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ARCHIVED - What's Happening With the CEPA Review?

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An Update from the CEPA Office

October 27, 1994

1. Standing Committee Activities

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development is actively proceeding with its review of CEPA. They have held two weeks of hearings in Ottawa and heard briefs from twenty one organizations/individuals. This past week (October 17-21), the Committee travelled to Toronto, Montreal and Akwesasne. Regional visits are planned for Atlantic and Pacific later in November. The Committee will also travel to Bathurst on November 7 to meet with the Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment (CCME). A list of witnesses who have appeared before the Committee is available as are the official written briefs from some of the Associations which have submitted documents for the Committee review. During the regional visits, the Committee is holding public sessions as well as meeting with regional representatives of Environment Canada. Site visits to some industrial installations in the regions have also been arranged to give the Committee members a sense of how CEPA is delivered.

2. Presentation on the CEPA Review

A series of overheads with an accompanying text has been prepared which deal with the CEPA review process. The presentation is designed to give audiences an overview of what is happening with the CEPA review and the relevant issues facing the Standing Committee. Copies of the presentation will be forwarded to each region to assist in describing the CEPA Review Process to clients and staff. Any one else who wishes to have a copy should contact Sue Keane (953-1914).

3. Position Paper

An outline of the first draft of the position paper has been distributed for review and comment. The document which is currently being evaluated contains a suggested departmental position and basically follows the themes presented in the Issues Overview Paper. The position will be reshaped, redrafted and finalized over the next few weeks.

4. Harmonization

The Lead Representatives Committee (LRC) is meeting in Quebec City this week to continue its negotiations on the Environmental Management Framework (EMF) Agreement and four of the functional areas: monitoring, enforcement, environmental assessment and international agreements. The Committee will report to the Ministers regarding progress of the negotiations at the CCME Ministers meeting in Bathurst in November. With respect to the EMF, the LRC has: drafted a Statement of Interests, set the criteria to be used in the allocation of roles, agreed on the need for national approaches to some issues, included a provision for province-to-province sub agreements, identified dispute resolution mechanisms, and included in the EMF measures leading to greater consistency, clarity and predictability.