholders, academic institutions, and government agencies.
  • Plastics Science and Innovation for a Cleaner and More Sustainable Future initiative administered by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) with $9.5 million in funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) 2025 to 2027 for Canadian academics in support of scientific research addressing key science priorities under at least one of the five themes in Canada’s Plastics Science Agenda.
  • Indigenous Science and the Impacts of Plastic Pollution initiative administered by Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) with $2.5M in funding from ECCC to strengthen Indigenous science capacity and advance Indigenous-led and co-developed research on the social, cultural and economic impacts of plastic pollution on Indigenous communities.

2. Physical Flow Account of Plastic Material:
Statistics Canada’s Physical flow account for plastic material estimates the flow of plastic in tonnes through the Canadian economy. The account includes annual estimates of internationally imported and exported plastic products and sorted and baled plastic waste as well as leakage to the environment and features breakdowns by product category, resin type, and province and territory.

3. Federal Plastics Registry:
The Federal Plastics Registry will enable analysis of plastics monitoring from resin production to end of life, including assessment of leakage to the environment. Reporting to the registry will be required annually.

4. Lost fishing gear reporting:
Reporting of lost gear is critical to fully understanding the amount of gear lost in Canada and the subsequent impacts on marine ecosystems and the environment as well as being part of sustainable management of Canadian fisheries. As such reporting is now an enforceable requirement of commercial licence conditions. The failure to report lost gear is subject to charges under Canada’s Fisheries Act. To support lost gear reporting requirements, Fisheries and Oceans Canada developed the Fishing Gear Reporting System (FGRS); a user-friendly application for harvesters to report lost and retrieved fishing gear.

5. Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste:
The Canada-wide Action Plan on Zero Plastic Waste also identifies specific research priorities, including to better understand the effects of plastic pollution, particularly microplastics, on wildlife, the environment and human health, and to achieve consistent data gathering on plastics in the environment.

6. International:
As a member of the Arctic Council, Canada works with international partners to coordinate research and monitoring on litter and microplastics through the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme. Canada also works on the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna international team to identify Arctic bird species that can be used to track and assess plastic pollution. In addition, through the Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment working group, Canada participated in the desktop study on marine litter, including microplastics.

Through the North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES), Canada is working with partners in the North Pacific on assessing potential indicators for the North Pacific region through a rubric exercise. This work will review the need for bioindicators to track plastic in marine food webs over time, identify baselines and targets, and determine if mitigation targets will be met in the future.

Challenges:
Though improvements in reporting rates have been made, low compliance on reporting lost gear still exist in certain areas, and DFO will continue to engage industry on the importance of reporting.

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Challenges

■ Recycling System Improvement
■ Proper Waste Management System (including lack of local capacity)
■ Data Collection Related to Waste in General
■ Data Collection Related to Marine Plastic Litter
■ Lack of Financial Incentives for Technology Development

■ Recycling System Improvement
Waste collection has been inconsistent across Canada. With the implementation of EPR at the sub-national level, collection is expanding across provinces and territories, though there are still differences between jurisdictions. While house dwellings in urban areas in Canada widely have access to collection, there is inconsistent access to collection for other segments of the population including those that live in multi-family residential buildings, and Northern, rural and remote communities.
 
The Canadian plastic reprocessing sector is well established for packaging materials made from high density polyethylene (HDPE) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), but there is limited capability with the current infrastructure to reprocess other types of plastic materials. Flexible plastics, multi-material items, dark and opaque plastics, or plastic products not designed for recyclability (such as products with difficult to remove labels and adhesives) are difficult to sort and reprocess using current recycling processes without reducing the quality of the recycled material.
 
Contamination rates in recycling systems in Canada are high. Contamination plays a significant role in reducing recycling yields and can impede the recycling process. Non-recyclable or difficult to recycle material that ends up in the recycling system is known as contamination and leads to much of this material being sent to landfill or contaminating otherwise recycled materials. This reduces recycling yields and increases plastic pollution.
 
