When Should Projects Get an Environmental Assessment?

A Backgrounder on BC’s Proposed Changes to the Reviewable Projects Regulation

BC passed a new Environmental Assessment Act in November 2018, and plans to bring the new Act into force by the end of 2019, once it has developed a number of important regulations that determine how the Act will work in practice. One of the most crucial elements of the entire EA regime is the Reviewable Projects Regulation (the “RPR”), which determines the projects that are subject to assessment under the Act.

West Coast has outlined elsewhere why the EA regime – including the RPR – needs reform, and we and many others have argued that more assessments are needed to better protect the environment and enhance public confidence.