Reference Manual for the WHMIS Requirements of the Hazardous Products Act and Controlled Products Regulations

CPR Section 12 - Information to be Disclosed on a Material Safety Data Sheet

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Information to be Disclosed on a Material Safety Data Sheet

Discussion of Section 12

The general format and content of material safety data sheets (MSDSs) is prescribed in this section. For information regarding specific MSDS items and subitems, refer to Schedule I to the CPR.

Classification: disclosure of the "WHMIS" classification is not required on the MSDS. However, if it is company policy to voluntarily disclose this information, then all classifications must be disclosed. If it is company policy to disclose Class B and Class D Divisions and, in the case of Class D, the Subdivisions, then all Divisions and Subdivisions must be disclosed. (Please also refer to the discussion of section 43 of the CPR for information relating to "Redundancy of multiple classifications within WHMIS Class D".)

Format - Use of sixteen ILO heading MSDSs, etc.: As an administrative policy, MSDSs for WHMIS controlled products which use the ILO, ISO or EC, ANSI or GHS 16 heading format are accepted as meeting compliance requirements of CPR Section 12, provided that all 16 headings are disclosed (in the sequence recommended by these other standards) and that the required content specified under Schedule I, Column III of the CPR is addressed. Under the ILO heading "Regulatory Information", the following statement should appear: "This product has been classified in accordance with the hazard criteria of the Controlled Products Regulations and the MSDS contains all the information required by the Controlled Products Regulations." All headings and subheadings which appear on the MSDS must be addressed by disclosing the relevant information or by declaring that the information is not available or not applicable, as appropriate; {ref.: PIS No. 77}.

Language requirements: Refer to subsections 24(1) and 24(2) of the CPR.

Revisions to MSDSs: Refer to section 29 of the CPR.

Untested mixtures: For information regarding the disclosure of toxicological and other information for untested mixtures, refer to the discussion under the appropriate category in Schedule I to the CPR in this manual.

Subsection 12(1):

The MSDS must disclose the nine headings shown in column II of Schedule I of the CPR. Although the headings need not be identical to the wording used here they must clearly describe the category of information listed in column I of Schedule I.

These headings may be combined to form one heading provided that the information contained under the combined heading includes subheadings which are similar to the heading specified in column II of Schedule I; {ref.: PIS No.6}. A combined heading such as "Preparation and Product Information" should not be used since preparation information relates to the preparation of the MSDS and not the product. The nine required headings may be given different prominence on the MSDS (i.e., some may appear as subheadings under another heading; for example, "Fire and Explosion Hazard" may appear as a subheading under the heading "Physical Data"); {ref.: PIS No.13}. Additional headings to describe categories of information other than the nine listed categories may appear on an MSDS.

Subsection 12(2):

This subsection states the conditions under which information in column III of Schedule I must be disclosed and where on the MSDS that information must be disclosed.

With the exception of subitems 1(1), 2(1) and (2), all subitems in column III of Schedule I must be disclosed on the MSDS if that information is both "applicable" (to the controlled product) and "available" to the supplier. "Applicable" information is any information that could help the purchaser and users to properly and safely handle, store and use the product; {ref.: PIS No.11}. "Available" means that the supplier has the information or could readily obtain the information. Testing the product to determine information in column III is not necessary; however, much of the information may be "available" because the product may have been tested to determine if it meets the criteria.

It is recommended that if suppliers use standard MSDS forms, they should indicate "not available" or "not applicable" under any subcategory of information for which there is a specific box on the MSDS where no information is disclosed. A short form for these statements is allowed as long as it distinguishes between the two. For example, "n.a." makes no distinction and is unacceptable while "n.av." and "n.ap." are acceptable. In French, the short forms n.d. (non disponible) and s.o. (sans objet) would be acceptable. (The abbreviated form should be explained on the MSDS); {ref.: PIS No.12}.

The CPR will be amended to more explicitly state that all subheadings which appear on an MSDS be addressed by disclosing the relevant information or by declaring that the information is not available or not applicable, as appropriate, i.e., no subheadings which are on the supplier's MSDS can be left blank. However, the requirement for a subitem to actually appear would be unchanged from the present; i.e. information corresponding to a subitem is, with specific exceptions, only required if it is available and applicable; {ref.: PIS No.76}.

"Disclosure... under an appropriate heading" means, with the exception of subitems 1(1), 2(1) and (2), all applicable and available subitems in column III must be disclosed under the heading chosen by the supplier for the category of information that the item is found under in Schedule I or under a heading for another category found in Schedule I. For example, LD₅₀ or LC₅₀ values for an ingredient or a mixture could be disclosed under the heading chosen for category 1 (Hazardous Ingredients) or category 7 (Toxicological Properties). However, placing subitem 5(1) (conditions of flammability) under the heading for category 7 would not be appropriate.

Subsection 12(3):

The information required to be disclosed by subitems 1(1), 2(1) and (2) of Schedule I must always be disclosed and must always be disclosed on the MSDS under the heading (or a similar heading) chosen for category 1 and 2 information, i.e., the information in respect of these subitems is always considered to be available and applicable. If a supplier chooses to disclose this information under other headings on the MSDS, in contrast to the information required under other Schedule I subitems, it must still be disclosed under the appropriate (or similar) heading set out in items 1 and 2 of column II of Schedule I.

