How to use the pollution prevention planning notice reporting tool

The following information has been prepared to help you create a single window information manager (SWIM) account and navigate in the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) pollution prevention (P2) planning online reporting tool.

Section 1: How to access SWIM and create your account

An exhaustive user guide is also available.

1. Go to the SWIM.
2. Choose whether you want to log in using a sign-in partner (limited number of financial institutions allows users to use their bank account credentials) or using GCKey.
   • Should you choose the GCKey option, you will be prompted to create your username ID and create your password. Click continue to proceed.
   • A confirmation message will appear. Click continue again.
3. You are now logged into SWIM as a new user. You will be presented with the SWIM - new user screen where you will be prompted to enter your email address.
4. Enter your email address and click search. The system should not find your email since you are logging in for the first time. Click on continue to “My Profile” to set up your profile.
5. The “My Profile” page will appear. At a minimum, fill the required fields marked with a red asterisk. Click save. This will bring you back to the Home Page. You are now logged into SWIM and have created your profile.
6. To complete setting up your account, link your profile to your organization(s) and facilities.

Link your profile to an organization and register an organization

• Click organizations on the left hand menu
• Click add a new organization
• Enter your organization name and/or business number, and click search
• Review the search results. If your organization is already in the database, you need to request access from the SWIM organization lead. Consult the exhaustive SWIM user guide for more detailed procedures. If your organization is not present in the database, click add a new organization again.
• Register your organization by filling the form and clicking save. As the creator of the organization, your personal profile will be linked to the organizational profile automatically in SWIM.

 Registering your facility and contacts

• Click organizations on the left hand menu
• Click on the organization for which you would like to add a facility
• On the left hand menu, click facilities
• Click add a new facility
• Make a search to access the add a new facility button
• Click add a new facility
• Register your facility by filling the form and click save
• To add a contact, click on the organization in the left hand menu for which you would like to add a contact
• On the left hand menu, click contacts
• Click add a new contact
• Register a contact by filling the form and click save
  • Tip: because the P2 planning notice reporting tool only accepts names from your SWIM contact list, we suggest adding at least two contacts. A technical contact and a general contact, if different than the technical contact. The names will be available in a pick-list on the contact page in the P2 reporting form.
• Click Home on the left hand menu and close all other existing pages.

You are now ready to access the P2 planning online reporting tool.

Section 2: How to navigate in the CEPA pollution prevention planning online reporting tool

Ensure that you have entered your facility and contact information under your organization.

• From the SWIM Home page, click the pollution prevention planning link in the list of reporting programs to navigate to the reporting module. A welcome page provides you with important general information on reporting that you should read first before continuing into the tool. Depending on the P2 planning notice, there could be links to detailed instructions.  
• Click on continue at the bottom of the screen to go to the reporting dashboard.  If at any time you wish to come back to the welcome page, click home.
• Click help on the right hand corner to display additional guidance, when available. To close help, click help again.

Reporting dashboard

If this is the first time you are reporting, the reports table at the bottom of the screen will be empty. Please note that the term report makes reference to a schedule in this reporting tool.

• To add a schedule, select the company name, P2 code and schedule number (1 to 5).
• Click on add new report at the bottom of the screen. You will be brought to the “add new” report screen and your company and/or facility will appear in the reports table.
• In the reports table, click on the “plus sign” beside the schedule you want to create.
• If the reports table does not include the schedule you want to work on, use the search criteria on this page.

If you have previously reported, schedules that are in progress or have been submitted will appear in the reports table of the reporting dashboard.

• To amend a schedule that is in progress or that has already been submitted, click the pencil icon on the corresponding line.
• To view a schedule, consult section 7.

Navigating through the tool

• A left hand menu displaying the different parts of the schedule to be filled is available on the screen at all times when you are in your schedule.
• A “breadcrumb” is available at the top of the screen indicating what part of the schedule you are working on. Click on your company or facility name to get back to the reporting dashboard, or on welcome page or SWIM to display those pages.

Contacts page

Details of your company and/or facility, physical and/or mailing addresses and the list of contact names have been carried over from what was entered in SWIM. At a minimum, fill out the required blank fields.

Once you have filled out this part, you have 3 choices.

