Federal Environmental Assessment Refresher and Update on Activities Relevant to National Transmissio

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Federal Environmental Assessment Refresher
and Update on Activities Relevant to National
Transmission Grid Discussions
Peter Sylvester Vice-President, Policy
Development Canadian Environmental Assessment
Agency National Transmission Grid Working
Group February 23, 2007
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Presentation outline

• Overview of environmental assessment
• Application of Canadian Environmental Assessment
  Act
• Federal EA and a national transmission grid
• Role of Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency
• Update on activities to improve efficiency and
  effectiveness of federal EA process

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Why do we conduct environmental assessments?

• Enable identification of measures to avoid or
  mitigate adverse effects before construction
  begins
• Provide opportunity for public to influence
  decisions about projects in their communities
• Serve as a mechanism for government and
  proponents to reduce risk and liability
• Inform decision-making in support of sustainable
  development

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EAs role in sustainable development

• Broad public and political desire to protect
  environment while producing social and economic
  benefits
• Many tools available to government including
  policy education fiscal instruments and
  regulation, including monitoring and enforcement
• Some tools focused on front-end prevention of
  impacts while others address back-end compliance
• EA focuses on avoiding or mitigating impacts, but
  sets context for monitoring and enforcement of
  measures to achieve those outcomes
• Federal EA process provides environmental
  evaluation along with some socio-economic input,
  but decisions also require economic analysis

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EA a field with and without borders

• Environment and environmental impacts are
  unaffected by political borders
• However, processes for assessing those impacts
  are profoundly affected by jurisdictional
  interests and boundaries international, North
  American, federal, provincial, territorial, local
  and Aboriginal
• EA occurs in an incredibly complex jurisdictional
  environment and that complexity poses some of the
  greatest challenges to effective and efficient
  delivery

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Canadian Environmental Assessment Act

• Passed by Parliament in 1992, brought into force
  in 1995 and amended in 2003 to improve federal
  coordination and enhance public participation
• Applies to projects where federal authority has
  decision to
• Proceed with the project as the proponent
• Provide financial assistance to the proponent
• Sell, lease or transfer control of federal land
  for the project
• Issue regulatory approval identified in Law List
  Regulations
• Requires consideration of environmental effects,
  including cumulative effects, prior to decision
• Prevents federal authorities from proceeding with
  decision where project is likely to cause
  significant adverse environmental effects that
  are not justified in the circumstances

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EA Triggers (2006)
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Canadian Environmental Assessment Act

• Self assessment process - 30 departments,
  boards, agencies and 41 Crown corporations
  annually conduct about 10,000 EAs
• Assessment type tailored to risk of significant
  effects
• Screenings (over 99)
• Comprehensive studies (26 currently active)
• Review panels (12 currently active)

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Responsible Authorities (2006)
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How does the process unfold?

• Proponent submits project description
• Responsible authority identifies EA type, defines
  scope of project and assessment and works with
  Agency on intergovernmental coordination to avoid
  duplication
• Proponent files environmental impact statement
• Public hearings during review panels or
  opportunities for public participation during
  screenings and comprehensive studies
• Review by federal authorities to assess adequacy
  of mitigation measures and assess whether
  residual impacts are likely to cause significant
  adverse environmental effects

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National Grid Potential EA application

• Upwards of 50 reviews of transmission lines
  underway - stand alone or in association with
  large scale (e.g. Lower Churchill hydroelectric)
  or small scale (wind and small hydro) generation
• National grid triggers would be determined by
  route, financing and design
• Possibilities include Law List (e.g. Fisheries
  Act, National Energy Board Act), federal land
  (e.g. Indian reserve) and financial support
• Issues of concern from federal government
  perspective may include impacts on water
  crossings, species at risk, federal lands, fish
  habitat, migratory birds and human health
• Components may also be subject to provincial
  assessment

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National Grid Issues that may arise

• Survey of current reviews indicates that social,
  economic and health dimensions of transmission
  proposals are dominating public discussion
• Key issues include
• Health effects of electric magnetic fields
• Visual/aesthetic impacts
• Property value impacts
• Impacts on wildlife notably migratory and
  resident birds

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Role of Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency

• Provides advice and support to Minister of the
  Environment
• Federal Environmental Assessment Coordinator for
  comprehensive studies and multi-jurisdictional
  screenings
• Manages and provides administrative support to
  review panels
• Administers participant funding program for
  comprehensive studies and review panels
• Maintains Canadian Environmental Assessment
  Registry

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Role of Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency

