Action Alert: Canadian Environmental Assessment Act

The Harper Government has not budgeted for the five million dollars that was committed to implement last November's Cabinet Directive for the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. The Directive (posted online at http://www.ceaa-acee.gc.ca/013/010/directives_e.htm), prioritizes the delivery of high quality environmental assessments in a predictable, certain and timely manner, while recognizing the need for strong leadership from the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency and the federal environmental assessment coordinator.

The Directive bills itself as an initial step towards achieving consolidation of the federal environmental assessment process and aims to:

  • encourage federal authorities to adhere to prescribed timelines;
  • have the Agency develop much-needed guidance on important and controversial issues such as scoping, triggering and incorporation of species at risk considerations into federal environmental assessment;
  • assist responsible authorities with consensus-building and facilitation of controversial issues;
  • have federal authorities and responsible authorities work together to implement meaningful and effective mitigation and follow-up measures; and
  • develop performance measures for tracking and evaluating success.

The importance of this funding was recognized by the multi-stakeholder Regulatory Advisory Committee to the Minister on Environmental Assessment.

This $5 million commitment is now in peril.

Please take one or more of the following actions:

  1. Distribute this ACTION ALERT to other organizations and individuals.
  2. Phone, email or fax the following people:
Prime Minister
Right Honourable Stephen Harper
[email protected]
Ottawa Office
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
Telephone: (613) 992-4211
Fax: (613) 941-6900
Jim Prentice
Honourable Jim Prentice
[email protected]
Ottawa Office
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
Telephone: (613) 992-4275
Fax: (613) 947-9475
Leader of the Opposition Party
Hon. Bill Graham, Leader of the Opposition
[email protected]
Ottawa Office
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
Telephone: (613) 992-5234
Fax: (613) 996-9607
MPs - contact info at this web site

 

P.S. Thanks to all of you who have already emailed, faxed and phoned based on my earlier, less detailed call for action.

Martha Kostuch