Liberals would extend ban on phosphorus to include industry

By: Larry Kusch Posted: 4:01 PM CDT Wednesday, Apr. 13, 2016

Manitoba Liberals say they would ban phosphorus from all soaps and detergents and name a minister responsible for the health of Lake Winnipeg in a bid to clean up the province's largest water body.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

*Billed as $4.00 plus GST every four weeks. After 24 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.

Manitoba Liberals say they would ban phosphorus from all soaps and detergents and name a minister responsible for the health of Lake Winnipeg in a bid to clean up the province's largest water body.

Read unlimited articles for free today:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/04/2016 (3484 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba Liberals say they would ban phosphorus from all soaps and detergents and name a minister responsible for the health of Lake Winnipeg in a bid to clean up the province’s largest water body.

“Manitoba has some of the most beautiful lakes and rivers in the world and we need to start taking concrete steps to protect them or the next generation will not be able to enjoy them,” Liberal Leader Rana Bokhari said in a statement.

The Liberals say they would amend the Phosphorus Reduction Act to eliminate phosphorus from all soaps including industrial-use soaps and detergents. Currently, the act, which came into effect in 2010, exempts industrial and commercial users from using phosphate-free soaps.

Under the the legislation, only those automatic dishwashing detergents containing 0.5 per cent phosphorus or less can be sold or distributed throughout the province. Most manufacturers are aware of the legislation and are now only producing phosphorus-free automatic dishwashing detergents, according to the province’s website. Similar legislation is in place across Canada.

Having a minister dedicated to Lake Winnipeg will make its health a focus of a Liberal government. “We don’t believe it’s too late to return Lake Winnipeg to health, but we won’t get there without identifying it as a priority,” the party said in a statement.

The Manitoba Liberals will also create a Lake Winnipeg management committee that will report to the minister on “concrete first steps” to clean up the lake.

Meanwhile, the Liberals say they will work with the federal government and other provinces to establish a national climate plan “that represents Canada’s fair share of emission reductions” to ensure the global temperature increase does not exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius.

They said they will also ensure the Energy East Pipeline, if approved, does not run through Manitoba “if there is a risk it threatens our water supply.”

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca