Survey of Environmental Protection Expenditures, 2008 (SEPE)
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For Information onlyThis is an electronic survey example for information purposes only. This is not a working questionnaire.
General information
Purpose
This survey provides a measure of the expenditures made by industry operating in Canada for environmental protection in response to Canadian and international environmental regulations, conventions and voluntary agreements.
Additional information
The survey also aims at identifying environmental management practices and
technologies used in Canadian industry for the purpose of preventing or abating pollution. These data will be aggregated with information from other sources to produce official estimates of environmental protection expenditures.
The results of this survey will be published in the Statistics Canada publication Environmental Protection Expenditures in the Business Sector, 2008, Catalogue No. 16F0006XIE.
Authority
This survey is conducted under the authority of the Statistics Act, Revised Statutes of Canada, 1985, Chapter S19.
COMPLETION OF THIS QUESTIONNAIRE IS A LEGAL REQUIREMENT UNDER THE STATISTICS ACT.
Confidentiality
Statistics Canada is prohibited by law from publishing any statistics which would divulge information obtained from this survey that relates to any identifiable respondent, without the previous written consent of that respondent. The data reported will be treated in strict confidence, used for statistical purposes and published in aggregate form only. The confidentiality provisions of the Statistics Act are not affected by either the Access to Information Act or any other legislation.
Security of emails and faxes
Statistics Canada advises you that there could be a risk of disclosure during the facsimile or other electronic transmission.
However, upon receipt, Statistics Canada will provide the guaranteed level of protection afforded to all information collected under the authority of the Statistics Act.
Return procedures
Please return this questionnaire within 45 days of receipt.
If you are unable to do so, kindly inform the Operations and Integration Division of the expected completion date.
Assistance
If you require assistance in completing this questionnaire or if you have any questions or comments regarding this survey, please refer to the Guide to Definitions and Classification.
Details found at the end of this questionnaire or contact:
Operations and Integration Division
Statistics Canada
Ottawa, ON, Canada, K1A 0T6
Telephone (toll-free): 1-800-255-7726
Fax: 1-800-755-5514
E-mail: enviro-oid-exp@statcan.gc.ca
The questionnaire is available in an electronic format.
Please contact the Operations and Integration Division if you prefer to use this reporting option.
In all correspondence concerning this questionnaire, please quote the identification number that appears on the address label.
Reporting instructions
For Questions 2 to 11 of this questionnaire please only report expenditures made in response to or in anticipation of Canadian or international environmental regulations, conventions or voluntary agreements.
Please report your expenditures in Canadian dollars. Your best estimate is acceptable.
The data reported in this questionnaire will be treated in strict confidence, used for statistical purposes and published in aggregate form only.
Definitions
Establishment
An establishment is defined as the most homogeneous unit of production for which a business maintains accounting records. From these accounting records, it is possible to assemble all the data elements required to compile the total sales or shipments, inventories, cost of materials and services, labour and capital used in production.
Environmental protection expenditures
Environmental protection expenditures are defined as all operating expenses and capital and repair expenditures that are incurred in order to anticipate or to comply with Canadian or international environmental regulations, conventions or voluntary agreements. They consist of expenditures for pollution prevention, abatement and control, expenditures for protecting and restoring wildlife and habitat, expenditures for environmental monitoring, environmental assessments and audits, and expenditures for reclamation and decommissioning of sites. Environmental protection expenditures incurred that are not in response to current or anticipated Canadian or international regulations, conventions or voluntary agreements should be excluded. In addition, expenditures to improve employee health, workplace safety and site beautification should also be excluded.
Expenditures to produce pollution prevention, abatement and control equipment for sale are also excluded as they would appear twice in the expenditure data produced by Statistics Canada. Expenditures for environment-related research and development are also excluded since they are collected elsewhere in Statistics Canada.
Environmental conventions or voluntary agreements refer to any formal, multi-party commitment by an industry or an industry association for instance, to meet specific targets in terms of habitat protection, waste reduction, or the
elimination or reduction of specific materials that are considered to be harmful or toxic to the natural environment in Canada. Examples include the following: the Canada-U.S. Air Quality Agreement; the "Responsible Care" program from the Canadian Chemical Producers Association; the Canadian GHG Reductions Registry © ; etc.
