WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL LAW ASSOCIATION

WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL LAW RESEARCH FOUNDATION

WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION FUND SOCIETY

ANNUAL REPORTS
and
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

May 1, 1995 - April 30, 1996

HISTORY

The West Coast Environmental Law Association (WCELA) began as the Vancouver Environmental Law Centre in the summer of 1974, at the initiative of University of British Columbia law students. It provided a legal advisory service for the citizens of British Columbia regarding environmental problems. The Centre was incorporated as a Society in 1975, and assumed its present name, the West Coast Environmental Law Association, later in the same year.

During 1975 and 1976, the Association began emphasizing environmental legal education and expanded its legal advisory and representation programs throughout the province. In 1977, the Association's educational activities were assumed by the newly-incorporated West Coast Environmental Law Research Foundation (WCELRF), a registered charitable organization.

Since 1977, WCELA and WCELRF have continued to grow. In 1989 the West Coast Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund (EDRF) was established. Its purpose is to promote the rational resolution of environmental disputes in BC by providing financial assistance to concerned citizens for litigation, experts' fees, and alternative methods of dispute resolution, such as multi-sector negotiations. Beginning May 1, 1995, the EDRF was incorporated into a new, charitable organization, the West Coast Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund Society.

Today, the West Coast Environmental Law organizations actively carry on key legal advisory, representative, consultative and educational services for the British Columbia public. Their success can be attributed to a number of factors:

• a dedicated and capable staff
• a strong and vitally concerned Board of Directors
• time donated by lawyers, law students and volunteers, and
• continued support from the Law Foundation of British Columbia and from other foundations, members and donors.

MISSION STATEMENT

The mission of the West Coast Environmental Law organizations is to provide legal services, research and education to promote protection of the environment and public participation in environmental decision-making.

LEGAL STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES

The organizations' legal strategic objectives are to:

• broaden legal standing and legal rights to obtain remedies to protect the environment and ensure public input into environmental decision-making
• ensure timely and efficient access to environmental information
• improve the legal and administrative procedures for developing environmental standards, assessing environmental impact, and conducting land use planning
• foster the adoption of enforceable standards and other legal tools to protect the environment
• ensure compliance with environmental standards
• promote alternative methods of resolving environmental disputes
• strengthen mechanisms for implementing the polluter pays principle, e.g., that the environmental costs of activities are borne by those who conduct such activities, and
• promote ways to facilitate environmentally responsible purchasing practices.

ENVIRONMENTAL STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES

The organizations' environmental strategic objectives are to:

• protect the quality, quantity and timing of flow of water
• prevent damage to our air, atmosphere or climate
• prevent toxic contamination, and identify, contain and properly deal with existing toxic contamination
• promote environmentally sustainable activities that foster biological diversity and habitat, and safeguard wilderness and environmentally sensitive areas, and
• promote conservation of energy.

PROGRAMS

West Coast Environmental Law provides services in five program areas:

• legal aid - client representation, summary advice, referral to environmental lawyers, and the West Coast Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund
• law reform - promoting improvements to environmental laws, regulations and policies
• legal research - examining statutes, regulations, court cases and policies in BC and other jurisdictions
• legal education - publications, the WCEL Newsletter, public speaking and media interviews, and
• West Coast's library of environmental legal materials.

Message from the President

This has been another busy year at West Coast Environmental Law. Detailed lists of our activities are set out below, but I want to bring your attention to some highlights.

First, Chris Rolfe returned from his highly successful secondment with the BC Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks. While at the Ministry, Chris was a key force in the development of BC’s precedent-setting air pollution regulations regarding clear vehicles and fuels. Back at West Coast, Chris has plunged into a major project on global warming, examining the best regulatory and financial mechanisms for controlling emissions of greenhouse gases.

Second, the Law Foundation agreed with our positive evaluation of last year’s pilot project in which Pat Houlihan worked as a full-time liaison lawyer on our Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund. The Law Foundation approved our 1996-97 EDRF funding request, including the liaison lawyer position. In 1995-96, the EDRF supported an impressive number of projects: 35, more than 90% of which were located outside the Lower Mainland. The success rate has been extremely high, notably regarding a number of appeals regarding air emissions from proposed fibreboard plants at various locations.

Third, Forest Renewal BC, with Ann Hillyer as a director and chair of the environment committee, is playing a major role in BC forests. Ann’s presence on the FRBC board reflects the innovative, multisector nature of FRBC. With funding from stumpage revenue, FRBC provides millions of dollars of grants for projects aimed at renewing the forest economy of BC and enhancing the productive capacity and environmental value of forest lands.

Fourth, this year Linda Nowlan has done an excellent job working with a wide variety of people to explain and improve the intricate web of laws that affect wetlands and urban streams. A large proportion of wetlands and urban streams in BC has already been lost, and most of what remains is threatened by existing or anticipated urban development. On the positive side, however, many people are now working very hard on many aspects of the problem, and we are pleased to contribute by developing the available legal options.

