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West Coast Access to Information Publications (3)
  bullet Submissions of West Coast Environmental Law in Response to the review of policy on access to information regarding compensation details in petroleum and natural gas surface lease agreements, March 29, 2005 [PDF 100 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) West Coast has reviewed an “Initial Draft” Discussion Paper prepared and circulated on March 11, 2005 by Perrin, Thorau and Associates, consultants to the BC Minister of Energy and Mines, and submits the following comments on the issue of access to information regarding compensation details in petroleum and natural gas surface lease agreements.
  bullet A Guide to the BC Lobbyists Registration Act for BC Environmental Non-Profits and Charities, December 2002 [PDF 260 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) The purpose of this paper is to examine the LRA and to outline the obligations placed upon charitable organisations. Secondly, we will examine the relationship between the LRA and charitable tax status. This paper is intended for non-profit NGOs that employ staff who communicate with the provincial government.
  bullet Draft Comments on Bill 12 : The Access To Information And Protection Of Privacy Act, June 27, 1990
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West Coast Agriculture Publications (5)
  bullet Protecting the Working Landscape of Agriculture : A Smart Growth Direction for Municipalities in British Columbia, November 2005 [PDF 750 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This report details the range of tools local governments are using to protect the agricultural working landscape, and directs readers to specific examples of local government bylaws and policies. Its purpose is to encourage local governments to adopt effective tools for protecting the working agricultural landscape. This report is part of West Coast Environmental Law’s Smart Bylaws Guide (www.wcel.org/issues/urban/sbg), a web-based resource that provides local governments and citizens with information on strategies local governments can adopt to create more compact, complete communities, and use tax dollars more efficiently.
  bullet Natural Allies : Land Trusts and Working Farms, July 2, 2003 [PDF 80 kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) A Presentation to the Land Trust Alliance of BC by West Coast Environmental Law, and its Growing Green partners. In this paper, we will sketch out three things for the purpose of sparking a discussion: why we think this idea is important, what needs to happen in order for the idea to work, and (assuming you’re persuaded to continue) where you might begin if you’d like to investigate further.
  bullet Submission & response to Stan Hagen re Bill 21 - Agricultural Land Commission Act, June 2002 [PDF 350 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) We are writing to provide input regarding Bill 21. We are not aware that there was any public consultation on this new legislation prior to its introduction in the Legislature, despite the important issues of public policy it contains. We are nevertheless writing at this late stage in the hope that you are open to changes and will receive this as constructive to the legislative process. As a general comment, although we recognize that the government is maintaining the essential elements of the agricultural land reserve protection regime, we believe the government is putting those protections at risk by authorizing delegated approval of subdivision and non-farm use without appropriate checks and balances. We are also very disappointed that you are repealing the key features of the forest land reserve without any public process. Bill 22 introduces positive changes that improve the Agricultural Land Commission’s enforcement capabilities, but it also raises the following important issues that we would like to bring to your attention.
  bullet Submission on amendments to the Agricultural Land Commission Act - defining the "Provincial Interest" and expanding the criteria for considering the effects of proposals to remove land from the Agricultural Land Reserve, August 4, 1998
  bullet Using Subsidies to Promote Environmental Protection in Agriculture : A Review of Programs in North America and Europe, December 1993
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West Coast Air Quality Publications (4)
  bullet Local Government and Public Health Hazards, Novermber 2007 [PDF 96 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) With the recent controversy on logging in the Chapman Creek community watershed, and the resulting order by the Sunshine Coast Regional District halting the logging because of concerns that it posed a health hazard, staff at West Coast Environmental Law are increasingly being asked about the powers of local governments under B.C.’s Health Act. The purpose of this paper is to discuss those powers in light of the Act and the developing case law.
  bullet The Clean Air Bylaws Guide, 2006, $10.00 [PDF 3Mb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) What can municipalities do about air quality? As this Guide shows, across the province, many local governments are looking out for their residents by regulating air pollution. However, other municipalities view air quality issues as a regional issue and are unaware of the range of opportunities to have an impact on air quality. Part I of this Guide provides background information on air pollution problems facing many municipalities and the range of tools available to local governments. Part II then discusses in detail what local governments can and can’t do about air pollution through their bylaw-making powers. Part III highlights some of the municipal clean air bylaws that are already in place around the province and elsewhere and provides examples of model bylaws.
