The federal government has announced an action plan called Building Canada’s Clean Future that it hopes will speed up development for major projects—especially those involving renewable energy.
“Its purpose is to cut red tape, to cut duplication, and to maintain environmental integrity so that we take advantage of some historic energy investment opportunities that are before us, so we can get stuff built faster,” federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan told a news conference on June 20.
Mr. O’Regan is chair of the Ministerial Working Group on Regulatory Efficiency for Clean Growth Projects.
“We need to build more mines, we need to build more dams, we need to build more nuclear, we need to build more solar, we need to build more wind farms,” Mr. O’Regan told reporters.
Initial reaction from business appeared to be positive. Goldy Hyder, president of the Business Council of Canada, called the announcement “a step forward” in a statement sent to The Epoch Times.
“Canada’s leading enterprises welcome today’s announcement of an action plant to modernize federal assessment and permitting processes,” the statement said.
- A new clean growth office to provide coordination as projects are under development
- An online federal permitting dashboard, so companies know exactly where their project stands on a timeline
- Clear service standards, with two years or less on permitting for non-federally designated projects, five years for federally designated projects, and three years for nuclear projects
- A Crown consultation coordinator to make sure that meaningful consultation with indigenous peoples happens
- Working with northern premiers, indigenous governments, and industry to make regulations more efficient for projects “north of 60”
“The race is on to build some big projects and secure our energy future,” he said. “There are unbelievable opportunities in hydrogen and oil and gas, in wind. I say oil and gas because we’ve managed to find significant ways to lower emissions and find sources of some of the lowest emitting oil in the world, but the focus now has moved to renewables and to hydrogen.”
“Seizing these opportunities in a thoughtful and strategic way will create good jobs and economic prosperity in the emerging low-carbon economy of the future,” he said.
Mr. O’Regan pointed to measures like the online dashboard for permitting as one way to attract investors.
“Whether it be mining ... whether it’s nuclear, whether it’s the capacity to build any sort of big project ... they just want to know where it is within the system. That is something that we have not accurately been able to provide them, but it is something that it is an asset in and of itself. If you can provide that certainty and stability, that is a draw,” he said.
Mr. O’Regan added getting rid of duplicate requirements between Ottawa and the provinces—or in some cases between federal departments—is also an important feature.
The goal was to find duplications “and get rid of them,” he said. “And that in and of itself, I think, will draw more investment and increase our capacity to build these things.”
The Business Council of Canada said improvements to Ottawa’s approval process are badly needed.
“Canada must attract the capital required to develop major projects, and regulatory barriers are a significant impediment,” it said.
The federal plan reflects several recommendations made over the years by the council, along with other groups, such as improved coordination with provinces and territories, and a role for the Privy Council Office in coordinating project approvals and permitting.
“While this announcement is a step forward, we urge the federal government to implement the action plan immediately, with the support of provinces and territories,” the council said.