Disposal of end-of-life fishing gear and ghost gear is challenging because fishing gear is often made of a mix of durable materials, including plastics, metals, and synthetic fibers that are difficult and costly to separate and recycle. Many coastal communities lack dedicated collection, recycling and disposal infrastructure, making it expensive to transport large volumes of used gear. Access to disposal and affordability are major contributors to abandonment of fishing gear at sea, which contributes to marine pollution and potentially impacts fish, wildlife and habitats.
 
Education and Awareness:
Consumer awareness and education can pose a challenge in terms of a lack or reduced understanding of how to and what can be recycled across municipalities, due to inconsistencies of recycling infrastructure across Canada. Therefore, it is important to continue to increase knowledge sharing and resources to inform Canadians and raise awareness around this issue.

■ Proper Waste Management System (including lack of local capacity)
ALDFG/Ghost Gear:
A lack of recycling facilities for end-of-life fishing gear has been identified as a problem for ensuring responsible disposal of fishing gear – targeted funding was provided between 2020-2025 by DFO to establish additional capacity, but lack of facilities and the high cost to recycle or transport gear to recycling remains a challenge.
 
Inefficient waste management practices disproportionately affect Indigenous populations, equity-seeking groups, and low-income communities. Northern and remote communities face many unique challenges with waste management, such as limited or no access to recycling programs, hazardous household waste disposal options, and properly designed waste management facilities. This results in environmental and health risks for northern communities, especially when open waste burning is used as a disposal method.

■ Data Collection Related to Waste in General
Waste trade:
Clear and consistent information on the characteristics of waste trade is currently lacking. When waste is traded in bales, there is no standardized mechanism or methodology in place to determine the material or product composition of these bales.

■ Data Collection Related to Marine Plastic Litter
ALDFG/Ghost Gear:
Prior to 2020, DFO had very limited information on rates of gear loss in Canadian waters. In 2020, Canada implemented mandatory lost gear reporting for all commercial fisheries. Reporting of lost gear is critical to fully understand the amount of gear lost in Canada and the subsequent impacts on marine ecosystems and the environment. Reporting lost gear is part of sustainable management of Canadian fisheries, and as such reporting is now an enforceable requirement of commercial licence conditions. The failure to report lost gear is subject to charges under Canada’s Fisheries Act. To support lost gear reporting requirements, Fisheries and Oceans Canada developed the Fishing Gear Reporting System (FGRS); a user-friendly application for harvesters to report lost and retrieved fishing gear. Though improvements in reporting rates have been made, low compliance on reporting lost gear still exist in certain areas, and DFO will continue to engage industry on the importance of reporting.
 
Data harmonization:
A lack of harmonization and coordination in marine plastic litter data collection remains a persistent issue, resulting in limited interoperability between disparate datasets. In some cases, specialized methods are required to accurately determine the material composition of collected litter. Identifying the sources of plastic litter, particularly when it is degraded or fragmented, adds further challenges to efforts aimed at mitigating and reducing environmental leakage. Additionally, the wide range of particle sizes and types, from large debris to microplastics, introduces further challenges, as different sizes require distinct sampling techniques, equipment, analytical methods and data parameters.

■ Lack of Financial Incentives for Technology Development
Lack of funding to promote technology development related to preventing and reducing the effects of ghost gear has been identified as a challenge going forward as DFO shifts its focus to a preventative strategy on Ghost Gear. DFO has funded projects relating to technological innovation and will continue to work with industry to seek opportunities to promote the uptake, development and trialing of new innovative technologies.
 
Between 2020-2025, targeted funding was provided by DFO ghost gear projects, including projects to pilot innovative technologies that prevent, reduce and retrieve ghost gear. $6,291,826 was allocated to 18 projects which purchased and trialed:

  • 38 side scan sonars
  • 4 multibeam sonars
  • 33 remotely operated vehicles
  • 950 backup buoy systems
  • 573 smart buoys
  • 7,584 electronic tracking tags

In February 2025, Canada hosted the 2nd International Gear Summit, convening Indigenous and non-Indigenous harvesters, technical experts, likeminded nations, and various agencies at all levels to discuss innovative fishing gear and address ghost gear.