  bullet Laws for Air Quality on and off First Nations’ Land in BC : Background Paper for workshop convened by Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection, February 2005 [PDF 550 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This report is aimed at providing background information and analysis that will assist attendees at a workshop convened by the Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection to discuss air quality issues on and around Indian Reserves.
  bullet Health Risk Assessment from Air Emissions, October 2002 [PDF 60 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) These notes have been prepared by Dr. Bates and published by West Coast Environmental Law in order to avoid repetition of errors in the health risk assessments for large facilities that cause air pollution. Most new projects involve air emissions; these may be from the proposed facility itself (as with natural gas-fired electric generating plants), or from off road and on road heavy diesel emissions, or from combustion of different materials. Such proposals usually arouse considerable anxiety among the local population, and formal ''Health Risk Assessments'' may be required in advance of public hearings about the impact of the work to be undertaken or the building of the facility.
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West Coast Biodiversity Publications (3)
  bullet Kyoto, POPs, and Straddling Stocks : Understanding Environmental Treaties, January 2003, $15.00 [PDF 1.2 Mb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) International environmental treaties - once a fringe area of environmental law - increasingly deal with issues that affect the lives of Canadians. At a time when citizens take to the street to protest globalized trade rules, global environmental rules are a welcome antidote to the backlash against multilateralism. These rules are widely supported. They are often criticized because they don’t go far enough and have not yet produced reverses in the most troubling global environmental trends. Many members of the public question why their governments willingly relinquish sovereignty in the name of the marketplace but are reluctant to make similar concessions for the environment. This guide explains how treaties work internationally, and how they work in Canada.
  bullet West Coast Environmental Law Submissions on the Wildlife Act Review, June 20, 2007 [PDF 150 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) The BC Ministry of Environment is currently conducting a review of the Wildlife Act, with the intention of introducing a series of amendments to modernize the Act. West Coast Environmental Law has reviewed the Discussion Paper prepared by Ministry staff as part of this Review. We make the following recommendations, which encourage a focus on wildlife protection, transparency, accountability, and enforcement.
  bullet Biodiversity law and policy in British Columbia, 1996
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West Coast Climate Change Publications (27)
  bullet Kyoto, POPs, and Straddling Stocks : Understanding Environmental Treaties, January 2003, $15.00 [PDF 1.2 Mb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) International environmental treaties - once a fringe area of environmental law - increasingly deal with issues that affect the lives of Canadians. At a time when citizens take to the street to protest globalized trade rules, global environmental rules are a welcome antidote to the backlash against multilateralism. These rules are widely supported. They are often criticized because they don’t go far enough and have not yet produced reverses in the most troubling global environmental trends. Many members of the public question why their governments willingly relinquish sovereignty in the name of the marketplace but are reluctant to make similar concessions for the environment. This guide explains how treaties work internationally, and how they work in Canada.
  bullet Taking Effective Action on Climate Change : Comments on Federal Government Options for Addressing Climate Change, June 2002 [PDF 130 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) The Kyoto climate protection agreement can be implemented without significant impacts on the Canadian economy. The federal government must now ratify the Kyoto agreement and define options that are effective in achieving long-term emission reductions, and are equitable.
  bullet Climate Change Primer : NGO Oil And Gas Roundtable, May 24-25, 2002, Vancouver, BC, May 24-25, 2002
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Climate change could have catastrophic effects globally and in BC, the Prairies and Canada's North. This paper discusses key issues related to oil and gas production/use and climate change, including the role of natural gas as a transitional, 'clean energy' fuel, the impact of the Kyoto protocol on oil and gas production, and policy issues likely to arise with the progression of climate change.
  bullet Taking Credit : Canada and the Role of Sinks in International Climate Negotiations, July 2001 [PDF 2.2 Mb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window)
  bullet Sink Solutions : Background Analysis for Taking Credit - Canada and the Role of Sinks in International Climate Negotiations., July 2001 [PDF 375 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) The Canadian government, and its insistence on ''credit for sinks,'' was blamed for blocking progress on an international deal to stop climate change. Why the concern over credit for sinks? This report provides background analysis for the joint West Coast Environmental Law/David Suzuki Foundation report, Taking Credit: Canada and the Role of Sinks in International Climate Negotiations.