• You may click save if you want to save changes made on this page and continue to the next page; or
• Click save to SWIM to transfer all the changes made on this page to SWIM, or   
• Use the refresh bottom from SWIM option to update page information if previous changes have been made into SWIM that you would like to transfer on this page.

Completing a schedule

• In the left hand menu, an orange circle with an exclamation mark icon will appear next to each part.    
• This orange circle will change to a green circle checkmark once you have successfully inputted all the required information on a page and clicked save.  A green box with a success message will also be displayed at the top of the page.
• A red box containing an error summary will be displayed at the top of the page if required fields have been left blank and/or if a format error occurred.
• You can navigate to the different parts of the schedule by clicking on its name in the left hand menu. 
• If at any time you need to leave your work and come back to it later, save your schedule and logout. Retrieve your schedule by going through steps 1 and 2 above.
  • Note: if your page does not save successfully (i.e. no errors), you will lose information if you change page.

Confidentiality

To request information be treated as confidential:

• Click on the open padlock icon displayed in front of the appropriate part of the schedule. Once clicked, the padlock icon will change and appear closed. You will be required to provide a justification for each part that you are requesting confidentiality on the certification page at the end of the schedule.
• Please note that previous requests for confidentiality are not transferred from a schedule to another. You need to request confidentially for every report you submit.

Certification page and submission

• A duly authorized official will be required to verify and certify the contents of the schedule before checking off a box on this page and provide name, title and email address before it is submitted to ECCC.
• Once this page has been filled out, click on save. If all parts of your schedule are complete, proceed to submit button will appear at the bottom of the screen. Click on the button to go to the confirm schedule submission page where your organization and certification page information will appear.
• Click on submit to pursue with your submission or cancel to get back to the certification page.
• A green box confirming the details of your submission such as the date and a schedule P2 database (P2DB) number will appear at the top of the page. 
• An email confirmation will be sent to you. If you do not receive an email, please contact us at 1-844-580-3637.

Appropriate authority

The schedules must be certified by an appropriate authority since the person who signs the schedules is confirming that the information being reported is true, accurate, and complete. An appropriate authority is someone who is subject to the notice like the person or class of persons who meets the criteria stated in the notice. Most often, this is anyone who owns or operates a facility that conducts the activities listed in the notice.

An appropriate authority could also be someone who is acting on behalf of those subject to a notice, who can confirm that the contents of a declaration or report are true, accurate and complete, and can take responsibility for the statements made.

Examples include the Chief Executive Officer, facility managers, facility owners and/or operators, environmental health and safety managers, or legal counsel for the person who is subject to the notice. Consultants are not considered an appropriate authority.

PDF or HTML copy

• To view, print or save an electronic copy of your schedule, go back to the reporting dashboard.
• Click on the downward arrow under actions of the corresponding line and click on history/print preview.
• On the history/print preview screen, click on the downward arrow under actions and choose view PDF or view Html.

Amendments

• To make an amendment to a previously submitted schedule, go through steps 1 and 2 (in the reporting dashboard, click on the pencil icon on the corresponding line to edit your schedule.)
• The tool will prompt you to specify which parts of the schedule you are amending. Describe what you are modifying and why.
• Modify your answer within the form.
• Fill out the certification page (last part in the left hand menu) before submitting to ECCC.

Schedules 1, 4 and 5

All P2 planning notices require the submission of a schedule 1 (Declaration that a pollution prevention plan has been prepared and is being implemented) and a schedule 5 (Declaration that a pollution prevention plan has been implemented). Note that schedule 4 (Interim progress reports) is not always required. Refer to your respective notice to confirm which schedules are required and their deadlines.

Schedules 2 and 3

A schedule 2 (Request for waiver of the requirement to consider a factor or factors) and a schedule 3 (Request for a time extension to prepare or implement a pollution prevention plan) are non-mandatory.

Contact us

If you encounter problems while filling out your schedule, do not hesitate to contact:

Regulatory Innovation and Management Systems
Environment and Climate Change Canada
351 St-Joseph Boulevard
Gatineau QC  K1A 0H3

Telephone: 1-844-580-3637
Email: ec.planp2-p2plan.ec@canada.ca