Chemicals of Concern - Regulating the Sale of Eight (8) Restricted Components

New Regulations for Sales of Eight (8) Restricted Components

As of March 1, 2009, sellers of the following eight (8) Restricted Components
will be required to meet new security measures as specified in the Restricted
Components Regulations of the Explosives Act.

Sellers of the first and earlier Restricted Component, namely ammonium nitrate,
have been regulated since June 1, 2008. A separate brochure that is specific to
ammonium nitrate is available at www.nrcan.gc.ca/mms/explosif.

The additional eight (8) Restricted Components covered in this brochure are

  • hydrogen peroxide at a concentration of 30 percent or higher
  • nitric acid at a concentration of 68 percent or higher
  • nitromethane
  • potassium chlorate
  • potassium perchlorate
  • sodium chlorate
  • potassium nitrate
  • sodium nitrate

The Explosives Regulatory Division (ERD) of Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan’s) Explosives Safety and Security Branch is responsible for administering Canada’s Explosives Act and its regulations. Amendments to the Act contained in the Public Safety Act, 2002 included regulation-making provisions for the security of restricted components of explosives.

Regulations for sellers of these eight (8) Restricted Components

Effective March 1, 2009, if you manufacture, import, export, purchase, provide or distribute for sale any amount of any of these eight (8) Restricted Components, you must comply with NRCan’s Restricted Components Regulations by

  • enrolling with ERD to ensure that you are listed as an authorized seller
  • taking security measures to protect your product supply and all related documentation from theft and unauthorized access
  • requesting from customers proper identification (e.g. government issued photo ID) and intent of use

For more information and to enrol, sellers of these Restricted Components are encouraged to consult the Restricted Components Regulations posted on the ERD Web site at www.nrcan.gc.ca/mms/explosif.

Requirements for users of these eight (8) Restricted Components

If you are a user of any of these eight (8) Restricted Components, you will be asked to provide your supplier with proper identification (e.g. government issued photo ID) and explain how you intend to use the product.

Outreach and compliance

Outreach and compliance with these Regulations will be provided and monitored by Inspectors of Explosives from ERD.

Additional information

For more information about these eight (8) Restricted Components or to report suspicious activity, contact

Natural Resources Canada
Explosives Regulatory Division