  bullet Why Act Now? : Can Canada Afford to Delay Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Action Beyond the 2000 Federal Budget?, January 2000 PDF Version (115kb)
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) While greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced dramatically through measures that are worth doing for reasons that include protecting human health, improving competitiveness, saving consumers’ money and improving the liveability of cities, delaying action will likely prove expensive. Barring an almost unimaginable derogation of responsibility towards the citizens of the globe, the increasing scientific consensus around the need to act makes international greenhouse gas emission limits a virtual certainty. Canada needs to position itself for this inevitability. This brief considers the international imperative for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the costs – to both Canadians’ health and the Canadian economy -- of delaying action to reduce emissions. It urges Members of Parliament to support extensive funding for greenhouse gas emission reductions in the 2000 Federal Budget.
  bullet Negotiating the Climate Away : Report Card on Environmental Integrity of OECD Nations’ Climate Summit Negotiation Position, November 2000 [PDF 254 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This report card evaluates the negotiating positions of the 27 nations that are members of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and signatories to the Framework Convention on Climate Change. These are the world’s leading nations. They are economically the most powerful and most developed, and they include most of the largest per capita greenhouse gas emitters in the world. Of the 27 nations reviewed, Canada scores second to last.
  bullet The Earth in Balance: Briefing Notes for the November 2000 Climate Summit, November 2000 [PDF 65 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This series of briefing notes provides an overview of the issues to be decided at CoP6, where, from November 13 to 24, 2000, the nations of the world will meet in The Hague to decide the fate of the Kyoto Protocol. The series is intended to provide an environmental perspective to negotiators and educate other participants attending at the Hague or following the negotiations at home.
  bullet Sinking the Climate : will Canada’s approach to carbon sequestration sink the Kyoto Protocol?, September 11, 2000 [PDF 146 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Recently released data shows that, if adopted, the Canadian position on the treatment of forests and soils under the Kyoto Protocol would obliterate the environmental impact of the Kyoto Protocol.
  bullet Upstream Emissions Trading: the Great Leap Forward for Ecological Tax Reform?, June 14, 2000 [PDF 230 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Two trends -- increased political interest in ecological tax reform and the increasing urgency of reducing greenhouse gas emissions -- could see ecological tax reform being the next major trend in environmental law in Canada. The auctioning of allowances to emit greenhouse gases or sell fossil fuels for combustion could be used to encourage lowest cost greenhouse gas emissions. It is likely the most environmentally effective, economically efficient and equitable way of implementing an emissions trading system. Combined with ecological tax reform -- i.e. using revenue from auction allowances to reduce taxes -- it could help move Canada toward a healthier, cleaner economy with fuller employment.
  bullet Greenhouse Gases and Forests: Media Backgrounder, May 2000
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Media backgrounder accompanying Torpedoing Kyoto.
  bullet Torpedoing Kyoto: Will Canada’s Approach to Forest Sequestration Sink the Kyoto Protocol?, May 2000 PDF (210Kb)
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) The Canadian position on the treatment of sequestration of carbon by forests and soils under the Kyoto Protocol is scientifically unsound and could lead to massive increases in atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases.
  bullet Undermining the Kyoto Protocol: Will weaknesses and loopholes in the Kyoto Protocol negate its environmental effectiveness?, March 2000 PDF (225kb)
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) While the Kyoto Protocol is potentially an important first step in averting global climate change a number of potential weaknesses and loopholes could make the difference between it representing a first step and it being largely ineffective.
  bullet Selling Clean Air : Workshop Proceedings, 1999
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) These proceedings are the summary of Selling Clean Air: Market Instruments for Climate Protection, a two-day workshop on market instruments for climate change organized by West Coast Environmental Law Research Foundation. The workshop was held October 15 and 16, 1998, in Vancouver. This workshop brought together approximately 100 participants. The first day examined market instruments and the pros and cons of using different market instruments for reducing Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions. The second day was aimed at improving the capacity of municipalities, environmental groups, small businesses, and community groups to develop projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a quantifiable way that achieves other social benefits and can generate gas emissions reduction credits.