Fifth, and quite related to our work on wetlands and urban streams, is conservation covenants. This year, we published and distributed a book written by Bill Andrews and me on the practical side of negotiating and drafting conservation covenants, with help from more than a dozen conservation organizations. Having worked for years on conservation covenants as a law reform objective, it has been wonderful this year to work on conservation covenants as an established legal tool being utilized by a rapidly increasing number of landowners and conservation groups.

Last, but not least, I want to highlight our library’s success this year in establishing a flourishing presence on the Internet. While our hard-copy collection continues to expand in quality and quantity, public access to it is limited by geography. With more and more lawyers, students and environmentally concerned citizens using the Internet, our library’s extensive online collection of full-text books, reports, statutes, environmental appeal board decisions and links to other resources is, we believe, a new and significant public service.

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank a number of long-serving directors who have chosen to make this their last year on the board. David Avren, Sarah Groves, Reece Harding, Melody Hessing, Adrienne Peacock, John Rich and Ray Schachter have contributed enormously over many years. We will miss their enthusiasm and dedication within the West Coast organization. But, I know they will remain heavily involved in the many ongoing environmental legal challenges, and we look forward to working with them in that new capacity.

Many people contributed to the success of West Coast over this past year. They include our excellent staff, project workers, volunteers, students, donors, funders and lawyers who work on a reduced fee basis through the EDRF. They also include our numerous clients — concerned citizens whose dedication to environmental protection is both our raison d’etre and our inspiration. Last but not least, they include the Board of Directors, whose support, direction and encouragement are critical to the smooth functioning of the West Coast organizations. Thank you all * these reports scarcely begin to summarize what, together, we have all accomplished.

DAVID LOUKIDELIS

DIRECTORS

Executive

David Loukidelis President Barrister & Solicitor Waldemar Braul Vice President Barrister & Solicitor

Nancy Morgan Secretary Barrister & Solicitor Sarah Groves Treasurer Instructor

David Avren Past President Barrister & Solicitor

Board

David Cohen Barrister & Solicitor Reece Harding Barrister & Solicitor Fred Henton Environmental Officer

Melody Hessing Instructor Tim Howard Barrister & Solicitor Murray Lott Barrister & Solicitor

Adrienne Peacock Instructor John Rich Barrister & Solicitor Raymond Schachter Barrister & Solicitor

Honorary

Thomas Berger Barrister & Solicitor Garth Evans Barrister & Solicitor

Dr. Christopher Harvey Barrister & Solicitor Gregory McDade Barrister & Solicitor

J. Ross McClellan Barrister & Solicitor Dr. Andrew Thompson Barrister & Solicitor

STAFF

Executive Director

William J. Andrews,
Barrister & Solicitor

Staff Counsel

Ann Hillyer,
Barrister & Solicitor

Linda Nowlan,
Barrister & Solicitor

Chris Rolfe,
Barrister & Solicitor

Patricia Houlihan,
Barrister & Solicitor

Office Manager

Catherine Ludgate

Administrative Assistants

Morgan Ashbridge

Alexandra Melnyk

System Administrator

Chris Heald

Accountant

Susan Cote, CGA

Special Projects

Mary Abbott, law student

Gulshan Bhanji, office training

Jessica Clogg, law student

Ted Lewko, criminology student

Lisa McBain, law student

Dyan Oldenburg, fundraising consultant

David Russell, legal research

Volunteers

Marnie Androuilionis Tracey Cook Tara Gurr Michael Harris James Henry Gillian Hogg Jeff Johnston

Lubianna Jubba Lisa Loblaw Judith MacDermott Patricia McDonald Jennifer McJanet John McMillan Eamon Murphy

Grant Nash Stephen Partington Corey Piche Michael Rodgers Carole Rubin Mark Sheardown Barbara Thompson

WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL LAW ASSOCIATION

Objectives

To provide legal advice and representation to individuals and organizations concerned about protection of the environment.

To work toward legislation and policy which ensures protection of the environment and effective public involvement in environmental decision-making.

LAW REFORM

WCELA pursues its legal strategic objectives through a wide range of law reform activities. Pollution: West Coast participated in the BC Prevention Criteria and Standards Working Group to draft policy for the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks in setting permit and regulatory environmental standards. The draft policy includes principles to be followed in setting standards, such as the precautionary principle and the pollution prevention approach. At the federal level, West Coast made written comments on the federal regulatory review, contributed to the debate regarding the proposed Regulatory Efficiency Act, commented on the proposed changes to the Fisheries Act, commented on the March 1996 federal budget, and contributed extensively to the five-year review of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

Forests: Staff Counsel Ann Hillyer served as a director of Forest Renewal BC and as the chair of the Environment Committee. West Coast organized a workshop for environmental organizations interested in FRBC's mandate and work, many of whom were also interested in developing project proposals for FRBC funding.

Environmental Assessment: West Coast worked extensively on the implementation of the provincial environmental assessment process. West Coast also reviewed guide materials for the provincial environmental assessment process that were prepared by the Environmental Assessment Office. At the federal level, West Coast served on the Regulatory Advisory Committee for the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. West Coast also made written comments on the proposed Canada-BC agreement on environmental assessment.

Conservation Covenants: West Coast worked extensively with conservancy groups, community organizations and individuals interested in using conservation covenants to protect ecological features of private land, now that the Land Title Act allows non-governmental organizations to hold conservation covenants.

Transportation: West Coast participated in organizing the 1996 National Transportation Conference in Vancouver, which focused on identifying a national vision for sustainable transportation, the barriers to achieving that vision, and the means of overcoming those obstacles. West Coast also worked on a Transportation Sustainability Report Card for the Fraser Basin Management Program, and provided advice to that Program and the Natural Resources Defense Council on trends in emissions from motor vehicles and the need for emission reduction policies centered on reducing transportation demand.

Harmonization: West Coast served on the National Advisory Group on Harmonization of Environmental Law, sponsored by the Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment. West Coast also participated actively in the Harmonization Working Group of the Canadian Environmental Network.

Voluntary Codes: West Coast is an external advisor for a Voluntary Codes Project sponsored by Industry Canada and Treasury Board. West Coast also provided written comments on a report on voluntary pollution prevention agreements prepared for Environment Canada by Energy Pathways Inc. and the Canadian Institute of Environmental Law and Policy.

Global Climate Change: West Coast has been actively monitoring the implementation of law reform aspects of the BC Greenhouse Gas Action Plan and has submitted briefs on the need to improve both the Plan and its implementation.

Contaminated Sites: West Coast provided research on contaminated sites and the financial services industry conducted for the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy. At the provincial level, West Coast defended the contaminated sites legislation (passed but not yet in force) and participated in consultations on the development of contaminated sites regulations.

Clean Vehicles and Fuels: West Coast lawyers participated in the development of clean air policies and regulations in BC. Chris Rolfe was seconded to the Environment Ministry to draft the Motor Vehicle Emission Reduction Regulation. West Coast also served on the Deputy Minister's Task Force on Clean Vehicles, promoting zero emission vehicles and ensuring that the auto industry continues to work on reducing emissions of carbon dioxide. West Coast worked with the Ministry in developing regulations governing warranties for motor vehicle emission systems and programs for scrapping high-pollution vehicles.

Air Quality: West Coast continued as a member of the Lower Fraser Valley Air Quality Advisory Committee, and provided information about the clean vehicles task force to the Advisory Committee.

Fish Farming: West Coast advocated changes to the new Farm Practices Protection (Right to Farm) Act, which limits the law of nuisance in connection with problems caused by fish farms.

Conservation: Staff Counsel Ann Hillyer was appointed to the board of the Islands Trust Fund, which acquires legal interests in land to promote conservation in the Gulf Islands area.

Ocean Protection: West Coast submitted a brief and appeared at conference hearings on the proposed federal Oceans Act in Vancouver. West Coast also wrote a chapter on reforming ocean dumping regulations, as part of the Canadian Environmental Network's comments on the proposed changes to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

Mining: West Coast was a member of the BC Task Force on Mine Reclamation Security, which completed a report outlining a formalized process for setting financial security for mine reclamation.

Urban Streams: West Coast began a project on legal tools to protect urban streams. The project is identifying the laws that can be used to protect these valuable resources, determining what works and what doesn't, and suggesting reforms to current laws and policies.

Oil Spills: Staff lawyer Linda Nowlan is a member of the BC Citizens' Advisory Committee on oil spill prevention and response. The Committee obtained input from groups around the province (at a series of public forums) on the issue of oil spill prevention, and prepared a report to the BC government outlining further steps that can be taken to prevent oil spills.

Hazardous Household Waste Product Stewardship: West Coast commented on and attended meetings regarding the proposed BC government initiative to extend the Post Consumer Product Paint Stewardship Regulation to solvents and pesticides.

International Environmental Law: West Coast attended the annual meeting of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development in April as a non-government representative with the Canadian delegation. The Commission oversees progress on implementing the commitments made by nations at the Rio Earth Summit, specifically Agenda 21, the draft Framework Convention on Climate Change, and the Convention on Biological Diversity. West Coast also served as a member of the Canadian delegation to the Fourth International Conference on Environmental Enforcement and Compliance, held in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Biodiversity: West Coast continues to act as a member of the Canadian Biodiversity Coalition in a public education campaign about the importance of biodiversity protection. The coalition has published a booklet for use in schools, and fact sheets on issues such as biodiversity and the law, biodiversity and agriculture, and biodiversity and endangered species.

Trade and the Environment: West Coast lawyers assisted the BC Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks in its response to draft guidelines for developing environmental regulations. The guidelines were developed by the Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment in an effort to avoid conflicts with the Canadian Agreement on Internal Trade.

Public Access to Environmental Information: West Coast participated in an expert panel on public access to information held in Montreal, providing advice to the North American Commission on Environmental Cooperation. In BC, West Coast worked with a coalition of conservation groups pushing for government policies that would allow practical access to digital map information used for public participation in land use planning.

