This report summarizes the work of the Expert Panel on Nanotechnology (the panel) established by the Council of Canadian Academies (the Council), to assess the state of knowledge with respect to existing nanomaterial properties and their health and environmental risks, which could underpin regulatory perspectives on needs for research, risk assessment and surveillance.

This study by the Expert Panel on Nanotechnology (the panel) represents a comprehensive effort to address the current state of scientific knowledge regarding nanomaterials, and how that should guide the approach taken to steward the process through which nanomaterials are responsibly introduced into Canadian trade and commerce.

This report focuses on the scientific and technological considerations (interpreted broadly) that in part define and can help to meet the challenge of developing an appropriate regulatory regime for engineered nanomaterials. A substantial part of the report is therefore devoted to assessing what is known, and not known, about the health and environmental risks of nanomaterials. Moreover, the report will offer an account of the unique regulatory challenges presented by nanotechnologies in light of findings about the nature and behaviour of nanoscale materials more generally. The report includes discussion of some of the reasons why there are gaps in our knowledge - e.g., the lack of fully developed measurement tools, test methods and material characterizations - and thus indicates where to give priority in order to develop a more comprehensive account of the potential health and environmental risks of nanomaterials. Finally, given that regulatory approaches to nanomaterials will be needed in the short- to medium-term, the report assesses a number of other factors - including science and technology priorities, public awareness and engagement, and regulatory management - which could provide a firmer basis on which government and the public could generate policies and approaches to the regulation of nanomaterials.

The sponsors of this assessment requested that the focus of the report be on the scientific knowledge that would inform regulatory perspectives on those engineered nanomaterials that are already in the marketplace in one form or another, or whose entry into trade and commerce could occur over the next several years.

The unique contribution of this report is its clear focus on assessing the state of scientific knowledge concerning engineered nanomaterials from the perspective of risk assessment and regulation. In this regard, it is designed to assist the Government of Canada in developing a robust regulatory approach to these materials, a task that is urgent and time sensitive. This report therefore provides an overview of what we know generally about nanomaterials, their properties, and how they differ from more conventional materials. It then discusses the current state of the science with regard to the risks associated with exposure to these materials, and identifies specific findings with regard to the nature of the regulatory approach that would most effectively address the issues presented by nanomaterials and products that make use of them.