  bullet Early crediting and baseline protection, May 12, 1999
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Despite the urgent need for early action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, this brief is in part intended to alert readers to the potential negative implications of developing a credit for early action system. A poorly designed credit for early action system could prove to be ineffective environmentally, inefficient economically, and inequitable politically. It could potentially shift considerable wealth to some firms while at the same time imposing corresponding costs on the government or economy. Decisions regarding baseline protection and credit for early action should not be taken lightly or without a proper understanding of their implications.
  bullet Opportunities and liabilities from greenhouse gas emissions and greenhouse gas emission reductions, March 1999
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This paper begins with a brief description of existing international and domestic environmental law relating to climate change. It then describes the science and politics that are shaping development in international climate law, and then describes the emerging international regime of greenhouse gas emission limits. This describes how Canadian governments are responding to the possibility of limits on emissions, and identifies the resulting risks and opportunities.
  bullet Is Credit for Early Action Credible Early Action?, December 1999 PDF (429Kb)
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Credit for Early Action allows firms that take early action to reduce emissions to be rewarded with credit against future regulatory standards or carbon taxes. Is Credit for Early Action an inherently flawed concept, with questionable environmental effectiveness, high economic cost, and inequitable impacts on distribution of wealth? We recommend announcement of policies to remove existing disincentives to early action, combined with the phase in of either emission limits and trading or a carbon tax. PDF Format (430kb)
  bullet Closing the Gap: A Comparison of Approaches to Encourage Early Greehouse Gas Emissions, 1999
  bullet Selling Clean Air : Market instruments for climate protection : Discussion Paper, 1998
  bullet Environmental Perspective on International Greenhouse Gas Emission Trading, April 1998
  bullet Turning down the heat : Emissions trading and Canadian implementation of the Kyoto Protocol, 1998, $40.00 PDF 1,957Kb
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Executive summary available online in html, entire book now available online in PDF format. Book available for purchase.
  bullet Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change : A guide to the Protocol and analysis of its effectiveness, January 21, 1998 French Version
  bullet Comments on the Canadian Motor Vehicle Emission Regulation to the Department of Transport, January 20, 1997
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Response to the Department of Transport's December 21, 1996 Canada Gazette request for submissions on motor vehicle emission regulation for Canada. West Coast Environmental Law proposes a unique Canadian vehicle emission program which supports various environmental objectives, is compatible with a North American vehicle market, has economic spin offs in Canada and eliminates incentives to purchase and sell larger vehicles. Our next preference would be for a program based on California certification of light and medium duty vehicles and the California NMOG fleet averages.
  bullet Environmentalists' Perspective on U.S. Proposal for an International Greenhouse Gas Emission Trading Program : Speaking Notes from Presentation to Conference on Emission Trading, Toronto, Canada, June 5-6, 1997, June 5-6, 1997
  bullet Environmentalists' Perspective on Emission Trading Programs : Speaking Notes from Presentation to Conference on Emission Trading, Toronto, Canada, June 5-6, 1997, June 5-6, 1997
  bullet Comments on the British Columbia Greenhouse Gas Action Plan, April 17, 1996
  bullet Global Climate Change : Where Are We Headed? - Speaking Notes, Febuary 1996
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West Coast Conservation Covenants Publications (6)
  bullet Greening Your Title : A Guide to Best Practices for Conservation Covenant, 2nd edition, March 2005, $12.00 [PDF 2.7 Mb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) SECOND EDITION, revised 2005. This is a guide to the best practices associated with the use of conservation covenants. The primary focus of the Guide is on using conservation covenants for the protection of ecologically significant private land. However, conservation covenants can be used to protect other special attributes of land such as cultural and heritage values and the information in this Guide may be useful in those situations as well.
  bullet Giving It Away : Tax Implications of Gifts to Protect Private Land, March 2004, $15.00 PDF Format (511kb)
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Even though most people readily accept that they must deal with personal tax matters, at least on an annual basis, the very notion of tax consequences associated with protecting private land can send a chill into the heart of the most altruistic donor. There are also tax implications for those agencies and organizations that receive donations. This Guide is intended to provide landowners, potential donors, conservancy organizations and other recipients of gifts, professionals and others interested in protecting important ecological spaces with information about the possible tax consequences of protecting private land.
