Environmental assessment (EA) in Canada is in a constant state of change. Although most changes seem to be incremental, they have largely been positive. Since the first edition of this book in 2006, federal EA legislation has been repealed and replaced twice: the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 and the Impact Assessment Act, 2019. Several provincial and territorial jurisdictions have also introduced revisions to EA legislation and regulations, with British Columbia being the first to introduce legislation to implement commitments under the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The period from 2006 to the present has also witnessed an increasing public awareness of the EA brand name—sometimes for good, as illustrated by increasing demand for more regional and strategic EA systems to tackle complex policy and cumulative effects challenges; sometimes not so good, as illustrated by the politicizing of EA and pipelines of misinformation about EA’s impact on Canadas oil and gas sector. Given this context, it can be quite challenging, if not impossible, to generate a text that captures the currency of EA legislation and regulations. This fourth edition was started as Bill C-69 was making its way to royal ascent and was completed in the months immediately following the 2019 federal election—both events meant much uncertainty about the future of federal EA. The first three editions of this text were tightly coupled with EA legislation. This fourth edition takes a slightly different direction, stepping back from legislation and focusing on the foundational principles and practices that characterize “good” EA—regardless of the prevailing legislation or jurisdiction of application. Of course, as a text about EA it is still important to introduce underlying legislative provisions, since this is what ultimately sets the minimum standard of practice. But the fourth edition does so only to illustrate the diversity of practice—not to critique or “teach” EA requirements. This book is written for the student of EA—the current and future practitioner, regulator, and decision-maker.

Introduction to Environmental Assessment: A Guide to Principles and Practice PDF

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