Budget implementation bill amends more than 50 acts of Parliament

AWARE Simcoe April 27 2012

The Tories implemented their budget implementation bill yesterday. The omnibus bill amends more than 50 acts of Parliament and dismantles much of the process that protects Canada’s land, water and air.

From yesterday’s CBC News report:

It repeals the Kyoto Protocol Implementation Act. The government had previously announced that Canada would pull out of the global agreement on greenhouse gas emissions.

It contains the changes to a number of pieces of legislation dealing with the environmental assessment process. The bill sets timelines for assessment hearings, allows Ottawa to hand off assessments to the provinces and consolidates the process in three government agencies: the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, the National Energy Board and the Canadian Environment Assessment Agency.

It gives the federal cabinet the authority to approve new pipeline projects and sets time limits for regulatory reviews. The changes mean if the National Energy Board disapproves of a project, cabinet can force it to reconsider.

It makes changes to how permits under the Species at Risk Act are authorized.

It overhauls the Fisheries Act to focus only on major waterways, not every single body of water, something Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz announced Tuesday.

It sets out stiffer fines for industry players who break environmental regulations and laws.