[et_pb_section admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off” transparent_background=”off” background_color=”#000000″ allow_player_pause=”off” inner_shadow=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” padding_mobile=”off” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” make_equal=”off” use_custom_gutter=”off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_post_title admin_label=”Post Title” title=”on” meta=”off” author=”on” date=”on” categories=”on” comments=”on” featured_image=”on” featured_placement=”below” parallax_effect=”on” parallax_method=”on” text_orientation=”left” text_color=”dark” text_background=”off” text_bg_color=”rgba(255,255,255,0.9)” module_bg_color=”rgba(255,255,255,0)” title_text_color=”#fcfcfc” title_all_caps=”off” meta_text_color=”#fcfcfc” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” title_font_size=”36px”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_post_title][et_pb_code admin_label=”Code”]<iframe width="1280" height="720" src="https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/N7n3gUCYaUc?rel=0&controls=0&showinfo=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>[\/et_pb_code][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”2_3″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
The one thing both pro and anti-vapers agree on is the need for regulation\u2014the question is <\/span>how<\/span><\/i> and by whom should electronic cigarettes be regulated. The discussion on how to regulate the device is multiform: Are e-cigarettes a health product? Who can use them? Where can they be used? Can they be advertised?<\/span><\/p>\n Though the jury is still out on e-cigs, legislation continues to be passed across the country. Most legislation applies tobacco laws to e-cigarettes, particularly with regard to advertising.<\/span><\/p>\n In the midst of this project Michael Hampartzoumian ordered two 236 mL bottles of Mount Baker Vapor e-juice from an online shop with a store Mesa Arizona, United States. Both the<\/span> Honey Berries<\/span><\/a> and the<\/span> Hawk Sauce<\/span><\/a> e-juices contained 3 mg of nicotine.<\/span><\/p>\n He said he usually purchased the standard 30mL bottles, which would typically last him a week, but he decided to get bottles that would last him longer\u2014typically one month\u2014to save on shipping costs.<\/span><\/p>\n In January, the 24-year old IT student received word that his package had been held up at customs was being sent to Health Canada for testing.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI was like what? I was so mad I just ripped up the paper,\u201d said Hampartzoumian.<\/span><\/p>\n Health Canada then sent Hampartzoumian a letter notifying him that he had imported drugs into the country.<\/span><\/p>\n In Canada, e-cigarettes sold with e-juice containing nicotine fall under the Food and Drug Act. The law stipulates that Health Canada\u2019s approval is needed before importing, advertising or selling these products.<\/span><\/p>\n In 2013 and 2014, 6,257 shipments of e-cigarettes were refused entry into Canada at the border. In 2015, Health Canada recommended that the Canada Border Services Agency refuse 2,523 commercial and personal shipments of e-cigarette products.<\/span><\/p>\n Since 2009, Health Canada says it has responded to more than 300 domestic complaints regarding the unauthorized sale of e-cigarettes.<\/span><\/p>\n The majority of these cases have resulted in the issuance of a compliance letter with a request to stop sale.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n To date, Health Canada has not approved any nicotine-containing e-fluid or any e-cigarette in general. But e-cigarettes that do not make health claims and do not contain nicotine are legal.<\/span><\/p>\n Registered vape shops are allowed to produce their own e-juice and many others may be doing so in private.<\/span><\/p>\n The sale and advertising of e-cigarettes with nicotine is illegal, but this is generally not enforced, as they are still commonly available for sale Canada-wide. The problem is that p<\/span>art of the reason that\u00a0smokers, like Adey Bailey or Michael Hampartzoumian successfully transfer to e-cigarettes is because they are able to control their addiction to nicotine, by slowly decreasing the concentration\u00a0of the drug.\u00a0So, what smokers crave is nicotine, but Health Canada has forbidden its use in e-cigarettes.<\/span><\/p>\n Health Canada publicly addressed vaping in 2009, advising Canadians not to buy or use the products due to safety concerns. Since then, Health Canada has basically left the file alone.<\/span><\/p>\n In 2015, then-Health Minister Rona Ambrose asked the Health Committee of the House of Commons to study e-cigarettes. The<\/span> report<\/span><\/a>, issued in March 2015, was chaired by Conservative MP Ben Lobb and involved testimony from doctors and tobacco harm reduction advocates from across Canada, including Dr. Gopal Bhatnagar and David Sweanor. The report called for further research, and also recommended creating a new legal framework for e-cigarettes, sold with or without nicotine, banning sales to minors, prohibiting use in federally regulated public places and restricting advertising of the products. It also recommended barring the sale of e-juice flavours (i.e. candy flavour) it felt were\u00a0aimed at the youth market, and establishing limits on how much nicotine e-juice can contain.<\/span><\/p>\n The federal government did not act before the October election and the new Liberal government has not yet addressed the issue. With no regulatory body overseeing the retail market, some retailers have set their own in-house policies.