BC LNG Plans Need First Nations'
Input Now: Government
The BC government is trying to bring First Nations on board to its ambitious natural gas venture by asking for their input on environmental issues at the early stages of each project.

Aboriginal Relations Minister John Rustad said [May 23] the initiative marks a new way of dealing with First Nations, companies and government with respect to an industry that the provincial government said could be worth billions.

"The goal is to build an environmental stewardship initiative that addresses our collective conservation and development interests," said Rustad. Minister of aboriginal relations and reconciliation John Rustad says the government's goal is to engage BC First Nations in the early stages of LNG development plans. "We're actually going to go out and bring First Nation input and industry input together with the province to develop this as opposed to coming out with an idea and asking for comment."

However, Rustad said the goal is to create agreements between government and First Nations, not change laws. Read CBC article.

The Crown's Duty to Consult and the
Role of the Energy Regulator
Today, for many Energy Regulators, project proponents, Aboriginal groups and intervenors, issues surrounding Aboriginal rights and title and the Crown's duty to consult Aboriginal peoples have become a critical focus in the regulatory approval processes for major (and not-so-major) projects. In his article, "The Crown's Duty to Consult and the Role of the Energy Regulator," published in Energy Regulation Quarterly, Keith Bergner examines the role of the Energy Regulatory in respect of the Crown's duty to consult. Source: Lawson Lundell. 

Canada Revamps Pipeline Safety Rules
Ahead of New Projects
Canada unveiled new rules [in May] to enhance pipeline safety and spill response, ahead of the development of new projects proposed to carry crude from Alberta's oil sands to coastal ports for export.

The new legislation will give Canada's energy regulator, the National Energy Board (NEB), more power to enforce compliance on safety and the authority to step in to lead spill response if a company is unwilling or unable to do so.

Companies will also now be held liable, up to C$1 billion ($917 million), for all spills or incidents on their lines, whether or not they are at-fault or negligent, putting the onus on owners to ensure safe operations. Read the full article published by Reuters Canada. 

Joint Review Panel Finds that Site C Will Have Significant
Environmental and Aboriginal Impacts
In their assessment of the Site C Clean Energy Project (Site C), the Joint Review Panel (the Panel) considered the potential impact of Site C on Aboriginal rights and treaty rights, along with the possible effects of the project on the cultural and economic well-being of First Nations. It identified 24 groups claiming an interest in the Local Assessment Area, as well as 6 other Aboriginal groups with potential interests who did not participate in the review process. Overall, the Panel determined that Site C would likely cause significant adverse effects on fishing opportunities and practices and on hunting and non-tenured trapping for various First Nation groups, and these effects cannot be mitigated. Read the full article by Selina Lee-Andersen and Jean-Olivier Lambert with McCarthy Tetrault. 

Judge Dismisses Environmental Groups' Application that
BC Failed to Protect Endangered Trees
A BC Supreme Court judge has dismissed an application by environmental groups claiming the province fails to adhere to its own laws in protecting endangered coastal Douglas fir trees. Justice Gordon Weatherill sided with the government in ruling that the application for judicial review filed by the Western Canada Wilderness Committee and ForestEthics Solutions Society was premature. Weatherill said in a decision released [May 9] that the groups should have first applied to the Forest Practices Board, which conducts independent audits and investigations to determine if the province is complying with laws to protect endangered forests. Read the Province article. 

BC Amends Recycling Regulation
to Help Small Producers
Coinciding with the new recycling program, which began in most BC communities [in late May], BC has updated the Province's Recycling Regulation to ensure small producers of packaging and printed paper are exempt. This means the vast majority of businesses and organizations that put packaging and printed paper into the residential waste stream are exempt from any reporting or recycling costs associated with the program. An exemption is granted if any one of the following four criteria is met:

• Under one million dollars in annual revenues.
• Under one tonne of packaging and printed paper supplied to BC residents.
• Operate as a single point of retail sale and are not supplied by or operated as part of franchise, a chain or under a banner.
• Is a registered charity.

Read government news release.

Environmental Appeal Board Decisions
There was one Environmental Appeal Board decision released in the month of May:

• Wildlife Act – Stewart Fraser v. Regional Manager, Recreational Fisheries and Wildlife Program (Cariboo Region) (British Columbia Wildlife Federation, Participant) [Final Decision – Appeal Dismissed with Recommendation]