BC's LNG Minister Predicts Northern Coast
LNG Decision by Mid-2017
British Columbia's minister of natural gas development is offering an optimistic prediction about the future of the proposed $36-billion Pacific NorthWest LNG project on BC's northern coast.

Rich Coleman says a decision on the development near Prince Rupert could come within the first six months of 2017.

Coleman says he is very familiar with the development's design and tendering process and he anticipates several more meetings by mid-January with officials from Petronas, the project's majority owner.

Low commodity prices have delayed an investment decision and Petronas said in October that it was reviewing the development and its conditions before moving forward. Read The Vancouver Sun article.

Second Coal Mine to Reopen in Northeastern BC,
Raising Hopes in Tumbler Ridge
A mining company in northeastern British Columbia has started hiring as it prepares to reopen the Wolverine Mine on Monday [January 1^st].

Conuma Coal Resources Ltd. says the reopening of the mine 15 kilometres west of Tumbler Ridge is expected to create 220 jobs.

That's in addition to 170 jobs that were created when Conuma Coal restarted the nearby Brule Mine in September, just months after purchasing both properties and a third coal mine in northwestern BC from Walter Canada.

The Ministry of Energy and Mines says Conuma expects to have the Wolverine Mine operating at full production levels by April, exporting 1.5 million tonnes of metallurgical coal annually. Read The Vancouver Sun article.

New Regulations Enact Historic
Great Bear Rainforest Legislation
The Great Bear Rainforest (Forest Management) Act is set to take effect Jan. 1, 2017, following the enactment of regulations that bring the act into force and fulfill government's commitment to ecosystem-based management in the Great Bear Rainforest. The regulations:

• bring into force the Great Bear Rainforest (Forest Management) Act effective Jan. 1, 2017;
• create eight new special forest management areas totalling 263,612 hectares;
• replace and reconfigure timber supply areas to align with the Great Bear Rainforest's geographic boundaries;
• set the allowable annual cut for the entire Great Bear Rainforest to 2.5 million cubic metres per year for the next 10 years; and
• provide the new allowable annual cut for each of the forest licences affected by the legislation.

The Great Bear Rainforest Land Use Order was finalized in February 2016, and the Great Bear Rainforest (Forest Management) Act received Royal Assent in May 2016. The regulations announced today bring the act into effect and meet government's commitment to full implementation of ecosystem-based management in the area. Read government news release.

China's Proposed National Carbon Market and
Opportunities for Cooperation with Canada
While there is some uncertainty on how the U.S. climate strategy will evolve under a Trump presidency, a number of new carbon emissions regulations and control strategies continue to be developed throughout the world, notably in China and Canada.

Both China and Canada ratified the Paris Agreement in September and October 2016 respectively, and it was entered into force on November 4, 2016. As one of its key greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions control initiatives, in 2017, China plans to establish a national carbon market (Chinese Carbon Market), according to China's President Xi Jinping.

Once in place, the Chinese Carbon Market will be the largest carbon cap-and-trade scheme in the world, essentially involving all of China's local provincial governments (Local Governments) with oversight and guidance from the Central Government of China (Central Government). Read the full article by Roger Song and Ky Kvisle of Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP.