The short answer to your question is yes.
I mentioned that I found CEAA, compared with CEPA, to allow for much more public participation. My problem with CEAA is that the EIS is developed by consultants hired by the proponents. I'm trying to figure out a way during the CEAA review for a truly independent scientific document to be the basis of the review.
It's interesting that with CEPA, though, we actually did have some relatively good signs coming out of DFO, but they were largely ignored by the regulating department. To actually get the bigger environmental assessment, we had to go through freedom of information. We should put transparency and the importance of science—of independent science—on a much higher pedestal than it is right now.