Environmental regulations refer to any current Canadian federal, provincial or municipal law or international legislation that is intended to protect or to restore the environment in Canada. Expenditures related to anticipated legislation may be included as long as its provisions are known.
Instructions
How to report
Please report expenditures in Canadian dollars for your 2008 fiscal year. If, for certain categories, no expenditures have been incurred, please write "0" in the corresponding box. Do not leave the box blank. Where precise data are not available, your best estimate is acceptable. If additional information is available in an annual report or an environmental performance report, please include a copy when you return the questionnaire.
To report capital expenditures
Include all relevant outlays for machinery and equipment and their installation and repair that have been capitalized, as well as for the construction of non-residential facilities (contractors or own employees). For construction, include all costs associated with demolition, planning and design (such as engineering and consulting fees), any materials supplied to construction contractors for installation and any costs associated with the purchase of land that are neither amortized nor depreciated.
Exclude any provisions for future environmental liability.
To report operating expenses
Include all expenses related to environmental protection incurred for labour, materials and supplies, maintenance and repair, and purchased services (include fuel and electricity expenses for machinery and equipment whose sole purpose is to protect the environment).
Exclude depreciation on machinery and equipment.
For logging activities
Use Question 8 to report additional expenditures for logging caused by environmental regulation or convention. Include the extra cost of any practice that would not otherwise be followed in the absence of environmental regulation or convention.
Exclude the foregone revenues resulting from regulations or conventions that reduce the allowable harvest.
For mining activities
Use Question 3 to report any expenditures that are related to the handling and treatment of mine tailings and that are required by environmental regulation. Even if some of these activities are now considered to be "standard practice",
include related expenditures if they are required by regulation or convention. Use Question 10 to report imputed interest on funds held in trust against future environmental liabilities. Report only actual expenditures.
For petroleum operations
Please report separately, if possible, environmental protection expenditures associated with different petroleum operations: exploration, refining and chemical products.
1. Reporting year
Reporting year (Year, month and day)
- 01: From
- 02: to
2. Waste management and sewerage services
Waste management and sewerage services
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
3. Pollution abatement and control (end-of-pipe) processes
3. Pollution abatement and control (end-of-pipe) processes - Question identifier:3.1
Pollution abatement and control expenditures
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
3. Pollution abatement and control (end-of-pipe) processes - Question identifier:3.2
Did you report capital expenditures in Question 3.1?
- 01: Yes
- 02: No
What proportion of capital expenditures reported in Question 3.1 was spent on reducing or abating each of the following?
- 01: Substances released to air
- 02: Substances released to surface waters
- 03: On-site releases to land/underground injection
- 04: Noise, vibration or radiation
4. Pollution prevention
4. Pollution prevention - Question identifier:4.1
Pollution prevention methods
- 01: Product design or reformulation: Reformulating or redesigning end products to be non-toxic or less polluting upon use, release or disposal
- 02: Equipment or process modifications (integrated process): Upgrading or replacing production unit equipment or methods
- 03: Recirculation, on-site recycling or reuse or recovery of materials or substances
- 04: Materials or feedstock substitution, solvent reduction, elimination or substitution: Changing the raw materials of products to use non-toxic or less polluting raw materials
- 05: Improved inventory management or purchasing techniques: Integrating environmental considerations into existing and new purchasing practices, as well as into inventory management systems
- 06: Prevention of leaks and spills
- 07: Good operating practices or pollution prevention training: Modifying existing equipment or methods by such steps as improved housekeeping, system adjustments, or process/product inspections
- 08: Other (Please specify)
4. Pollution prevention - Question identifier:4.2
Expenditures on pollution prevention
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
4. Pollution prevention - Question identifier:4.3
Did you report capital expenditures in Question 4.2?
- 01: Yes
- 02: No
What proportion of capital expenditures reported in Question 4.2 was spent on preventing or minimizing each of the following?