  bullet Submission & response to Stan Hagen re Bill 21 - Agricultural Land Commission Act, June 2002 [PDF 350 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) We are writing to provide input regarding Bill 21. We are not aware that there was any public consultation on this new legislation prior to its introduction in the Legislature, despite the important issues of public policy it contains. We are nevertheless writing at this late stage in the hope that you are open to changes and will receive this as constructive to the legislative process. As a general comment, although we recognize that the government is maintaining the essential elements of the agricultural land reserve protection regime, we believe the government is putting those protections at risk by authorizing delegated approval of subdivision and non-farm use without appropriate checks and balances. We are also very disappointed that you are repealing the key features of the forest land reserve without any public process. Bill 22 introduces positive changes that improve the Agricultural Land Commission’s enforcement capabilities, but it also raises the following important issues that we would like to bring to your attention.
  bullet Leaving a Living Legacy: Using Conservation Covenants in BC, February 1996, $15.00
  bullet Here Today; Here Tomorrow: Legal Tools for the Voluntary Protection of Private Land in British Columbia, 1994, $18.00
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This report has been inspired by the growing interest among conservation groups and landowners in British Columbia in a variety of these initiatives to protect private land in the province. The purpose of the report is to help with one small part of our collective efforts to conserve the earth. It is written for conservation groups, individual landowners, real estate professionals and other interested parties who want information about the legal tools available to conserve private land.
  bullet Using Conservation Covenants To Preserve Private Land In British Columbia, 1992, $10.00
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West Coast Economic Instruments Publications (8)
  bullet The Earth in Balance: Briefing Notes for the November 2000 Climate Summit, November 2000 [PDF 65 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This series of briefing notes provides an overview of the issues to be decided at CoP6, where, from November 13 to 24, 2000, the nations of the world will meet in The Hague to decide the fate of the Kyoto Protocol. The series is intended to provide an environmental perspective to negotiators and educate other participants attending at the Hague or following the negotiations at home.
  bullet Upstream Emissions Trading: the Great Leap Forward for Ecological Tax Reform?, June 14, 2000 [PDF 230 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Two trends -- increased political interest in ecological tax reform and the increasing urgency of reducing greenhouse gas emissions -- could see ecological tax reform being the next major trend in environmental law in Canada. The auctioning of allowances to emit greenhouse gases or sell fossil fuels for combustion could be used to encourage lowest cost greenhouse gas emissions. It is likely the most environmentally effective, economically efficient and equitable way of implementing an emissions trading system. Combined with ecological tax reform -- i.e. using revenue from auction allowances to reduce taxes -- it could help move Canada toward a healthier, cleaner economy with fuller employment.
  bullet Is Credit for Early Action Credible Early Action?, December 1999 PDF (429Kb)
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Credit for Early Action allows firms that take early action to reduce emissions to be rewarded with credit against future regulatory standards or carbon taxes. Is Credit for Early Action an inherently flawed concept, with questionable environmental effectiveness, high economic cost, and inequitable impacts on distribution of wealth? We recommend announcement of policies to remove existing disincentives to early action, combined with the phase in of either emission limits and trading or a carbon tax. PDF Format (430kb)
  bullet Closing the Gap: A Comparison of Approaches to Encourage Early Greehouse Gas Emissions, 1999
  bullet Selling Clean Air : Workshop Proceedings, 1999
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) These proceedings are the summary of Selling Clean Air: Market Instruments for Climate Protection, a two-day workshop on market instruments for climate change organized by West Coast Environmental Law Research Foundation. The workshop was held October 15 and 16, 1998, in Vancouver. This workshop brought together approximately 100 participants. The first day examined market instruments and the pros and cons of using different market instruments for reducing Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions. The second day was aimed at improving the capacity of municipalities, environmental groups, small businesses, and community groups to develop projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a quantifiable way that achieves other social benefits and can generate gas emissions reduction credits.