BC Election: West Coast prepared background information and law reform questions for each of BC's main political parties campaigning in the 1996 BC election. The parties' responses were analyzed in a detailed report, and circulated widely in a summary form.

In addition to these activities in the Law Reform Advocacy Program, West Coast also does a substantial amount of law reform work on behalf of specific clients, which falls under the Legal Aid Program, discussed next.

LEGAL AID

The Association's legal representation, advice and information in 1995-96 included:

Applied Ecological Stewardship Coalition of BC: West Coast assisted the Coalition in its efforts to protect an ancient stand of cedar in the Kootenays. WCELA represented the group in court to have the terms of an injunction narrowed so that the representatives of the group could still enter the forested area in a peaceful, non-interfering manner.

Brackendale Citizens Opposed to Airport Expansion: West Coast is assisting this group in its attempts to obtain an environmental assessment of a proposed airport expansion. The group is concerned about possible harm to one of North America's largest populations of bald eagles which reside in the area.

Comox Valley Watershed Assembly: West Coast provided an opinion on potential conflicts between the provincial Water Act and the federal Fisheries Act.

Cowichan Estuary Preservation Society: West Coast provided assistance in drafting the Society's submission to the BC Freedom of Information and Privacy Commissioner. The Society was attempting to obtain the results of sediment contamination tests submitted to the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks by a lumber mill. The Information Commissioner ruled in the Society's favour. The company took the Commissioner's decision to the BC Supreme Court. The organization received funding from the EDRF for the Court hearing and was successful in obtaining the environmental test results it had been seeking.

FORD Society: West Coast assisted the Society to appeal a permit to spray pesticides aerially without adequate buffer zones in a residential area. An earlier Environmental Appeal Board decision requiring buffer zones had not been implemented. West Coast met the Ministry of Environment, on behalf of the FORD Society, and negotiated adequate buffer zones.

Lighthouse Decommissioning: West Coast gave advice to a group led by Senator Pat Carney about the applicability of assessment legislation to federal government plans to decommission lighthouses.

Friends of Boundary Bay and BC Great Blue Heron Society: West Coast assisted these groups to obtain an environmental assessment review for a sewage treatment plant currently under construction at the Tsatsu Shores project in Tsawwassen. Construction of this plant had started before any environmental assessment had been done. The environmental groups are also being represented by an EDRF lawyer in the assessment.

Friends of the Granby: West Coast is working with this group to protect more grizzly habitat in the Kootenays.

Islands Trust: West Coast prepared a proposal on property tax reform to promote conservation of private land.

Island Watch Society: West Coast provided information on ocean dumping laws and the sinking of old warships. Several have been sunk, and the Artificial Reef Society of BC plans to sink more to provide dive sites for recreational divers.

Neck Point Park Society: West Coast provided ongoing assistance to a community group lobbying to have an area of waterfront protected from development and maintained as a park. The group was successful in its efforts.

Ryder Lake Residents' Association: West Coast assisted this group in gathering and disseminating information, garnering public support and lobbying the District of Chilliwack, the Agricultural Land Commission and the provincial government. As a result of the group's efforts, plans to remove a large area of land from the Agricultural Land Reserve are on hold.

SUCCESS: West Coast provided legal information on trade in endangered species to this Chinese community group and others who were interested in a new report on the underground traffic in bear parts in Canada.

Vancouver Community Network: West Coast lawyers represented this group (formerly know as Vancouver Regional FreeNet Association) in its efforts to obtain charitable status, in order to stabilize its fundraising capability. The CommunityNet and West Coast have a partnership in which West Coast's World Wide Web site on the Internet is housed on the CommunityNet's computer.

Vancouver Natural History Society: At the request of the VNHS, West Coast prepared a report on possible amendments to the Park Act to clarify the conservation focus of the Act and to ensure that it accorded with the provincial Protected Areas Strategy.

Western Canada Wilderness Committee: The provincial government has a monopoly on digital base maps, which are used by all stakeholders in defining and resolving land use conflicts. West Coast acted for WCWC in an appeal to the Commissioner of Information and Privacy, arguing that the high prices charged for the digital maps denied non-profit groups access to the maps. Although the Commissioner declined to order release of the information, he said the pricing policy is unfair and recommended that the government develop a policy whereby non-profit groups could obtain reasonably-priced access to digital map information needed for participation in provincial land use issues.

