Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

BC NDP Government Makes Changes to Environmental Assessment Certificate for Trans Mountain

 


Changes to the Environmental Assessment Certificate for the Trans Mountain Expansion Project, and recommendations to other agencies, have been made by George Heyman, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, and Bruce Ralston, Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation, for the pipeline project that runs between Edmonton and Burnaby.

 

This provincial reconsideration process was a result of a federal Court of Appeal decision in 2018, and associated decisions by the B.C. Court of Appeal in 2019. Following the 2018 federal Court of Appeal determination that the National Energy Board (NEB) excluded project-related marine shipping from aspects of its review, the NEB undertook a reconsideration process and released a reconsideration report.

 

The federal government then used this 2019 reconsideration report to inform its decision to approve the project again. In September 2019, the B.C. Court of Appeal, in two cases, decided that because the ministers who issued the provincial certificate relied on the NEB’s assessment, they should have the opportunity to consider the changes in the NEB’s reconsideration report and determine if any changes to the certificate conditions, or the addition of new ones, are necessary, within the limits of provincial jurisdiction.

 

Upon direction from the ministers in March 2020, the Environmental Assessment Office (EAO) undertook a review of the changes in the 2019 NEB reconsideration report on aspects of the project related to marine shipping. The EAO considered the portions of the 2019 reconsideration report that differ from the initial 2016 report to determine if any changes to the certificate conditions previously approved by ministers in 2017, or the addition of new ones, were required (within the scope of the provincial reconsideration process and the limits of provincial jurisdiction). More details are available in the ministers’ reasons for decision, below.

 

As part of the provincial reconsideration process, the EAO invited Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation), səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) and the City of Vancouver to participate in the process and formed a provincial advisory group to provide technical expertise and support the EAO’s understanding of key issues. The EAO also engaged marine Indigenous Nations, federal government departments, Trans Mountain and other parties, and held a 45-day public comment period prior to making recommendations to ministers.

 


The EAO set clear criteria to analyze the NEB reports and submissions received through the reconsideration process to determine what changes should be made to the Environmental Assessment Certificate, in particular:

 

  • whether the issues raised pertained to differences between the two NEB reports;
  • whether the Province had jurisdiction to make changes to EAC conditions or add new ones; and
  • avoiding unnecessary duplication with respect to existing Environmental Assessment Certificate or NEB conditions, regulatory mechanisms, NEB recommendations to Governor in Council, and/or federal government accommodation measures and initiatives.

 

As a result of the reconsideration process, the Province is making the following changes to the provincial Environmental Assessment Certificate:

 

  • Amending Condition 35 (Fate and Behaviour of Bitumen Research), requiring Trans Mountain to provide research updates every five years, and add local coastal governments to the parties requiring consultation on the research
  • A new condition requiring a human health risk report that includes:
    • identifying exposure pathways in the event of a marine spill
    • identifying roles and responsibilities of local, provincial and federal authorities in the event of a marine spill
    • consulting with Indigenous Nations, local governments and relevant agencies to develop the report that will provide important information as the federal government and its agencies prepare plans that address the potential impact to human health from spills
  • A new condition requiring Trans Mountain to develop a shoreline baseline data report, developed in consultation with various parties, that consolidates data at hypothetical incident locations along the shipping route that will strengthen restoration and recovery in the event of a ship-source marine spill
  • Adding Snuneymuxw First Nation to the list of Aboriginal Groups – Marine Shipping
  • Adding a definition for Potentially Affected Coastal Local Governments

 

In addition, Heyman and Ralston have provided advice to the federal government to consider and take action on concerns raised by participants during the reconsideration process that were outside of the B.C. Court of Appeal’s direction.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

BC cannot regulate, redesign, and reinterpret its way to a stable forestry sector. Communities need clear rules, predictable timelines, and accountability for results.

Photo credit:  Atli Resources LP   BC’s Forestry Crisis Continues with Closure of Beaver Cove Chip Facility   As industry leaders, Indigenous partners, and contractors gather this week at the BC Natural Resources Forum in Prince George, the gap between government rhetoric and reality could not be clearer. Just hours after the Eby government once again touted reconciliation, certainty, and economic opportunity under DRIPA, Atli Chip Ltd, a company wholly owned by the ’Na̱mg̱is First Nation, announced it is managing the orderly closure of its Beaver Cove chip facility. The closure comes despite public tax dollars, repeated government announcements, and assurances that new policy frameworks would stabilize forestry employment and create long-term opportunity in rural and coastal British Columbia. “British Columbians are being told one story, while communities are living another,” said Ward Stamer, Critic for Forests. “This closure makes it clear that announcement...
Post a Comment
Read more

Stamer: Hope for Forestry Completely Shattered After Another Provincial Review Driven by DRIPA

IMAGE CREDIT:  Provincial Forestry Advisory Council Conservative Critic for Forests Ward Stamer says the final report from the Provincial Forestry Advisory Council confirms the worst fears of forestry workers and communities; instead of addressing the real issues driving mill closures and job losses, the NDP has produced a report that ignores industry realities and doubles down on governance restructuring. Despite years of warnings from forestry workers, contractors, and industry organizations about permitting delays, regulatory costs, fibre access, and the failure of BC Timber Sales, the PFAC report offers no urgency, no timelines, and no concrete action to stop the ongoing decline of the sector. “ This report completely shatters any remaining hope that the government is serious about saving forestry ,” said Stamer.  “ We didn’t need another study to tell us what industry has been saying for years. While mills close and workers lose their livelihoods, the NDP is focused on re...
Post a Comment
Read more

FORSETH – My question is, ‘How do we decide who is blue enough to be called a Conservative?’

How do we decide who’s blue enough to be a Conservative? AS OF TODAY (Friday January 30 th ), there are now eight individuals who have put their names forward to lead the Conservative Party of British Columbia. Having been involved with BC’s Conservatives since 2010, and having seen MANY ups and downs, having 8 people say “I want to lead the party” is to me, an incredible turn-around from the past. Sadly, however, it seems that our party cannot seem to shake what I, and others, call a purity test of ‘what is a Conservative’. And that seems to have already come to the forefront of the campaign by a couple of candidates. Let me just say as a Conservative Party of BC member, and as someone active in the party, that frustrates me to no end. Conservatives, more than any other political philosophy or belief, at least to me, seems to have the widest and broadest spectrum of ideals.   For the most part, they are anchored by these central thoughts --- smaller and less intru...
1 comment
Read more

Labels

Show more