Prime Minister Stephen Harper has announced a "substantial investment in public funds" to clean up dangerous chemicals in the environment.

The government has pledged $300 million towards assessing 200 potentially harmful substances on the market, and regulate the most toxic within the next few years.

"I am proud to say we will become a world leader because of today's announcement," Harper said Friday.

The list of chemicals includes some already proven harmful to animals and suspected to be potentially harmful to human health.

Harper made his announcement at the Ottawa General Hospital, after touring the facility's new "Breathing Space House" -- a prototype home for people with environmental sensitivities.

Environmentalist groups were largely positive about Harper's plan, in a notably different reaction from when the government outlined its troubled Clean Air Act.

"We were very pleased with the announcement," Aaron Freeman, an activist and lawyer with Environmental Defence, told CTV's Mike Duffy Live.

"We think it's a very important step in dealing with some of the most substances that are in our environment, and that pose a threat to the environment and our own health."

Opposition MPs also welcomed the proposal, including NDP member Peggy Nash.

"Do I think it's good to restrict potentially cancer-causing chemicals? Of course I do," she said.

But Nash added that the government has cut money to Health Canada for the enforcement of health regulations for a variety of products.

"If there's going to be a greater responsibility for enforcement for our health, we'd better back it up with the money to go with it," she said.

Environment Minister Rona Ambrose said the new chemicals management program would provide Canadians with information about the chemicals in the products they choose.

A list of more suspect chemicals will be released in groups of 15 to 30, every two to three months.

Industry and stakeholders will be required, within six months, to provide information to the government about the chemicals.

"If we're not satisfied, industry will be required to take action," Ambrose said. "In some instances, we may require industry to provide alternate materials."

Ambrose released the name of the first chemical to be placed on the list: hexafluorobutadiene.

Health Minister Tony Clement said chemicals not yet approved for the Canadian marketplace will be included in another list.

The announcement follows a seven-year effort under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act to identify dangerous substances among the 23,000 chemicals available in Canada.

Ambrose explained that since 1994, new chemicals have not been manufactured in Canada or imported here without undergoing a scientific risk evaluation.

Now that same assessment will be applied to chemicals introduced to Canada between January 1, 1984, and December 31, 1986.

New website launched

The government also launched a Chemical Substance website with the announcement, which details how the assessments will work, provides links to fact sheets on chemical impact on human health, and government resources and processes for managing chemical assessments.

The website provides a list of chemicals not banned but regulated, and of "interest to Canadians" because of the risks associated with them. Some, such as carboxylic acids (PFCAs), which are used in non-stick coatings on pots and pans, and phthalates, which are used in cosmetic perfumes, are still being studied for their effect on human health.

Those chemicals include:

• 2-Butoxyethanol (2-BE), also known as ethylene glycol monobutyl ether. It is used in paints, cleaning products and solvents, along with some industrial applications. A risk assessment concluded that chronic exposure could alter blood in ways associated with hemolytic anemia.
• 2-Methoxyethanol (2-ME), also known as ethylene glycol monomethyl ether. Used to be used for a number of things including de-icing airplanes, but the only current application listed is in a cleaning solvent for white boards. Has toxic effects such as malformation in the developing fetus, and adverse effects on male reproduction, blood and the immune and nervous systems
• Bisphenol A, used in manufacturing plastic consumer products, including certain water bottles, in dental sealants for children's teeth, and in resins used to line tin cans. It's being studied for its potential to disrupt endocrine function.
• Lead, a heavy metal found in air, soil, household dust, food, drinking water (many older pipes are soldered with lead) and consumer products such as pre-1960 paint. Can impact intellectual and behavioural development of children. Exposure to very low levels can be harmful and exposure to high levels can be fatal.
• Perfluorooctane sulfonate or perfluorooctanyl sulfonate (PFOS), used prior to 2002 in water, oil, soil and grease repellents, for paper and packaging, rugs and carpets, fabrics, and in fire-fighting foams. Scientists don't believe exposure risk is high enough to have an impact on health.
• Phthalates, found in medical devices such as blood bags and intravenous tubing, vinyl flooring and some plastics, and in non-petroleum-based lubricating oils in perfumes in cosmetics. Has caused changes to the liver, kidneys, reproductive systems, and birth defects in animal testing but not enough is yet known about the impact on humans.
• Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs), used as flame retardants on cushions, carpet backings, automotive/aircraft seating and interiors, upholstery fabrics and electrical insulation and the cases on computers and televisions. Animal testing indicate effects on behavioural development, nervous system development, and on the liver and thyroid, but there is no clear evidence of impact on humans.
• Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs), best known for use as lubricants in transformers, but also widely used for years in sealing and caulking compounds, cutting oils, inks and paint additives. Testing has produced concerns about it being a carcinogen.