• Negotiates cooperation agreements with other
  jurisdictions
• Leads Quality Assurance Program application of
  Act and quality of assessments
• Promotes compliance with the Cabinet Directive on
  the Environmental Assessment of Policy, Plan and
  Program Proposals (strategic environmental
  assessment)
• Leads efforts to streamline delivery of
  environmental assessment through greater
  coordination within federal government and with
  provincial and territorial governments

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Improving delivery of federal EA --
Federal-provincial cooperation

• Bilateral agreements and project-specific
  arrangements address overlap arising out of
  shared responsibility for the environment
• Projects receive single assessment that meets the
  requirements of both levels of government -
  150-300 projects per year
• Approaches include federal-provincial project
  committees, integrated information requirements
  for proponent and joint review panels with one
  public hearing
• Each jurisdiction takes results of cooperative EA
  to inform its decision on proposed project

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Improving delivery of federal EA -- Cabinet
Directive November 2005

• Instructs Agency and federal authorities on how
  they should conduct themselves to deliver high
  quality environmental assessments in a timely and
  predictable manner
• Establishes common principles for determining
  what should be examined in a federal EA (scoping)
• Clarifies responsibility for ensuring
  implementation of mitigation measures
• Provides for involvement of senior officials when
  problems arise

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Improving delivery of federal EA -- Brunswick
Pipeline substitution pilot

• Joint panels are regularly used to meet National
  Energy Board Act and Canadian Environmental
  Assessment Act requirements
• For proposed Emera Brunswick Pipeline, Minister
  of the Environment approved substituting NEB
  review process for an environmental assessment by
  a review panel under the CEA Act
• First application of Ministers substitution
  powers being used as a pilot on applying those
  provisions
• Agency will conduct an evaluation of Brunswick
  pilot to inform future decisions on use of
  substitution provisions

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Improving delivery of federal EA -- Galore Creek
pilot project

• Open pit mine in BC subject to comprehensive
  study under Act
• More timely and effective EA process being
  pursued through enhanced role for Agency and
  applying Directive approach to issues such as
  ensuring implementation of mitigation measures
• Agency is drafting documents and coordinating
  coordination with BC process as well as public
  and Aboriginal engagement
• Positive feedback from proponent, province,
  federal participants
• Considerable effort required to establish and
  apply process

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Improving delivery of federal EA -- Interim
approach to scoping

• Developed by Environmental Assessment Projects
  Committee (Agency, Fisheries and Oceans, Natural
  Resources, Transport, Environment and Health)
• Provides guidance in applying the Directive
  scoping policy to major development proposals
  with key regulatory triggers
• Sets out process to
• identify components of proposal for inclusion in
  project scope,
• consider scope of provincial assessment process
• obtain information required to support federal EA
  decisions
• ensure implementation of mitigation and follow-up
  programs.

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Improving delivery of federal EA -- Approach to
Aboriginal engagement

• Engagement of Aboriginal peoples during EAs
  covers traditional use and knowledge related to
  lands that might be affected by a proposed
  project
• 35(1) of Constitution Act, 1982 affirms
  Aboriginal and treaty rights
• Crown has duty to consult when contemplating
  action that may infringe on rights
• Evolving policy framework and relationship
  between governments, Aboriginal peoples and
  industry
• Environmental Assessment Projects Committee has
  adopted approach to coordinated engagement during
  EA (including with activities of province) and,
  when appropriate, linking those discussions to
  subsequent consultation on aboriginal rights

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Improving delivery of federal EA -- Seven year
review of the Act - 2010

• 2003 amendments require that a review of the
  Acts provisions and operations be undertaken by
  a committee of parliament within 7 years of royal
  assent
• Scope and approach to conducting review will be
  determined by the committee
• To support the review, Agency will align data
  collection and analysis to provide objective,
  well-documented information on provisions and
  operations of Act

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Concluding thoughts

• Efficient process requires both government and
  proponent to effectively perform respective
  responsibilities
• For our part, we will continue to pursue greater
• Integration within the federal government and
  between orders of government
• Certainty and predictability reinforced by
  reasonable timelines and use of innovative
  approaches such as regional and strategic EA
• Effectiveness so that the health and environment
  of Canadians are protected
• To those advancing the proposal, emphasize
• Developing an early understanding of EA and
  associated regulatory and consultation
  requirements
• Going beyond compliance with those requirements
  to develop appreciation of underlying issues that
  proposal will raise in the minds of the public,
  property owners and other interested parties
• Being proactive