Liberal Government Delays Proposed Changes to Environmental Review of Major Projects
The Liberal government is pausing its plan to speed up and simplify environmental assessments for major projects and will be waiting until the fall session of Parliament to introduce legislation on it. The move comes in the wake of criticism of the planned changes from several environmental groups and members of the Liberal caucus who opposed the proposals, including provisions that would allow major projects to receive approval before undergoing a full environmental assessment and exempt some developments from protections for at-risk species. The government had recently called for public consultation on the proposed changes. Ottawa’s plan, outlined in two discussion papers released last month, also proposed changing the responsibility for reviewing new pipelines, transmission lines, and offshore renewable energy ventures away from the Impact Assessment Agency to the Canada Energy Regulator....
Liberal Government Delays Proposed Changes to Environmental Review of Major Projects The Liberal government has postponed its proposed legislation to expedite environmental assessments for major projects until the fall session. This decision follows criticism from environmental groups and Liberal caucus members regarding provisions that could bypass full assessments and exempt developments from species protections. The original plan, detailed in discussion papers, also suggested shifting regulatory responsibility for certain energy projects.
- Liberal government delays legislation for faster environmental assessments.
- Changes faced criticism from environmental groups and Liberal caucus members.
- Concerns were raised about provisions allowing project approval before full assessment and exempting developments from species protection.
- Public consultation was recently held on the proposed changes.
- The plan also proposed transferring review responsibilities for pipelines, transmission lines, and offshore renewables from the Impact Assessment Agency to the Canada Energy Regulator.
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