Summary Advice

In addition, WCELA continues to emphasize summary advice to concerned citizens. By helping people to advocate their own environmental concerns, West Coast lawyers ensure that citizens involved in an environmental problem are aware of their rights. Frequently, staff lawyers refer citizens to members of the private bar, who are often willing to pursue the public interest in environmental matters on a pro bono basis. Monthly summary advice statistics are as follows: May 95: 34, June: 60, July: 28, August: 50, September: 60, October: 51, November: 44, December: 35, January 96: 55, February: 42, March: 42, April: 29, for a total of 530 for the year. Summary advice provided by West Coast included the following:

• assisted a group that was concerned about treecutting on University of British Columbia Endowment Lands; assisted another group regarding development of the lands and land use legal issues in relation to the Endowment Lands;
• assisted a group of New Westminster Residents in preparing submissions for their appearance before the Environmental Appeal Board regarding an aerial pesticide spraying issue;
• assisted a group forming a land trust to address land preservation in urban areas;
• assisted numerous groups by providing information regarding conservation covenants and their application to land protection in various areas;
• assisted several citizens' groups in determining whether there were legal means to have an assessment carried out with respect to the building of the Island Highway on Vancouver Island;
• assisted GUARD, a group of North Vancouver residents in their efforts to persuade the District of Vancouver not to develop wilderness areas;
• provided ongoing assistance to the Lifeforce Foundation, the Peace Country Environmental Association and other groups about their charitable status as environmental protection organizations. The groups have been denied charitable status or have been threatened with revocation of charitable status;
• assisted numerous groups in protecting watersheds from logging techniques which would likely have adverse impacts on the watershed;
• assisted several individuals with information regarding contaminated sites legislation in British Columbia and responsibility for clean up of contaminated property;
• assisted several lawyers from British Columbia and other jurisdictions on the status of legislative developments and on the implications of various environmental laws;
• provided ongoing assistance to the Burns Bog Conservation Society about the protection of Burns Bog from peat harvesting and development;
• assisted numerous individuals and community groups to have effective input in the municipal bylaw process;
• provided information on the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and the definition of "significant adverse environmental effects";
• assisted the City of Abbotsford with general information on pesticide use and municipal bylaws;
• provided information on how citizens can participate in addressing air quality issues and permit granting in their communities;
• provided information to a community group about environmental legal issues which may provide a basis for challenging a proposed development;
• helped a client who was making sentencing recommendations that included the establishment of a fish habitat protection fund;
• assisted an individual in negotiations with Parks Canada in an attempt to preserve land as parks;
• assisted a group seeking damages incurred in an oil spill clean up;
• provided information to a lawyer regarding private prosecutions under the federal Fisheries Act;
• provided assistance to citizens making complaints to the Office of the Ombudsperson;
• helped the Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks assess the impacts a decision of the World Trade Organization would have on the BC Cleaner Gasoline Regulation; and,
• provided summary advice to citizens about a number of other issues, including: pesticide registration and use, logging in watersheds, intervenor status, wildlife habitat protection, the Agricultural Land Reserve, bovine growth hormone, zoning and septic regulations, land use planning, environmental contamination, and health issues related to environmental degradation.

WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION FUND

Objectives

To help resolve environmental disputes in BC by providing financial assistance to concerned citizens for:

• participation in administrative tribunals, such as the BC Environmental Appeal Board or environmental assessment panels
• participation in alternative methods of resolving disputes
• examining, settling or pursuing environmental litigation, and
• experts' fees regarding issues being handled by WCELA staff counsel.

The West Coast Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund (EDRF) is a highly successful program that began in 1989 and is funded by the Law Foundation of British Columbia. Lawyers contribute their services on a partially pro bono basis and the Fund covers legal fees up to $50 per hour maximum.

Activities

In 1995-96, the West Coast Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund made grants to a wide range of organizations and individuals, including:

