Tories have ignored environmental assessment panel, member says

OTTAWA - A federal panel that advises the government on the environmental impact of new economic development has been left on the sidelines for nearly two years, Canwest News Service has learned. Throughout this time, sweeping changes to regulations have been passed, effectively exempting thousands of projects from mandatory evaluations.

``We haven't had any notice that the minister has dissolved the committee, but it's kind of awkward to have a committee that doesn't meet,'' said Gary Schneider, who sits on the panel.

Schneider, the co-chairman of the Environmental Coalition of Prince Edward Island, said the last meeting of the Regulatory Advisory Committee was in the spring of 2008. But, he said, no consultations were held with the panel in 2009, as the government introduced a series of exemptions for new infrastructure projects.

More than 90 per cent of thousands of new projects receiving funding from the Harper government will proceed without a federal environmental assessment, Canwest News Service reported in November. Although the projects may still be subject to provincial assessments, the government said the exemptions and the lack of federal assessments is the result of the need to kick-start projects. The government argued that extensive consultations and duplicate evaluations would ``slow projects and threaten Canada's economic recovery.''

But Schneider said the government was missing the point of assessments and how they can improve projects and avoid unnecessary, adverse impacts.

``We're all kind of upset about it and partly because we think we're there to develop better regulations,'' Schneider said. ``We're not there to try to shut down industry in the country or anything like that.''

He said he was confused about why Environment Minister Jim Prentice has not asked them for advice.

``If you think that you know everything, and you don't need to take advice from the public, just because you got elected . . . I don't think it paints a very good picture of the minister,'' he said.

The Regulatory Advisory Committee was first established in 1992 to help implement environmental assessment legislation and advise the environment minister. It is made up of stakeholders from government, industry and environmental organizations, which generally used to meet at least once a year.

A spokeswoman for the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency said she could not comment on why the committee has not met since 2008. But she suggested that they would be brought together again soon as part of a required review by Parliament in 2010 of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.

``We are currently looking at a forward agenda for future RAC meetings,'' said spokeswoman Annie Roy said.

Two environmental groups, Ecojustice and the Sierra Club of Canada, have challenged the changes from last spring, which were introduced through regulations, without legislation in Parliament. They have suggested the government used the economic slowdown as an excuse to eliminate environmental protection legislation.

Although there were no consultations on the exemptions introduced last spring, Roy noted there were high-level discussions between the federal and provincial governments prior to the changes.