- 01: Substances released to air
- 02: Substances released to surface waters
- 03: On-site releases to land/underground injection
- 04: Noise, vibration or radiation
- 05: Other
5. Environmental monitoring
Environmental monitoring
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
6. Environmental assessment and audits
Environmental assessment and audits
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
7. Site reclamation and decommissioning
Site reclamation and decommissioning
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
8. Protection and restoration of wildlife and habit
Protection and restoration of wildlife and habitat
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
9. Environmental charges
If the expenditure is zero, please write "0" in corresponding box.
- 01: Operating expenses
What proportion of the operating expenses, above, was spent on each of the following?
- 01: Permits, fees, levies, special assessments and related fees
- 02: Any fines, penalties or damage awards paid to government agencies or individuals, or other charges paid to regulating bodies in order to allow operations to take place at this establishment
10. Other environmental protection expenditures
If the expenditure is zero, please write "0" in corresponding box.
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
11. Total expenditures on environmental protection
If the expenditure is zero, please write "0" in corresponding box.
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
11. Total expenditures on environmental protection - Question identifier:11.1
In order to help us reduce the need for further follow-up inquiries, please provide a brief explanation to account for :
- Significant changes in environmental protection expenditures made by your establishment (either increased or decreased compared to previous reporting periods)
- The level of expenditures in the current reporting period if this is the first time your establishment has reported expenditures
For example, "We installed low-NOX burners in 2008 - Question 4"
12. Environmental technologies
12. Environmental technologies - Question identifier:12.1
Did you use one or more of the following systems or equipment in your fiscal year 2008?
- 01: Cogeneration
- 02: Alternative fuel systems or equipment
- 03: Fuel substitution systems or equipment
- 04: Waste energy recovery/reuse (e.g., heat recovery)
- 05: Use of energy management or monitoring system(s) to improve efficiency
- 06: Performed energy audit in the last three years (2006-2008)
- 07: Other systems, equipment or employee training that improved energy efficiency. Please specify most important
- 08: Renewable energy source - Small, mini- or micro-hydroelectric facility
- 09: Renewable energy source - Solar energy systems or equipment
- 10: Renewable energy source - Wind energy systems or equipment
- 11: Renewable energy source - Biomass energy (e.g., energy crops and waste-to-energy)
- 12: Renewable energy source - Geothermal
- 13: Renewable energy source - Other renewable energy systems or equipment. Please specify most important
12. Environmental technologies - Question identifier:12.2
Did you answer "Yes" to any part of Question 12.1?
- 01: Yes
- 02: No
12. Environmental technologies - Question identifier:12.3
What were your operating expenses and capital expenditures in fiscal year 2008 on the systems or equipment reported in Question 12.1?
- 01: Operating expenses
- 02: Capital expenditures
- 03: Total
13. Environmental management practices
Please indicate the environmental management practices adopted or utilized by this establishment in your fiscal year 2008 to avoid or minimize pollution or to conserve resources.
- 01: Did this establishment use an environmental management system?
- 02: Did this establishment use Life Cycle Management, Life Cycle Assessment or Design for Environment for decision making?
- 03: Is this establishment certified under the ISO 14064 standards for greenhouse gas verification and accounting?)
- 04: Is this establishment certified under the ISO 14000 family of environmental management standards?
- 05: Did this establishment develop and implement a pollution prevention plan?
- 06: Did this establishment implement any environmental voluntary agreement, or did it participate in any voluntary environmental program?
Examples include Environmental Performance Agreements (EPAs), Canadian GHG Reductions Registry © or Canadian Industry Program for Energy Conservation. If yes, please list programs, accords or agreements. - 07: Did this establishment have a "green" procurement policy?
- 08: Were any of the goods produced by this establishment certified by an environmental program, such as the "Enviro Choice Program" and Ecologo?
- 09a: Did this establishment have an environmental supply chain management policy?
- 09b: Was this establishment impacted by the environmental supply chain management policy in place at a supplier or client business?
- 10: Did this establishment take advantage of any Canadian federal or provincial/territorial government environmental incentive programs, grants, loans, or tax credits during
the 2008 fiscal year?
Examples include ecoENERGY Retrofit program, or Accelerated Capital Cost Allowance for energy efficiency and renewable energy sources.
If yes, please specify the incentive programs, grants or loans. - 11: Other (Please specify)
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