• Alberni Environmental Coalition: to ensure that fish and fish habitat are protected from negative impacts of jet boats on the Somass-Stamp river system, by applying for intervenor status in a BC Supreme Court hearing.
• Applied Ecological Stewardship Coalition of BC: to protect an old-growth forest stand as habitat for Cariboo and wildlife and to prevent potential severe hydrological impacts from logging. Although logging has begun, parts of the forest may still be protected.
• BC Energy Coalition: to promote sustainable energy policy for British Columbia, by participating in two BC Utilities Commission hearings - the Generic Mains Extension Test Hearings and the BC Gas 1996-1998 Revenue Requirement hearing. The BC Gas hearing was replaced by a successful alternative dispute resolution process.
• Cariboo Chilcotin Conservation Council: to preserve ecological and wildlife values in the interpretation and implementation of the CORE Cariboo/Chilcotin Land Use Plan. A legal review of the Plan was distributed to organizations in the region for use in current regional negotiations.
• Cheslatta Carrier Nation: to participate in the Project Review Committee assessment of the proposed Huckleberry Mine under the BC Environmental Assessment Act to ensure that wildlife and fish habitat are not adversely affected by acid mine drainage. Later funding enabled the Cheslatta to critique the Project Review Committee Report and draft a dissenting report.
• Concerned Citizens of Port Moody: to ensure that the wetland/bog in Port Moody remains protected as outlined in the Official Community Plan. Funding enabled the group to quash a bylaw and set a positive precedent for environmental protection.
• Conservancy Hornby Island: to protect a Garry Oak grove, to retain 5 per cent of land slated for residential development as park, and to ensure that beach access is provided.
• Cortes Island Forest Committee: to protect watersheds, wildlife and ecological features by developing an ecosystem-based plan for Cortes Island in conjunction with logging companies. One of the lumber companies has agreed to protect a stream on private land by implementing safeguards more stringent than those which would have been required on public land.
• Cowichan Estuary Preservation Society: to ensure that mill effluent was not adversely impacting the Cowichan Estuary. The Society successfully opposed the company's Supreme Court challenge to a favourable decision of the BC Commissioner of Information and Privacy. The Commissioner had ordered the release of sediment contamination data provided by the company to the Ministry.
• East Kootenay Environmental Society: to participate in a Supreme Court review of a decision allowing filling of a wetland portion of Lake Windermere. The Society sought to have the wetlands restored. The Society obtained the first stay to be issued pending a Water Act appeal, and the Society was granted standing under the Water Act by the Environmental Appeal Board.
• Friends of Boundary Bay/Fraser for Life: to protect and rehabilitate an ecologically sensitive saltmarsh that shelters wildlife. The group wants to ensure that a proper review under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and a full public hearing take place before a residential development and construction of a sewage pond proceeds.
• Friends of the Stikine Society: to protect fish and wildlife habitat on the Stikine and Iskut rivers from damage caused by a hovercraft used for ore transport. The group negotiated with the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the mining company in an attempt to resolve the problems, and finally launched a private prosecution regarding contraventions of the federal Fisheries Act and the BC Wildlife Act.
• Friends of West Arrow Park: to participate in negotiations with the provincial government and BC Hydro to preserve land for wildlife habitat.
• Grindrod Residents: to protect the Shuswapriver and ground water from pollution from sawmill waste.
• Koksilah River Protection Society: to participate in a BC Supreme Court hearing to protect the Koksilah River from the potential adverse effects of the sewage system of a proposed subdivision. The BC Supreme Court quashed the permit.
• Linnaea Farm Society: to preserve Linnaea Farm as an ecological reserve and educational centre for organic farming. The Society was successful in having the BC Supreme Court review a decision of the BC Assessment Appeal Board that the Society's lands were not tax exempt; the Court found that the Assessment Appeal Board erred in finding that the Society was subject to taxation. The matter was sent back to the Board to determine whether all or part of the land was tax exempt.
• Nechako Environmental Coalition: to protect human health and prevent potential air pollution from a proposed medium density strandboard plant. The Coalition participated in an Environmental Appeal Board hearing to safeguard air quality for residents of Prince George. The EAB amended the air emissions permit to require additional evaluation of air emission data before the plant's second phase can be completed. The proponent is currently appealing this decision.
• Outdoor Recreation Council: for follow-up work on the Vancouver Island CORE process and to participate in ongoing government consultation.
• Peace Country Environmental Protection Association: to protect community health and prevent air pollution by appealing an air emissions permit. The Association wants to quash or amend the permit to eliminate pollutants which may pose a serious health risk to Dawson Creek residents.
• Queens Bay Residents' Association: to evaluate the effects of timber cutting and to participate in the timber harvest planning process with the Ministry of Forests and the local lumber company.
• Sea-to-Sea Greenbelt Society: to protect the Greater Victoria Watershed. The Society participated in a hearing to ensure that cost/benefit analysis and water conservation measures are undertaken before work on the Sooke dam commences.
• Shuswap Association for Ecological Development: to protect Loftus Lake from possible sewage contamination by requiring the developer to comply with its permit. An agreement between the group and the developer was reached.
• Surrey/Langley Environmental Protection Society: to protect the health of residents and halt pollution from a mushroom manure composting facility that is out of compliance with a Greater Vancouver Regional District air pollution abatement order. The Society participated in an Environmental Appeal Board hearing to attempt to resolve this long-standing pollution problem.
• Wildwood Committee: to protect Burns Marsh, an important wild bird sanctuary, from a proposed sawmill development. The grant provided legal assistance for research and ongoing negotiations with the sawmill proponent.
• Williams Lake Environmental Society: to improve ambient air quality and prevent potentially harmful emissions, by appealing the air emissions permit issued to a fibreboard factory.

WEST COAST ENVIRONMENTAL LAW RESEARCH FOUNDATION

OBJECTIVES

To support and conduct legal research to develop standards and objectives that will ensure the maintenance of environmental quality.

To provide the public, industry and government with information on environmental legal issues.

ACTIVITIES

The Research Foundation conducted the following publication activities in 1995-96:

Publications

• production of fifteen issues of WCEL News;
• production and distribution of Leaving a Living Legacy;
• distribution of Here Today Here Tomorrow;
• summary of Environmental Law in North America, with the Quebec Environmental Centre, the U.S. Center for International Environmental Law and the Mexican Environmental Law Center, published on the Internet by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation;
• Protecting Wetlands in BC - A Citizen's Guide, by West Coast in conjunction with BC Wetnet and Fraser for Life Society (in preparation); and,
• Wetlandkeepers, a project of the Canadian Wildlife Service, to which West Coast contributed the chapter on wetlands law (in preparation).

