Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said Tuesday that Ottawa will soon table legislation that will reduce the number of projects that undergo federal environmental assessment by exempting smaller developments completely and by handing over many large ones to the provinces.
Mr. Oliver said the government will also bring in new measures to prevent project opponents from delaying the assessment process by flooding hearings with individuals who wish to speak against the development.
The Conservative government was dismayed when the National Energy Board extended its hearings on the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline, which would carry oil-sands bitumen to the British Columbia coast for export to Asia by super-tanker. The regulator was responding to requests from more than 4,000 individuals to give oral testimony at hearings now under way.
After railing for months against radical environmentalists bent on blocking resource development, the Natural Resources Minister signaled Tuesday the government will cut them out of the assessment process unless they can prove they would be directly affected by the project.
Under legislation to be tabled in the coming weeks, Ottawa will also impose strict timelines for environmental assessments, arguing that quicker reviews will reduce uncertainty and create more jobs and investment into Canada’s booming resource sector.
The amendments would consolidate responsibility for environmental reviews from 40 departments and agencies into three: the National Energy Board for energy projects; the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission for nuclear-related ones, and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency for mining and other major, non-energy developments.
The law will allow the agencies to conducts hearings “so that people with a direct stake will have an opportunity to express themselves and promote their concerns,” Mr. Oliver told a Toronto news conference.
“It will give a pragmatic solution and it will help the agency operate within the prescribed time limits.”
Officials later confirmed that participation in reviews will be restricted to those who have a “direct interest” in the impact of the proposed projects, but would not say who would qualify to appear.
The move comes after Ottawa announced in the March budget that the Canada Revenue Agency will increase its audits of environmental groups who have been accused of violating their charitable status by engaging in too much political advocacy.
However, Mr. Oliver said the federal government will also strengthen its consultation process with first nations by consolidating responsibility for consultations, providing more money for native communities to participate and eliminate duplicative efforts.
The minister insisted that the moves to accelerate reviews would not come at the expensive of environmental protection.
“One should not confuse the length of the process with the rigour of the review,” he said, adding that Ottawa would only transfer responsibility for reviews to provinces that have similar regulatory standards.
Original Article
Source: Globe
Author: SHAWN McCARTHY
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