Memorandum to Minister – Decision making authorities during the federal election

Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency
President
160 Elgin St., 22nd floor
Ottawa ON K1A 0H3

Agence canadienne d’evaluation environnementale
Président
160, rue Elgin, ne etage
Ottawa ON K1A 0H3

PROTECTED B
MIN-251111

Memorandum to Minister
Decision Making Authorities under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 and the Impact Assessment Act during the 2019 Federal Election

(For Decision and Signature)

Timeline

Your decision and signature is requested by August 21, 2019 (internal deadline).

Purpose

To seek your decision on whether to authorize the President of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency to make certain decisions under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 (CEAA 2012) and under the Impact Assessment Act (not in force) (IAA) during the 2019 federal election Caretaker Convention period (Caretaker period).

Summary

Context

Under the Caretaker Convention, the government must act with restraint during an election, confining itself to necessary public business, either routine or urgent. The Caretaker Convention period applies once the writ of elections is issued and lasts until the swearing in of the new Cabinet.

Under CEAA 2012, legislated timelines apply to certain decision points within a federal environmental assessment, while other decision points are not subject to legislated timelines. The types of decision points that may require an exercise of restraint during the periods under CEAA 2012 include:

Subsection 108(2) of CEAA 2012 provides that the President of the Agency is its chief executive officer and may exercise all of your powers under CEAA 2012 as authorized by you.

Following coming into force of the IAA, there will be similar decision points within a federal impact assessment that may be required during the Caretaker period. These include:

Subsection 160(2) of the IAA provides that the President of the Agency is its chief executive officer, and may exercise all of your powers under IAA as authorized by you.

Upcoming Decision-Making Authorities of Interest

Designation Requests under Subsection 14(2) of CEAA 2012 and Subsection 9(1) of the IAA

Subsection 14(2) of CEAA 2012 provides you with the authority to designate projects not described in the Regulations Designating Physical Activities, as designated projects requiring a federal environmental assessment under CEAA 2012. Subsection 9(1) of the IAA gives you the authority to designate projects not described in the Physical Activities Regulations as designated projects.

Redacted text

Granting Substitution under Subsection 32(1) of CEAA 2012 and 31(1) of IAA

Subsection 32(1) of CEAA 2012 requires that where you believe that an environmental assessment of another jurisdiction is an appropriate substitute for the environmental assessment under CEAA 2012, you must, on receipt of a request of a province, approve the substitution. Conversely, under subsection 31(1) of IAA, you may approve the substitution on receipt of a request of a jurisdiction.

Redacted text

Referral to a Review Panel Time Limit under Subsection 38(1) of CEAA 2012

Subsection 38(1) of CEAA 2012 provides you with the authority to refer a project that is subject to an environmental assessment to a review panel, if in your opinion it is in the public interest.

Redacted text

Decision to Extend the Time-Period of the Minister's Subsection 52(1) Decision under Subsection 27(3) of CEAA 2012

Subsection 27(2) requires you to make your subsection 52(1) decision no later than 365 days following the date on which the Notice of Commencement is posted on the Registry internet site. Subsection 27(3) provides you with the power to extend this time period by a maximum of three months as necessary to cooperate with another jurisdiction.

Redacted text

Decision on Significant Adverse Environmental Effects under Section 52 of CEAA 2012

Redacted text

Recommendation

Next Steps

(Original signed by)
__________________________________
Ron Hallman
President
c.c. Stephen Lucas

_______ I concur

_______ I do not concur

(Original signed on August 8, 2019 by)
__________________________________
Catherine McKenna

Attachments (2):

Attachment I
Authorization of decision-making authorities under CEAA 2012 and the Impact Assessment Act

Ministre de l'Environnement et du Changement climatique
Ottawa, Canada K1A OH3

Minister of Environment and Climate Change
Ottawa, Canada K1A OH3

Authorization under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 and the Impact Assessment Act

I, the undersigned Minister of the Environment, pursuant to subsection 108(2) of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 do hereby authorize the President of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency to exercise my power under

Authorization under the Impact Assessment Act

I, the undersigned Minister of the Environment, pursuant to subsection 160(2) of the Impact Assessment Act, upon its coming into force, do hereby authorize the President of the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada to exercise my power under

The above authorizations will apply from the date on which the writ is issued for the 2019 federal election until the swearing in of a new Cabinet.

__________________________________
The Honourable Catherine McKenna, P.C., M.P.

Signed at Ottawa, Ontario on August 8, 2019

Annex I
Summary Table of Projects with Ministerial Decision Points during the Caretaker Convention

Summary of Potential Project Decision Points during the Caretaker Convention

Project Name

Process Step

Special Issues

Page 10
is withheld pursuant to sections
est retenue en vertu des articles
21 (1)(a), 21(1)(c)
of the Access to Information
de la Loi sur l'acces a ('information

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