Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Members of the standing committee, on behalf of the Canadian Electricity Association and its member companies, I'd like to thank you for the opportunity to appear before the committee this morning.
First, let me say that the CEA president and CEO, Pierre Guimond, would like to have been here, but unfortunately, a long-standing commitment prevented him from appearing today.
I'm Eli Turk, vice-president of the Canadian Electricity Association, and I'm joined today by Gary Birch from British Columbia Hydro. Ken Meade of Nova Scotia Power, who chairs CEA's SARA working group, is also here with us today. We're pleased to be here before this committee to provide the Canadian Electricity Association's perspective on the Species At Risk Act.
You've already received both a briefing note and a comprehensive legal analysis of SARA from CEA. Thus this presentation will focus on three priority issues for CEA members: first, the problem of immediate non-compliance of facilities; second, incidental effects and automatic prohibitions; and third, permit prerequisites, durations, and renewals.
You have already received both a briefing note and a comprehensive legal analysis on the Species at Risk Act from CEA.
So, this presentation will focus on three priority issues for CEA members: the problem of immediate non-compliance of facilities, the incidental effects and automatic prohibitions, and finally the permit prerequisites, durations and renewals.
The Canadian Electricity Association, founded in 1891, is the national voice of the Canadian electricity industry. CEA members generate, transmit, and distribute electricity to industrial, commercial, residential, and institutional customers across Canada on a daily basis. From vertically integrated electric utilities to power marketers, all are represented by this national industry association.
The Species at Risk Act implementation is a critical issue for the electricity industry, with cross-cutting implications for generation, transmission, and distribution functions of the electricity business. We support the fundamental architecture of SARA and are committed to protecting species that are endangered, extirpated, or threatened. In fact, the protection of biodiversity is enshrined in the CEA sustainable electricity program, which was officially launched by the CEA board of directors in February 2009.
A key commitment under the program requires members to manage environmental resources and ecosystems to support species recovery and prevent or minimize loss. However, as currently structured, SARA does not provide an expeditious way for facilities to achieve compliance with automatic prohibitions. It is vital that the electricity industry be given greater operational certainty and clarity under SARA, so that we can continue to provide Canadians with energy while continuing to protect species and comply with the act.
The philosophy of SARA is grounded firmly in a cooperative and voluntary approach to species protection, supplemented by compliance and enforcement measures. However, since the enactment of SARA, far more attention has been paid to the prohibitions and enforcement provisions than to the promotion of stewardship.
The SARA five-year review provides an opportunity for the federal government to make legislative amendments that would allow mechanisms for industry compliance with the Species at Risk Act.
With regard to automatic prohibitions, let me talk a bit about the problems facilities face with regard to immediate non-compliance. CEA members operate facilities constructed many years ago, which despite best efforts may have unavoidable incidental effects on species at risk. As currently interpreted, sections 32 and 33 of the act often present the electricity industry with an impossible choice. When a species is listed under the act, a facility with any incidental impact must either shut down or continue to operate in non-compliance with SARA. This uncertainty cannot continue. An amendment should be made to exempt facilities from automatic prohibitions, provided they have either applied for a SARA permit under section 73, engaged in recovery planning, or engaged in the development of a conservation agreement under section 11.
Let me talk a little about permitting for incidental effects. Frankly, the current permitting system under SARA for incidental effects is broken. While there have been many permits issued for scientific research and activities that benefit a species, very few have been issued under the incidental effects provision. A well-functioning permitting system must provide an expeditious way for facilities to comply with the act when, despite best practices, they cannot avoid all incidental effects on species.
Viewing the statute as a whole, it is clear that the type of incidental effect that Parliament intended to permit under section 73 is more than a trivial or de minimis effect, but not so serious as to jeopardize the survival or recovery of the species. CEA would encourage an amendment to the act that would allow for incidental effects that may violate the automatic prohibitions but would not be so serious as to jeopardize the survival or recovery of the species.
With regard to duration and renewal of permits, permits under section 73 are currently limited to three years and agreements to five years. This duration is not consistent with the long capital cycles in the electricity industry. Many facilities operate for 40 to 60 years, or in some cases even longer. The assignment of a three-year time limit for permits seems arbitrary and unrealistic, particularly if the lifespan of the affected species is much longer.
There is also no regime in place for dealing with permit renewals. Given that the maximum duration of a permit or agreement is three or five years respectively, the renewal process is absolutely critical for members of CEA with long-term facilities and operations.
CEA recommends that an amendment should be made to section 73, subsection (9), to allow for longer permits tied to facility operation permits and approvals granted by the regulators. The SARA permits may be reviewed and updated in respect of new risks to species and non-compliance with the terms and conditions of the permits.
Other concerns related to socio-related economic factors, definitional issues around critical habitat and residence, and harmonization with other federal and provincial legislation are covered in the CEA position paper, which I'd be pleased to discuss in the question period.
The Canadian Electricity Association appreciates the opportunity to appear before this committee to outline our key concerns on SARA. This is an extremely critical issue for the electricity industry, and we hope the committee will consider our recommendations so that the industry can better meet the objectives of SARA going forward.
Thank you. Merci.