Ottawa, May 23, 2006 - The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (the Agency) today announced that $100,000 are available to assist the public in participating in the public hearings for the Brunswick Pipeline gas project. The hearings on the environmental effects of the proposed pipeline, to be held by the National Energy Board (NEB), will be announced at a future date.
The Agency's Participant Funding Program is intended to ensure that every point of view is taken into account by providing support to individuals and non-profit organizations interested in participating in environmental assessments. Funding can cover eligible expenses such as travel costs and fees for experts.
A funding review committee, independent from the NEB review panel, will review applications and recommend the allocation of funds according to criteria established in the Participant Funding Program Guide. Participants selected by the committee must also obtain intervener status with the NEB prior to receiving funding.
Applications for funding must be received at the Agency no later than June 21, 2006. The Participant Funding Program Guide, the application form and information relating to the project and to the participant funding program is available on the Agency web site.
On May 4, the Agency announced a pilot project whereby the NEB process will be substituted as a replacement method for conducting a panel-level federal environmental assessment of the Brunswick Pipeline gas project.
The project’s proponent, Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline Management Ltd., plans to build a natural gas pipeline that will extend approximately 145 km from the Canaport liquefied natural gas facility at Mispec Point in Saint John, New Brunswick to the international border near St. Stephen, New Brunswick where it will interconnect to facilities still to be constructed. The pipeline will consist of several facilities, including valve sites.
- 30 -
The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency administers the federal environmental assessment process, which identifies the environmental effects of proposed projects and measures to address those effects, in support of sustainable development.
For more information, media may contact:
Nicholas Girard
Senior Communications Advisor
Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency
160 Elgin Street, 22nd floor
Ottawa (Ontario) K1A 0H3
Tel.: (613) 957-0958
Fax: (613) 957-0946
nicholas.girard@ceaa-acee.gc.ca
For more information on the participant funding program please contact:
Peter Bedrossian
Manager, Participant Funding Program
Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency
160 Elgin Street, 22nd floor
Ottawa, Ontario k1A 0H3
Tel.: (613) 957-0826
Fax: (613) 957-0496
peter.bedrossian@ceaa-acee.gc.ca
To obtain information on the NEB or to learn how to apply for status, please contact:
Marian Yuzda
National Energy Board
(403) 299-3818 or 1 (800) 899-1265
myuzda@neb-one.gc.ca