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International Cooperation

International Cooperation
Participate in international cooperation through international organizations, multi-national groups, etc. Yes

International conventions or legal frameworks
■ MARPOL Annex V ■ The Basel Convention

Global policy or negotiation processes
■ UNEA ■ Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution (INC)

Regional cooperation mechanisms
■ Regional Marine Litter Action Plans ■ CEC ■ Arctic Council

Scientific, technical, or knowledge-sharing platforms
■ UNEP-GPML ■ GESAMP

Political coalition, multi-stakeholder partnership, or voluntary initiative
■ WEF-GPAP ■ Global Ghost Gear Initiative ■ UN Clean Seas Campaign
■ Other: G7 and G20 commitments, UN Global Partnership on Marine Litter and Plastic Pollution

Brief Description:

Canada’s comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution:
As part of its comprehensive plan to reduce plastic waste and pollution, Canada participates in international and regional initiatives to advance effective science to address plastic waste and pollution.

Canada supports and is working with the global community to develop an ambitious new international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including as inaugural member of the High Ambition Coalition to End Plastic Pollution, a group of countries committed to developing an ambitious international legally binding instrument based on a comprehensive and circular approach that ensures urgent action and effective interventions along the full lifecycle of plastics and has advocated for an end to plastic pollution by 2040. Canada also served as the host for the fourth negotiation session and launched the Host Country Alliance to help build the political momentum to finalize an ambitious and effective agreement.

Canada implements its commitments to other key legally-binding international agreements that contribute to preventing plastic waste and marine litter such as:

Canada is advancing policy, research and actions to reduce plastic waste and marine litter with international partners, such as the G7, the G20, the Arctic Council and various bodies under the United Nations, through a variety of cooperative initiatives and measures including:

Canada has shown leadership at the international level when it comes to tackling marine plastic litter over the years. During our 2018 G7 Presidency, Canada made addressing marine plastic litter a key priority on our agenda. This led to the launch of the Ocean Plastics Charter as well as committing $100 million towards a marine plastic litter fund where we have served as lead donors towards the Global Program for the Blue Economy (ProBlue) initiative, the Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP), Ghost Gear Fund and the Incubation Network. This funding aims to help developing countries prevent plastic waste from entering the oceans, address plastic waste on shorelines, and better manage existing plastic resources. This includes:

During the fourth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-4), Canada announced it would be providing $10 million in additional funding for the Global Plastic Action Partnership to support the ongoing development of partnerships in developing countries to tackle plastic pollution, as well as $5 million for the Global Program for the Blue Economy (PROBLUE) to reduce marine plastic pollution, preserve marine biodiversity, promote sustainable economic development, and foster gender equality in coastal economies.

Specific to ALDFG, Canada has supported discussions on the mandatory reporting of lost fishing gear at the IMO as a method of collecting data on lost fishing gear and as a preventative measure for ghost gear. Additionally, in 2024-2025, with Ocean Conservancy’s Global Ghost Gear Initiative (GGGI), Canada led an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) project involving hosting two virtual capacity building workshops to provide training and foster knowledge-sharing on the implementation of best practices for managing ghost gear, including increasing the use of effective gear-marking strategies as part of an integrated gear-loss reporting system.

Canada advocates for strengthening ghost gear measures at international forums including:

  • United Nations (UN) Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution
  • International Maritime Organization (IMO) Sub-committee on Pollution Prevention and Response Correspondence Group on marine plastic litter
  • Arctic Council Protection of Arctic Marine Environment (PAME)
  • UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
  • Our Ocean Conference
  • Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs)

Additionally, through the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC), Canada together with the United States and Mexico have embarked on a trilateral multi-year project to address ghost gear in North America.