  bullet Selling Clean Air : Market instruments for climate protection : Discussion Paper, 1998
  bullet Administrative Monetary Penalties: A Tool for Ensuring Compliance, January 24, 1997
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Administrative Monetary Penalties (
  bullet Economic Instruments and the Environment: Selected Legal Issues, 1993, $15.00
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West Coast Endangered Species/Wildlife Publications (6)
  bullet West Coast Environmental Law Submissions on the Wildlife Act Review, June 20, 2007 [PDF 150 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) The BC Ministry of Environment is currently conducting a review of the Wildlife Act, with the intention of introducing a series of amendments to modernize the Act. West Coast Environmental Law has reviewed the Discussion Paper prepared by Ministry staff as part of this Review. We make the following recommendations, which encourage a focus on wildlife protection, transparency, accountability, and enforcement.
  bullet Preserving British Columbia's Coast: A regulatory review - background report, May 1999
  bullet Background Paper : BC Endangered Species Protection Workshop, June 24 and 25, 1997
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) he BC Endangered Species Protection Workshop was hosted jointly by West Coast Environmental Law Association and the BC Endangered Species Coalition. The aim of the workshop was to explore the adequacy of existing legislative and policy tools to protect species at risk in BC, and to identify the need for new and improved tools, including legislation, to protect species at risk in the province.
  bullet Protecting endangered species in Canada : Comments on Bill C-65 : The Canada Endangered Species Protection Act, January 22, 1997
  bullet Species at Risk : COMMENTS ON THE PROPOSED NATIONAL APPROACH TO ENDANGERED SPECIES CONSERVATION, May 10, 1995
  bullet Submission on Managing Wildlife To 2001 : A Discussion Paper, 1991
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West Coast Energy Publications (19)
  bullet Oil and Gas Health and Safety Issues Backgrounder, September 2006 [PDF 135 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) The purpose of this handout is to provide an overview of the health and safety risks associated with oil and gas development in order to support a discussion that will lead to the adoption in British Columbia of legislation and regulations that reflect the very best practices for health and safety. The handout is organized by broad topic: air pollution, waste and by-product disposal, operational hazards, noise and accidents.
  bullet Coalbed Methane : A BC Local Government Guide, May, 2006 [PDF 900 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) As conventional oil and gas resources are being depleted worldwide, coalbed methane is being touted as one means to fill the supply and demand gap for gas. The British Columbia government views coalbed methane as 'an important new energy source that will diversify our energy supply and contribute to British Columbia’s economy through revenue and jobs.' However, because the economics of coalbed methane development are still uncertain, the Province is offering $50,000 royalty credits for every well drilled before December 2008, and it is working to make its regulations more 'coalbed methane friendly.' Industry has responded to the Province’s invitation: as of the fall of 2005, over 40 coalbed methane wells have been drilled in BC. These have been primarily in the northeast, but also in the south central interior, the Elk Valley, on Vancouver Island and near Iskut. With commercial production on the horizon, this Guide endeavours to encourage responsible development of BC’s coalbed methane resources, and to ensure that mistakes that were made in the United States are not repeated here. Experience with coalbed methane development in the early years in the US was largely negative, bringing with it significant impacts on private lands and changing the face of many communities. This Guide explains some of the environmental and social risks associated with coalbed methane development, and then focuses on some of the tools available for local governments to plan for, avoid and mitigate the potential negative consequences. We discuss regulatory tools that are set out in the Local Government Act and Community Charter, and apply these tools to the particular challenges presented by coalbed methane development. We describe and build upon the wisdom of a number of 'best practices' projects initiated in the US.
  bullet Joint West Coast/Sierra Legal Submission to Ministry of Energy and Mines for the Oil and Gas Regulatory Improvement Initiative, February 28, 2006 [PDF 100 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) West Coast Environmental Law and the Sierra Legal Defence Fund have now had an opportunity to review the Oil and Gas Regulatory Improvement Initiative (OGRII) Discussion Paper, dated December 1, 2005. This Submission to the Ministry of Energy and Mines is divided into two sections - general comments about the tone and direction of the initiative, and specific responses to the policy proposals.
  bullet A Northern Pipeline in BC: Do British Columbians Stand to Gain?, 2006 PDF 280 Kb
  bullet Coalbed Methane Produced Water Checklist : Checklist for BC Code of Practice for discharge of produced water from coalbed gas operations, August 2004 [PDF 75 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This checklist has been prepared in response to an invitation by the BC Government to comment confidentially on the Draft Code of Practice for Discharge of Produced Water from Coalbed Gas Operations. Because West Coast could not be bound by a confidentiality agreement and still work with members of the public to ensure a strong regulatory approach to coalbed methane produced water, we have not seen the Code of Practice, and instead, have framed our comments in the form of a checklist by which the public may evaluate the Code when it is released.