<\/span><\/p>\n With the lack of federal regulation, some provinces have jumped into the void to regulate the products. To date Nova Scotia, British Columbia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Ontario, and Quebec have introduced some form of e-cigarette regulation. Most often these treat e-cigarettes in the same way as tobacco cigarettes by restricting use in public spaces, prohibiting use by minors or restricting advertising to diminish the appeal of e-cigarettes to youth.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_code admin_label=”Code”]<iframe src="https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/views\/Book1_4031\/E-cigregulationinottawa?:showVizHome=no&:embed=true" style="border:0px;" scrolling="no" width="1000" height="850"><\/iframe>[\/et_pb_code][et_pb_accordion admin_label=”Accordion” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n [et_pb_accordion_item title=”NOVA SCOTIA”]Nova Scotia<\/b> was the first province to propose<\/span> legislation<\/span><\/a> in 2014. It took effect May 31, 2015, banning the sale of e-cigarette to minors, the display or advertisement of e-cigarettes and vaping in public places. Only vape shops prohibiting entrance to minors are allowed to openly display their products. \u00a0While the province taxes tobacco products, there is no tax placed on e-cigarettes.<\/span><\/p>\n There was fierce debate in the province as to whether such legislation was appropriate, considering the lack of concrete evidence on the health risks of e-cigarettes. The main goal of the provincial government was to discourage the appeal of e-cigarettes to youth as there was concern e-cigarettes may entice non-smokers to take up smoking. Nova Scotia vape shop<\/span> owners<\/span><\/a> argued that the government was being too harsh and would ultimately restrict smokers from being able to access or use a tool that would help them quit.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_accordion_item][et_pb_accordion_item title=”BRITISH COLUMBIA”]On May 14, 2015, <\/span>British Columbia<\/b> became the first province to actually enact anti-vaping<\/span> laws<\/span><\/a>. Like Nova Scotia it treated e-cigs similarly to tobacco products. It banned selling e-cigarettes and e-cigarette products to minors, vaping in institutions, public buildings, or outdoor patios of bars and restaurants. It also barred vaping in a car when youth 16 and under are present.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_accordion_item][et_pb_accordion_item title=”NEW BRUNSWICK”]On July 1 2015, <\/span>New Brunswick <\/b>enacted a similar ban to BC, but went a bit further. The province made it<\/span> illegal<\/span><\/a> to vape within 20 metres of children\u2019s playgrounds and outdoor sports areas. It also restricted vaping within nine metres of a public walking or jogging trail and within the boundaries of provincial parks except for rented campsites, golf courses and designated areas within the park.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_accordion_item][et_pb_accordion_item title=”PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND”]Only nine days after New Brunswick, <\/span>Prince Edward Island<\/b> introduced two bills that eventually came into force in October 1, 2015. Like other provinces it banned<\/span> sales<\/span><\/a> to minors and<\/span> use<\/span><\/a> in public spaces. Construction sites were also added to the list of areas where vaping is illegal.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_accordion_item][et_pb_accordion_item title=”QUEBEC”]Quebec <\/b>has introduced similar regulation as Nova Scotia,<\/span> regulating<\/span><\/a> e-cigarettes like tobacco. The legislation extends the vaping ban from bars and restaurants to include patios, and subjects e-cigarettes to the same rules as other tobacco products. Flavoured tobacco and smoking in a vehicle with someone under 16-years-old present are also prohibited. <\/span>It also bans vaping at exterior playgrounds and sports fields used by kids.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_accordion_item][et_pb_accordion_item title=”ONTARIO”]Ontario <\/b>enacted<\/span> legislation<\/span><\/a> in March 2016; e-cigarette and medical marijuana users in Ontario will be banned from smoking or vaping anywhere regular cigarettes are prohibited \u2013 all enclosed public places, workplaces, and many outdoor areas. Its ban on selling e-cigarettes to minors under 19 was enacted before this, on Jan. 1, 2016.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_accordion_item][et_pb_accordion_item title=”ALBERTA”]As of January 2016, <\/span>Alberta <\/b>had no provincial regulatory framework for e-cigs. Several city councils, including those in<\/span> Edmonton<\/span><\/a> and<\/span> Calgary<\/span><\/a>, passed bylaws to ban smoking e-cigarettes anywhere cigarette smoking is banned. In Calgary, there is an exception which allows the smoking of e-cigarettes inside vape shops. The municipal government promised to follow up on the effectiveness of the bylaw, and on whether people should continue to be allowed to vape in stores. The bylaw has been in effect since January 2016.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_accordion_item][et_pb_accordion_item title=”MANITOBA”]The <\/span>Manitoba <\/b>government proposed Bill 30 to regulate e-cigarettes similarly to tobacco, but admitted more research needs to be done on the subject. The bill has yet to become law. The bill would prohibit the sale of e-cigarettes to children, restrict advertising and prohibit use in most indoor public places. However, the bill includes an exemption for vape shops and adult-only establishments (i.e. bars, casinos). \u00a0According to the Canadian Vaping Association, Bill 30 has gone to<\/span> public consultation<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\nOverview of Canadian regulation<\/b><\/h2>\n