RESEARCH

During 1995-96, the Research Foundation conducted research on the environmental impact of international trade agreements, use of economic instruments for environmental protection, policy options for reducing global climate change, protection of biodiversity and endangered species, wetlands protection, transportation alternatives, and many other topics. Specific examples of our research work include:

Global climate change: West Coast is working with Environment Canada and the BC Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks on a project involving evaluation of general policy options related to greenhouse gas emissions from British Columbia.

Trade and the environment: West Coast has provided assistance in drafting a series of case studies done for the North American Commission on Environmental Cooperation. The case studies looked at environmental measures that were alleged to have negative trade impacts or be contrary to international trade law. West Coast also attended a workshop hosted by the Commission on the environmental impacts of NAFTA.

Property tax and conservation: West Coast researched mechanisms used in other jurisdictions to promote conservation of private land by providing incentives through the property tax system.

LIBRARY

West Coast's reference library holds material on a wide range of environmental legal topics. It serves staff, other lawyers and members of the public. The collection continues to grow. West Coast's Internet presence has become firmly established, particularly with the creation of a searchable, online card catalogue. Users from around the world can browse the library's card catalogue, and, if a publication in the library exists in full-text or digital form, that document can then be read on-screen. Since its launch, the web site has been visited on average 1,000 times a month; to date, the site has been visited approximately 15,000 times.

The site's contents are registered with the major Internet search engines and annotated lists, so casual users looking for general information on environmental law on the Internet can find West Coast's information, without knowing about the organization beforehand. West Coast offers its own publications, briefs, newsletters and presentations, as well as selected publications from other sources. Also available are Environmental Appeal Board decisions and an extensive annotated list of environmental and legal resources located elsewhere on the Internet.

EDUCATION

Education continues to be a Research Foundation priority. Activities in 1995-96 included:

• Co-chairing a session on legal and policy frameworks for sustainable fisheries management, at the annual Sustainable Fisheries Conference in Ladysmith. The conference involved organizations throughout the Pacific Northwest.
• Offered a workshop on environmental legal information on the Internet to a meeting of the Pacific Coast Joint Venture.
• Participation in a seminar on environmental law in Canada to a delegation of government environmental department officials from Thailand, concerned in particular with the siting of a hazardous waste facility.
• Presented a speech on legal options for the Burns Bog Conservancy at the Peatlands Conference in Vancouver.
• Presented a Continuing Legal Education paper on access to government electronic information.
• Presented a paper on the "effective enforcement" provisions of the North American Agreement on Environmental Co-operation at the Canadian Bar Association Annual Meeting and Continuing Legal Education seminar in Winnipeg.
• Presented West Coast's Internet site to a forum on government information on the Internet at the Annual Meeting of the BC Library Association in Victoria.
• Prepared an electronic interactive guide to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act (under contract with the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency).
• Participated in the advisory group for the Toxics Chapter of the federal State of the Environment Report for 1996.
• Prepared a draft chapter for the BC State of the Environment Report on non-compliance information.
• Presented West Coast's Internet site to the Environmental Section of the Canadian Bar Association, and to a meeting of the Sustainable Communities Network.
• Participated in a panel discussion on environmental law at the November World Congress of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry in Vancouver.
• Presentation to a Continuing Legal Education course on the new provincial Class Proceedings Act, highlighting how the Act might be used to address environmental harm.
• Presentation at the Sustainability Conference in Vancouver at a workshop on organizing effective community-based multistakeholder groups.
• Worked with students at the Environmental Law Centre at the University of Victoria.
• Presented the keynote address on conservation covenants at the annual general meeting of the Salt Spring Island Conservancy.
• Presentation about the use of conservation covenants at the Private Land Conservation Tools Forum held in Duncan, sponsored by the Stewardship Pledge Program.
• Presentation about pollution prevention to a workshop involving government and industry representatives involved in pollution prevention demonstration projects in BC.
• Participated in a workshop on Sustainable Consumption Patterns organized by the United Nations Environment Program.
• Presented West Coast's Internet site at workshops in: the Singing Forest (Nelson, Argenta, Queen's Bay), Farmer's Market in East Vancouver, Dawson Creek Grassroots Conference, International Air, Land, Water Conference '96 (Eugene, OR), and the Industrial Commercial Institutional Environmental Managers Association in Vancouver.
• Participation on a panel on endangered species laws at the University of British Columbia Environmental Law Conference.
• Participation on a panel at the University of Victoria Environmental Law Conference on International Environmental Law - "Has Anything Changed Since the Rio earth Summit?" and "NAFTA, GATT and Environmental Regulation".
• Participation on a panel at BC Rivers Day on changes to water and fish protection legislation in BC.
• Presentation at a workshop on nonpoint source water pollution, sponsored by the BC Ministry of Environment, on amendments to the Water Act and other legal controls for this type of pollution.
• Met with federal environment minister Sergio Marchi along with other environmental groups to raise the issues of climate change and extension of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act to Crown corporations and Indian bands. Subsequently met with the minister again to discuss the federal response to climate change.
• Presented West Coast's brief on the BC Greenhouse Gas Action Plan to the Air and Waste Management Association Vancouver Island section.
• Discussed environmental law enforcement and the citizen complaint procedures available under the Commission on Environmental Cooperation with its Executive Director.
• Discussed global climate change with the House of Commons Committee on Natural Resources.
• Gave a workshop on intellectual property and biodiversity to a meeting of Canadian and international NGOs at the Falls Brook Centre in New Brunswick.
• Attended the Annual Meeting of the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide in Jerusalem, an international group of public interest environmental lawyers who correspond regularly on the Internet.
• Guest lectured on various aspects of environmental law at UBC, Langara College, SFU, Capilano College and University of Victoria.

