strategic environmental assessment october 22, 2012

STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT

OCTOBER 22, 2012

OVERVIEW

• Strategic Environmental Assessment (Strategic EA): Introduction

• Cabinet Directive on Strategic EA

• Strategic EAs under Cabinet Directive

• Strategic EA: Farm Income Protection Act

• Legislating Strategic EA

STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT: DEFINITIONS

• “The systematic and comprehensive process of evaluating the environmental effects of a policy, plan or program and its alternatives”

Cabinet Directive p. 13• “Seeks to incorporate environmental

considerations into the development of public policies and strategic decisions”

Cabinet Directive p. 2

STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT: DEFINITIONS

• “The evaluation of likely environmental, including health effects, which comprises determination of the scope of an environmental report and its preparation, carrying-out of public participation and consultations, and taking into account of the environmental report and results of public participation and consultations in a plan or programme”

Strategic EA Protocol Art. 2• Trend toward including economic and social, as

well as environmental, considerations

STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT

Strategic EAs can include assessment of:•An industry sector, region, policy, plan, program (oil sands in northern Alberta)•First proposed project to introduce new technology in region (tidal energy)•International agreements (free trade)•Identified environmental/sustainable development challenge (energy policy)•Respond to policy gap in project EA

STRATEGIC EA PRINCIPLES

• Integrated

• Sustainability-led

• Focused

• Accountable

• Participative

• Iterative

• Identify future outcomes

• Consider alternatives

STRATEGIC EA LEGAL, POLICY FRAMEWORKS

• Strategic EA Protocol • Cabinet Directive on the Environmental

Assessment of Policy, Plan and Program Proposals (federal)

• Farm Income Protection Act • CEAA 2012 ss. 73, 74 Regional Studies • Provinces lack SEA laws/policies (note

Ontario Environmental Bill of rights)• European Union 2001 SEA Directive

STRATEGIC EA PROTOCOL

• Protocol to Espoo Convention

• Adopted 2003, entered into force 2010

• Canada not signatory

• Requires Parties to evaluate environmental consequences of official draft plans and programs

• Provides for public participation in government decision-making in numerous development sectors

STRATEGIC EA PROTOCOL

• Public has the right to know about plans and programs, comment, have comments taken into account, be told of final decision and why it was taken

• Parties requested to inform each other about plans/programs having significant transboundary environmental effects

• If such effects, developing Party has notification obligation and affected public has comment rights

CABINET DIRECTIVE ON STRATEGIC EA

• Strategic EA originally included in 1984 EARP Guidelines Order

• Cabinet Directive issued in 1990 to complement CEAA project EA

• Amended 1999, 2004

• Not legally binding but issuance by Privy Council Office carries weight


• “Strong commitment to sustainable development”

• Ministers expect a strategic EA whenever a proposal:– “may result in important environmental effects” – “is submitted to an individual Minister or

Cabinet for approval”

• What does “expect” mean?

• “Important” vs. “Significant”?


• Ministers also expect strategic EA to consider:– Scope and nature of likely environmental

effects– Need for mitigation – Likely importance of environmental effects

• Strategic EA to contribute to development of policies, programs, plans on “an equal basis with economic and social analysis”


• “Level of effort” to be “commensurate with level of anticipated environmental effects”

• Environmental analysis to be integrated into each option

• Use “existing mechanisms” to involve public, “as appropriate”

• Prepare “public statement of environmental effects” when “detailed assessment” conducted

CABINET DIRECTIVE GUIDELINES

Benefits of applying Cabinet Directive: •Optimize positive, minimize or mitigate negative effects•Consider potential cumulative effects •Implement Federal Sustainable Development Strategy •Save time and money (liability for clean-ups, other unforeseen concerns)•Streamline project-level assessment•Promote accountability

CABINET DIRECTIVE PROCESS

• Determine applicability

• Conduct preliminary scan

• Analyze environmental effects, including public and stakeholder concerns

• Document and report

STRATEGIC EA FARM INCOME PROTECTION ACT 1991

• S.4.(2) “Any program established under FIPA should encourage long-term environmental and economic stability”

• S.5.(2) An agreement with respect to any program shall, . . . (b) require an environmental assessment of the program to be conducted within two years . . . of the agreement and every five years thereafter,”


• Strategic EAs conduced for following programs:– Gross Revenue Insurance Program– Federal-Provincial Crop Insurance

Program– Net Income Stabilization Account– Western Grain Transportation Act

Amendments – Branch Rail Line Abandonment in Western

Canada


• Key difference with Cabinet Directive Strategic EAs conducted after introduction of program

• Benefits– Cabinet confidentiality not an issue– Better data on environmental effects– Full reports public accessible

• Key insight: most policies, programs, plans are iterative, annual or cyclical

CABINET DIRECTIVE EFFECTIVENESS

• “Cabinet Directive does little more than communicate a general expectation to identify and consider environmental consequences of major decisions at the federal level on par with social and economic factors” Doelle p. 195

2004 AUDIT ENVIRONMENT COMMISSIONER

• Level of commitment to and compliance with Cabinet Directive was low

• Few strategic EAs conducted

• Completeness varied

• Tracking was inadequate

• Insufficient commitment by management

• No central responsibility for compliance and quality control

2004 AUDIT ENVIRONMENT COMMISSIONER

• Limited integration of results into decision-making

• Few Strategic EAs made available to public

• Even fewer involved the public in Strategic EA process

PUBLIC STATEMENTS UNDER CABINET DIRECTIVE

• CEA Agency website includes hundreds of public statements produced by 7 federal departments (e.g., CIDA, Environment, Finance, Parks Canada) since 2004

• At least some Public Statements indicate public has been consulted

• Data and analysis remain confidential

• Marmot Basin Public Statement

STRATEGIC EA OF BUDGETS

• Green Budget Coalition recommended that selected fiscal measures in 2003 federal budget undergo Strategic EA

• Avoid Cabinet and budget confidentiality issues by undertaking SEAs after budget released

• Met with Clerk of Privy Council (Alex Himmelfarb), who was enthusiastic

STRATEGIC EA OF BUDGETS

• Recent budgets include modest public statements of environmental effects for specific budget provisions

• Budget 2011– Extension of 15% Mineral Exploration Tax

Credit for flow-through shares investors– Expansion of accelerated capital cost allowance

Class 43.2 to include equipment that generates electricity using waste heat

– Extending qualifying environmental trust rules to pipelines

OTHER STRATEGIC EAS

• Tidal Energy in Bay of Fundy

• Free Trade Agreements (e.g., NAFTA)

• Nuclear Fuel Waste Management and Disposal Concept Panel Review

LEGISLATING STRATEGIC EA

• House of Commons Environment Committee June 2003 report

• Recommended that Privy Council Office develop legislation establishing a legal framework for Strategic EA

• Government response was to refer Strategic EA issue to CEAA Regulatory Advisory Committee

• Report completed but never tabled (RAC in limbo)

strategic environmental assessment october 22, 2012

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