  bullet Oil and Gas in British Columbia : 10 Steps to Responsible Development : 16-page report, April 2004 [PDF 354 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This report concentrates on the impacts of land-based oil and gas development, rather than offshore impacts, and presents a ten-point mitigation plan. Adoption of each of these ten points is essential for BC to be on a path toward responsible development.
  bullet Pump it Out : Timeline : What is a Typical Upstream Oil and Gas Project, and What are the Potential Environmental Consequences?, 2003
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) This document summarizes a typical upstream project, and highlights the environmental consequences potentially associated with each step. The most frequently raised public concerns relate to wilderness impacts from seismic, road, and pipeline projects, the flaring of sour gas, and climate change. Please consult Pump it Out for information on what laws apply, what needs to change in order to protect the environment, and what a concerned citizen can do about it.
  bullet Coalbed Methane : What is it? What Could it Mean for BC?, September 2003 [PDF 350 Kb]
  bullet Coalbed Methane : A Citizen's Guide, May 2003 [PDF 430 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Coal miners fear it because it is highly explosive, but in twenty years coalbed methane (CBM) has gone from ‘complete obscurity’ to supplying 7% of the total US natural gas production. Along the way it has generated a lot of public controversy. In BC, the provincial government (the ‘Province’) is now aggressively pursuing CBM investment. If the CBM industry responds, and some technical problems are solved, many communities across BC will experience the CBM industry first hand. The Province is promoting CBM as a ‘clean, environmentally safe, energy source.’ There are many in the US and in Canada who strongly disagree with this characterization. The objective of this Citizen’s Guide is to document the views of both proponents and opponents of CBM in order to help inform BC citizens about the potential environmental implications of CBM. The Guide focuses on CBM experience in the US, to help BC citizens articulate questions for BC companies and regulators.
  bullet Pump It Out : The Environmental Costs of BC's Upstream Oil and Gas Industry, May 2003 [PDF 762 Kb]
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Pump it Out is a web-based guide for citizens interested in knowing more about the environmental consequences of a typical ‘upstream’ oil and gas project in BC. These consequences can be both global (greenhouse gas emissions) and local (seismic lines, roads, pumpjacks, gathering lines, and processing facilities in the farm fields and wilderness areas of north-eastern BC). West Coast Environmental Law believes it is especially important to understand the environmental consequences now - at a time when major national, provincial, and local decisions are being made. Nationally, Canadians are debating how to implement the Kyoto Accord and Environment Canada is reporting that oil and gas production, processing, and transmission is responsible for much of Canada’s increase in greenhouse gas emissions over the last decade.
  bullet Pump it Out : Frequently Asked Questions, 2003
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Pump it Out: The Environmental Costs of BC’s Upstream Oil and Gas Industry is a web-based guide for citizens interested in knowing more about the environmental consequences of a typical ‘upstream’ oil and gas project in BC. You can obtain a full copy of Pump it Out at West Coast Environmental Law, or online. This document begins to document frequently asked questions in relation to upstream oil and gas activities.
  bullet What is Pump it Out?, 2003
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Pump it Out (PDF, 750Kb) is a web-based guide for citizens interested in knowing more about the environmental consequences of a typical 'upstream' oil and gas project in BC. These consequences can be both global (greenhouse gas emissions) and local (seismic lines, roads, pumpjacks, gathering lines, and processing facilities in the farm fields and wilderness areas of north-eastern BC).
  bullet Climate Change Primer : NGO Oil And Gas Roundtable, May 24-25, 2002, Vancouver, BC, May 24-25, 2002
Document Summary: (Click to open in new window) Climate change could have catastrophic effects globally and in BC, the Prairies and Canada's North. This paper discusses key issues related to oil and gas production/use and climate change, including the role of natural gas as a transitional, 'clean energy' fuel, the impact of the Kyoto protocol on oil and gas production, and policy issues likely to arise with the progression of climate change.
  bullet Bill 36 Primer : NGO Oil And Gas Roundtable, May 24-25, 2002,