Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Perhaps my colleague can provide more information. As you are aware, the National Energy Board regulates facilities such as interprovincial and international pipelines and international power lines under the National Energy Board Act. As well, the Canadian Environmental Assessme

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  That's not a simple question, Mr. Chairman. As I mentioned in my presentation, our process is essentially a self-assessment process. Before a federal authority can issue certain regulatory approvals, or provide funding that would allow a project to proceed or undertake a projec

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  As I see it, there are differences. If memory serves me well, the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement dates back to the 1970s. This was one of the country's first land claims agreement. First nations living in this region have a long history of self-management. The systems in

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I can't tell you how that happened, I'm afraid. It was a commitment made in the budgets, obviously. However, I can tell you a little about what it might mean for the future.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  As I mentioned earlier, our legislation applies relatively little in the north, so our involvement in the northern projects initiative is probably less than what it would be with respect to the major resource management office initiative that applies south of 60.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. An environmental assessment regime was in fact put in place further to the signing of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement. This environmental assessment program is very well established. Quebec Superior Court decisions have confirmed that the Canad

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Mr. Chair, I'm not an expert on scientific studies. I'm not familiar with that particular study. However, scientific studies, for example, studies of natural cycles, can sometimes take years to complete. But I'm not familiar with the study you mentioned.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I can speak from our perspective. The NEB's mandate deals with oil and gas development in the north primarily. Our legislation applies more generally to any projects for which the federal government has decision-making power. These can include major resource developments but can

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'm pleased to be here today, finally. I hope that all committee members have a copy of my presentation. I would like to explain to you at this time how the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act works. I thought I'd first give you a bit of a constituti

Environment committee  Certainly. Ordinarily, as we mentioned previously, the oil sands is a provincially regulated resource, and the primary regulator there is the Alberta Energy and Utilities Board, which conducts assessments of oil sands projects from a regulatory perspective, whether they be mine

Environment committee  Mr. Chairman, I am not familiar with this specific project but if this pipeline is under federal jurisdiction and if it crosses streams, thus risking to impact fish habitat or navigation, this would be enough to trigger an environmental assessment by the National Energy Board, fo

Environment committee  Yes. Nuclear power plants are regulated by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. The federal government will make a decision about those nuclear plants and assessments will take place. In Ontario, several nuclear plant projects are undergoing assessments, including at Bruce, Da

Environment committee  The actual coordination of environmental assessments, in the case of a joint review panel, for example, or in the case of a screening where both the federal and provincial processes apply is still being conducted by the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. The role of Major

Environment committee  They are not a responsible authority for environmental assessments. They have been given by cabinet the role of providing some oversight of the environmental review and regulatory review of major resource projects broadly.

Environment committee  First of all, even if the federal government does not conduct assessments of oil sands projects, that does not mean that no assessment is being done. In fact, these projects fall under provincial jurisdiction. These projects should be assessed. As I stated earlier, our process i