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Participated in international cooperation project/programme on MPL/plastic pollution. Yes

● Project/Programme 1

  • Project/programme name: Ghost Gear Fund
  • Main Role(s) of Our Country
    ■ Funding Provider
  • Target country/region: Costa Rica, the Caribbean, Thailand and Indonesia, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, East Asian Seas, the United States, Nigeria, Belize, and the APEC region
  • Implementation period: 2020-2025
  • Status: ■ Completed during the reporting period

Brief Description:
Between 2020-2025, targeted funding was provided by DFO through the Ghost Gear Fund to 10 international projects reflecting the government of Canada’s commitment to working with global partners, industry and communities to find real solutions to reduce abandoned lost and discarded fishing gear as plastic pollution in our oceans. Over three years, $2,731,200 was spent on 10 international projects, including in: Costa Rica, the Caribbean, Thailand and Indonesia, Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, East Asian Seas, the United States, Nigeria, Belize, and the APEC region.
Weblink: https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fisheries-peches/management-gestion/ghostgear-equipementfantome/program-programme/projects-projets-eng.html

● Project/Programme 2

  • Project/programme name: Global Plastic Action Partnership
  • Main Role(s) of Our Country
    ■ Funding Provider
  • Target country/region: Targeted regions across Africa, Asia, and Latin America
  • Implementation period: Since 2018
  • Status: ■ Completed during the reporting period

Brief Description:
Canada has provided support to target regions through its funding towards key initiatives that address marine plastic litter, including the Global Plastic Action Partnership (GPAP). For example, through Canada’s support as a key founding partner and donor to this initiative since 2018, GPAP has been able to launch seventeen national plastic action partnerships (NPAPs) in developing countries to support their countries development of national action plans to tackle plastic pollution. Canada committed an additional $10 million CAD of funding at INC-4 in 2024.
Weblink: https://www.globalplasticaction.org/about

● Project/Programme 3

  • Project/programme name: PROBLUE initiative
  • Main Role(s) of Our Country
    ■ Funding Provider
  • Implementation period: Since 2018
  • Status: ■ Completed during the reporting period

Brief Description:
As a key donor to the PROBLUE initiative since 2018, Canada has also been able to provide support in developing countries to support the management of sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, address threats posed to ocean health by marine pollution and the sustainable development of key oceanic sector as well as build government capacity to manage marine resources. Canada committed an additional $5 million of funding to Problue at INC-4 in 2024.
Weblink: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/problue

● Project/Programme 4

  • Project/programme name: Incubation Network
  • Main Role(s) of Our Country
    ■ Funding Provider
  • Target country/region: South and Southeast Asia
  • Implementation period: Since 2018
  • Status: ■ Completed during the reporting period

Brief Description:
Canada was a key donor towards the Incubation Network a multi-country, multi-donor project, that seeks to reduce plastic leaking into the world’s oceans while improving the livelihoods of people, working in waste management and recycling systems in South and Southeast Asia.
Weblink: https://www.incubationnetwork.com/

● Project/Programme 5

  • Project/programme name: Arctic Council’s Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME) project “Plastic in a Bottle”
  • Main Role(s) of Our Country
    ■ Funding Provider
  • Status: ■ Ongoing

Brief Description:
DFO has supported the Arctic Council’s Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment (PAME) project “Plastic in a Bottle”. It uses GPS-equipped tracking capsules that are released into the ocean currents to simulate and study how marine litter and plastic pollution travel long distances into and out of Arctic waters. Canada launched our tracking capsule in Lancaster Sound in September 2025 and remains active as of August 2026.
Weblink: A live map of the capsules can be found here: https://pame.is/ourwork/arctic-marine-litter/plastic-in-a-bottle/

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Best Practices

■ National Level

■ Local Level

■ Private Sector

■ International Cooperation

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Contact Details

Name: Sarah Da Silva
Position: Manager, Marine Litter and Plastic Pollution Unit
Division: Plastics and Marine Litter Division
Organization: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Email: sarah.dasilva@ec.gc.ca

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