Postmedia obtains documents that suggest the environmental assessment duplication that the budget bill is supposed to prevent is already being addressed.
Postmedia obtains documents that suggest the environmental assessment duplication that the budget bill is supposed to prevent is already being addressed.
“Amendments made in 2010 have made the CEA Agency responsible for most comprehensive studies; this change is yielding positive results as all agency-led comprehensive studies have started in alignment with provincial reviews, preventing process duplication,” said the presentation, dated Sept. 6, 2011 and released by Environment Canada through access to information legislation. “All provinces have EA (environmental assessment) processes; harmonization agreements and project-specific arrangements are intended to prevent duplication.”
Quebec Premier Jean Charest has already questioned the suggestion that the environmental assessment system isn’t working.
In other budget bill news, two former Progressive Conservative ministers have been joined by two former Liberal ministers and the Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution in expressing concern about changes to the Fisheries Act.