Ottawa plans to spend $1.3 billion over the next six years to improve the impact assessment process
OTTAWA – Worried that the same process that has held up oil and gas projects will slow critical minerals projects and wind farms, the Liberals are again promising more funding to ensure Canada’s environmental assessment process works faster.
In last week’s budget, under the title “Getting Major Projects Done,” the Liberals promised to spend $1.3 billion over the next six years to improve the impact assessment process they first put in place when they came to office.
The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada reviews major projects like mines, pipelines and power facilities for their environmental impact. The Liberals brought in changes to the agency in 2019, with a bill that critics have called the “no more pipelines act.”
The Alberta government challenged the Liberals changes and the province’s court of appeal called them unconstitutional and a “wrecking ball” into the division of powers between provinces and the federal government. The Supreme Court heard the case last month, but has not yet ruled.
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