Comparison and Assessment of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act of 1995 and 2012

CEAA 1995 vs CEAA 2012
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CEAA 1995 vs CEAA 2012
Introduction
Since independence, Canada has implemented numerous environment assessment acts to rebuild public trust and protect the lands, waters, and air that Canadians treasure. The period between 1995-2012 is of great significance in the history of environmental governance as it marked the beginning of key changes to the federal assessment process as provided for in the 2012 Budget Implementation Bill. The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 1995 has undergone extensive changes resulting in the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 2012. The process, scope, public participation, and federal and provincial participation of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 1995 greatly differs from the newly enacted in 2012. At the same time, both the CEAA 1995 and CEAA 2012 share similar characteristics. This paper seeks to discuss the differences and similarities.
Federal and Provincial Participation
The primary goal of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 1995 is to protect our environment, fish, and waterways while promoting peaceful coexistence with indigenous people and restoring public trust in project design and policy administration about resource development, which simultaneously creates a stronger economy. The launch of this Act has been part of the 2030 sustainable development goals to promote a cleaner environment. However, the CEAA 2012 would replace the 1995 Act, eliminate the federal jurisdiction's core roles, and introduce some additional protections. However, CEAA 1995 ensures that constitutional responsibility is shared between the federal and provincial governments. This Act provides precepts with a legal framework for the federal environmental assessment of proposed projects CITATION Doe12 \l 1033 (Meinhard, 2012). Authority trickles down the three arms of Governments to facilitate and informed accurate environmental assessment.
Process
Another fundamental difference between the CEAA 1995 and CEAA 2012 is the disruptive and triggering shift in the process. In the CEAA 2012, there has been an unprecedented shift in the legal test that generally involves defining projects and their potential impacts, the law list and myriad exclusions, and a project list process with many discretionary measures. However, in CEAA 1995, there was a great sense of legal certainty built on a logical precautionary approach. For instance, projects requiring federal approvals were included unless specifically exempt from the EA, manned by regulations. On the other hand, the federal EA processes to a certain percentage are facilitated by the discretion of the Minister and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. Under CEAA 2012, the assessment process commences with registering projects charted on the project list regulation. Thus, the government official will determine whether the project needs environmental assessments CITATION Gib12 \l 1033 (Robert, 2012).
The implementation of the CEAA 2012 was a big shock as the initial amendments were scheduled almost the same time as the mandated seven-year review was set to commence. In addition, there was a growing concern in 2010 amidst accusations of concealing fundamental changes. The implementation process of CEAA 2012 was a controversial subject on so many fronts. For example, in 2010, there were growing concerns that the high-level legislatures were hiding fundamental changes to environmental assessment in a Bill Implementation Bill, which simultaneously limited debating for these changes.
In furtherance, the CEAA 1995 provides mandatory early planning as evidence in the first revisions and adaptations of the 1999 Cabinet Directive on the Environmental Assessment of Policy, Plan, and Program Proposals. However, CEAA 2012 processes early planning and engagement to bring all stakeholders on board to identify, prioritize, and discuss issues early, leading to better project design.
Scope
The CEAA 1995 considered a broader scope of environmental effects before making final decisions about proposed projects. Under this Act, the environmental assessment process spans myriad environmental impacts to safeguard the environment and promote sustainable development. From this perspective, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act overlays the requirements of o...