Subsection 12(4):

Subsection 12(2) requires "applicable" and "available" information in column III of Schedule I to be disclosed under "an appropriate heading set out in column II". In some cases, a supplier may believe that it is more appropriate to disclose column III information under a column II heading other than under which that column III subitem appears. This subsection clarifies that where a supplier has already disclosed information on the MSDS, that information need not be reiterated elsewhere on the MSDS.

Subsection 12(5):

Ingredient identity or concentration, subitem 1(1) of column III of Schedule I, will be exempted from the disclosure requirements of subsection 12(3) only if the supplier has filed a claim or is granted an exemption under the Hazardous Materials Information Review Act. However, the exempted information must be replaced under the heading chosen for category 1 (Hazardous Ingredients) with the registry number of the claim and the other status of claim information required under sections 26 or 27 of the CPR

Subsection 12(6):

Where a supplier has no information that is applicable and available under one of the nine required headings, the supplier must state the reason why there is no information supplied, i.e., the MSDS must disclose "not available" or "not applicable".

Where no information is disclosed in respect of a subheading which appears on the MSDS, a user of the product will not know if information is missing or if it is "not available" or "not applicable". The CPR will be amended to more explicitly state that all subheadings which appear on an MSDS be addressed by disclosing the relevant information or by declaring that the information is not available or not applicable, as appropriate.

Disclosing "no" or "no evidence" in respect of a Column III subitem conveys that a test has been conducted and that the result was negative. It is considered inappropriate to disclose "no" or "no evidence" if the decision was based on the unavailability of information rather than professional judgement. In such circumstances, therefore, "not available" should be disclosed.

Subsections 12(7) and (8):

There are two situations where a supplier of a controlled product may disclose a name other than his/her own as the "supplier identifier" on the MSDS.

Under subsection 12(7), any distributor of the product, whether the distributor is selling the product to another distributor or to an industrial consumer, may use the manufacturer's or importer's name as the "supplier identifier".

Under subsection 12(8), where the supplier is a manufacturer who is custom packaging the controlled product for a distributor, the distributor's name may be used as the "supplier identifier".

Subsection 12(9):

This subsection applies to importation only. An employer who is required to disclose "information that could be used to identify a supplier of a controlled product" either directly or indirectly, pursuant to the provisions of the Canada Labour Code, may file a claim for exemption under subsection 11(2) of the Hazardous Materials Information Review Act if the employer considers such information to be confidential business information.

Subsection 12(10):

When the LD₅₀ or LC₅₀ of a mixture is unknown, LD₅₀ or LC₅₀ values for the ingredients are useful in providing some indication of the toxicity of the mixture. However, if the LD₅₀ or LC₅₀ of the mixture is known, disclosure of the LD₅₀ s or LC₅₀ s for the ingredients is unnecessary.

If the LD₅₀ (or LC₅₀ ) of a mixture is unknown but the LD₅₀ (or LC₅₀ ) of all the ingredients present in a concentration equal to or greater than 1% are known, then the mixture is considered to be a tested mixture with an LD₅₀ (or LC₅₀ ) derived from the formula in subsection 45(1) of the CPR. For such a mixture, the MSDS may disclose the LD₅₀ (or LC₅₀ ) derived from the formula in place of the LD₅₀ (or LC₅₀ ) of the ingredients; {ref.: PIS No. 29}.

Subsection 12(11):

This subsection was included in the Regulations to ensure that information relating to hazards posed by a controlled product that may not be encompassed by the subitems set out under column III of Schedule I will be disclosed on the MSDS. The term "hazard information" is defined in section 2 of the CPR.

To meet the requirement to disclose "all additional hazard information that is available to the supplier with respect to the controlled product or, if appropriate, a product, material or substance that has similar properties, including any evidence based on established scientific principles", it may not be adequate for a supplier to rely on his/her own knowledge of the product. Suppliers should review relevant information available from, for example:

• the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety;
• publications of the regulatory agency with jurisdiction at the workplace;
• publications made available by industry or trade associations of which the employer is a member, and by labour organization(s) which represent workers at the workplace;
• published technical literature; {ref.: PIS No. 9}; etc.

Subsection 12(11) requires minimal disclosure of the toxicological properties and the proper and safe storage, handling and use of the controlled product, not of individual ingredients. The particulars of disclosure would depend upon the notoriety of the properties; that is, what the supplier actually knows or what a reasonable supplier acting with reasonable diligence would know.

Subsection 12(11) had required a supplier to disclose on the MSDS "any other hazard information with respect to the controlled product of which the supplier is aware or ought reasonably be aware". The SJCSR concluded that the HPA does not provide the authority for the CPR to state "aware or ought reasonably to be aware". To address this, subsection 12(11) was amended through SOR/2010-38, effective February 23, 2010. As indicated in the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement that accompanied this and related amendments:

• "...They [the amendments] will not change the scope of the HPA/CPR nor what is encompassed by the term 'controlled product'. They do not provide extra powers to the Government nor do they increase the burden for the regulated community."

As these amendments were projected to have no socio-economic impact, they were exempted from pre-publication in Part I of the Canada Gazette.