On April 1, 2021, as part of an ongoing review and revision process, seven amendments to the Health, Safety and Reclamation Code for Mines in British Columbia came into force. The Code, and its enabling statute, the Mines...more
4/15/2021
/ Canada ,
Cannabis Products ,
Coal Industry ,
Coal Mines ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Health and Safety ,
Mining ,
Reclamation ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety
On March 25, 2021, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) released its 6-3 decision, ruling that the federal Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, SC 2018 c 12 (GGPPA) is constitutional, dismissing the appeals of the Attorney...more
On March 15, 2021, the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) launched its complaints process, enabling the receipt of complaints respecting human rights abuses arising from the operations abroad of Canadian...more
On March 19, 2021, the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) launched the Indigenous Community Infrastructure Initiative (ICII), which aims to invest $1 billion to encourage infrastructure investment in Indigenous communities. The...more
The term Environmental, Social and Governance, or ESG, refers to a broad set of issues or criteria relating to corporate behaviour and performance that generally fall outside of the traditional financial performance...more
On March 5, 2021, the federal government released draft Greenhouse Gas Offset Credit System Regulations (Draft Regulations), providing some clarity as to how federal offsets will be created, tracked and ultimately used to...more
3/17/2021
/ Air Pollution ,
Canada ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Change ,
Coal Industry ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Health and Safety ,
Renewable Energy
On March 11, 2021, Canada unveiled its Critical Minerals List. The list includes 31 minerals considered integral to the Canadian economy, all of which are available in Canada. The list highlights focus areas in future...more
On February 1, 2021, amendments to the Environmental Management Act (EMA) and associated changes to the Contaminated Sites Regulation relating to the process for identifying contaminated sites came into force. A notable...more
On January 28, 2021, the Government of British Columbia announced that BC Hydro will offer discounted electricity rates to innovative industrial customers seeking to use clean electricity in qualified “green” operations, as...more
The development of a Canada-wide clean fuel standard took a major step forward on December 19, 2020, with the federal government's release of draft Clean Fuel Regulations which, once finalized, will come into force in...more
It is an exciting time in the Canadian energy industry, but also a pivotal one. We need to maximize the value of our current energy resources, and continue to develop new lower-carbon sources that customers want to buy, to...more
On December 11, 2020, the Government of Canada released its plan to accelerate climate action in Canada, titled "A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy". The plan contemplates a total of $15 billion in investments...more
On December 3, 2020, Minister David Lametti, the federal Minister of Justice, introduced Bill C-15, An Act respecting the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Bill follows on the Liberal Party...more
Following two previous efforts Parliament is again considering legislation to address modern slavery in corporate supply chains. Bill S-216: An Act to enact the Modern Slavery Act and to amend the Customs Tariff is currently...more
On November 19, 2020, the federal government introduced Bill C-12, the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act, the latest in a series of federal government initiatives aimed at satisfying Canada's obligations under...more
On November 5, 2020, the Supreme Court of Canada released its decision in Quebec (Attorney General) v 9147-0732 Québec Inc, 2020 SCC 32, in which the court decided that the constitutional protection against being subject to...more
Alberta will expand the powers of First Nations police services (FNPS) and officers and formally recognize FNPS as having equal status to other municipal police forces when it passes a bill currently before the Legislature....more
On October 29, 2020, the federal government announced the launch of a $750-million Emissions Reduction Fund to reduce methane and GHG emissions. Administered through Natural Resources Canada, the Fund provides up to $675...more
On July 16, 2020, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) released its Strategic Assessment of Climate Change (SACC). The SACC provides detailed guidance to those project proponents required to assess climate change...more
On October 1, the Government of Canada announced the Canada Infrastructure Bank’s (CIB) $10-billion plan to invest in major infrastructure initiatives (the Growth Plan), as a part of the $35 billion allocated to the CIB under...more
New infrastructure projects will be an important part of Canada's recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, and many will be situated on the path of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. Listen to what the evolving legal, policy...more
On September 2, 2020, the Government of British Columbia announced that it will further delay implementation dates for changes to the B.C. Carbon Tax and Provincial Sales Tax (PST) due to COVID-19....more
On June 22, 2020, British Columbia introduced amendments to the Mines Act. The proposed amendments formalize the separation of the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources' (EMPR) permitting and compliance functions,...more
On May 14, 2020, British Columbia, Canada and the Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs signed memorandum of understanding (MOU) that establishes a process for the “three equal governments” to negotiate agreements on how to...more
Recent divestments by certain major global investment funds of their holdings in companies due to Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) concerns demonstrates the increasing importance of ESG as an investment criteria for...more