Media comment

West Coast provided information to a wide variety of media on environmental issues over the past year including:

• CBC Commentary on CBC Radio on the need to maintain rigorous environmental regulations in the face of pressures to de-regulate in this area
• Comments on the provincial vehicle emission control regulations; presentation at the announcing press conference, interview for CBC radio, the Vancouver Sun and community TV, published letters to the editor in the Globe & Mail and the Victoria Times Colonist
• An interview for CBC French TV on the Citizens' Oil Spills Advisory Committee report
• Letter to the editor in the Globe & Mail concerning French nuclear testing, and,
• Interviews with CBC TV, CBC Radio, the Delta Optimist, and the Vancouver Sun concerning the Tsatsu Shores development.

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

West Coast Environmental Law Association
West Coast Environmental Law Research Foundation
West Coast Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund Society
Highlights of Revenues and Expenditures and Fund Balances
Year Ended April 30								1996	1995
					Association	Foundation	Society	Total	Total
Revenues
	The Law Foundation of British Columbia				$295,750	$159,250	$281,260	$736,260	$709,000
	Donations				-	7,125	-	7,125	7,274
	Grants and contracts				-	158,485	-	158,485	133,622
	Honoraria and other				318	13,650	-	13,968	9,964
	Interest				-	-	208	208	160
	Memberships				-	1,580	-	1,580	3,110
	Projects				29,425	-	-	29,425	36,526
	Publication sales				-	1,632	-	1,632	3,630
					325,493	341,722	281,468	948,683	903,286
Expenditures
	Furniture and equipment				5,067	5,853	-	10,920	30,596
	Grantees				-	-	216,222	216,222	177,578
	Interest				1,976	-	-	1,976	2,490
	Law Society fees and insurance				10,813	10,813	4,364	25,990	15,486
	Library books				-	15,373	-	15,373	14,729
	Office and administration				42,067	45,786	8,169	96,022	88,858
	Professional services				5,655	5,655	5,000	16,310	22,472
	Rent				20,960	20,960	-	41,920	42,628
	Research				-	1,682	-	1,682	1,955
	Salaries and benefits				214,016	214,016	75,432	503,464	514,662
	Staff development				1,350	1,350	-	2,700	8,402
					301,904	321,488	309,187	932,579	919,856
Excess (deficiency) of revenues over expenditures					23,589	20,234	(27,719)	16,104	(16,570)
Fund balance, beginning of year					45,245	11,212	0	56,457	73,027
Contribution to the Society from the Association					(30,500)	-	30,500	-	-
Fund balance, end of year					$38,334	$31,446	$2,781	$72,561	$73,027

Full financial statements are available upon request.

SPONSORS

West Coast gratefully acknowledges The Law Foundation of British Columbia, which provides core funding and supports the West Coast Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund. Generous project funding was provided by the following:

• Action 21, for their support of urban streams work
• BC Ministry of Environment, for their support of a greenhouse gases project
• BC Ministry of Environment, for the funding of a secondment of staff counsel
• Federal Environmental Assessment Review Office, for review of the CEAA rule book
• Canadian Institute for Environmental Law and Policy, for research on biodiversity
• Environmental Partners Fund, Islands Trust Fund Board, Vancouver Foundation, Real Estate Foundation of BC, for support of Leaving a Living Legacy: Using Conservation Covenants in BC
• Law Foundation, for a management improvement grant
• North American Commission on Environmental Co-operation, for a summary of Canadian environmental laws and an electronic database of North American environmental law
• Real Estate Foundation, for support of Leaving a Living Legacy
• Vancouver Foundation, for support of urban streams work
• Wetland Keepers, for research on wetlands and biodiversity, and
• WetNet, for research on wetlands and biodiversity.

The following lawyers generously donated their time and services to EDRF-funded projects:

Special thanks to:

• Doane Raymond, Accountants, for their assistance in preparing the financial statements and for ongoing assistance with financial matters throughout the year
• Communicopia Environmental Communications, for their help with the searchable online card catalogue and ongoing assistance with the electronic calendar of events
• West Coast volunteers, who donated their time and effort, without whom the Association and Research Foundation could not operate as effectively, and
• the following individual and group donors, who very generously assisted the Research Foundation to provide educational services:

DONORS