The Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) has started the second of three stages of consultations with interested parties to prepare for significant changes to the next edition of the Ontario Building Code (OBC). The OBC Code cycle is timed such that it typically follows 24 months after the National Building Code (NBC) cycle. The “2020” NBC has finally been completed and is to be released before end of March 2022, so the new OBC is targeted for release March 2024.
This consultation approach will differ slightly from previous years as the ministry gradually works to increase harmonization of Ontario’s Building Code with National Construction Codes.
Through this and future code cycles, Ontario, along with the federal government and provinces and territories, will support commitments made through a Reconciliation Agreement under the
Canadian Free Trade Agreement, to:
- reduce the number of variations in the technical requirements
- adopt construction codes in a timely manner, and
- transform the national code development system.
The feedback collected in the Fall consultation which closed in December 2021 is being reviewed and follow-up technical discussions are being planned. The ministry will prepare a third phase of consultations to address outstanding Ontario-specific changes and other issues that are raised in the Fall 2021 and Winter 2022 consultations. More details to follow.
In this winter 2022 stage (ending March 13, 2022), the MMAH is seeking input on how to address differences between the latest amended version of the 2012 OBC and the recently completed 2020 National Building Code (NBC) that can be harmonized, and to also update subject matter areas of the OBC that are and will likely continue to be unique to Ontario.
The detailed review documents contain descriptions of current and proposed sections and articles (clauses) in both highlight/strikeout and “clean” style. The documents contain built-in commenting features for direct comments or comments can be submitted via e-mail etc.
Members may comment directly or on behalf of their companies.
If you have any comments that you think should be submitted by HRAI to further demonstrate an “industry position,” please send them to Bob Storey at the contact information below.
See these links for more information:
https://ero.ontario.ca/notice/019-4974
https://prod-environmental-registry.s3.amazonaws.com/2022-01/Executive%20Summary%20-%20OBC%20Next%20Edition%20Winter%20Consultation.pdf
https://prod-environmental-registry.s3.amazonaws.com/2022-02/Proposed%20Building%20Code%20Changes%20to%20Align%20with%202020%20National%20Construction%20Codes.pdf
Contact: Robert Storey, Technical Advisor to HRAI, 905-510-9564 or email robertstorey@sympatico.ca
