Madam Speaker, as I answered previously, we are pleased to see that the member opposite shares our concerns and the minister's concerns over fish habitat.
He mentioned about being cautious. If there is one thing the minister has clearly shown, it is that he has made some tough decisions in terms of protecting fish and fish habitat. He will continue to do that.
In terms of the specifics of this case, the recent issuance of an exploratory licence for the Cape Breton block, it is important to recognize that this is not a blanket approval for future oil and gas activities. The licence only confers the right to explore the lands covered by the licence, drill and test for petroleum and obtain a production licence in respect of those lands.
Each exploration project proposal under this licence will have to undergo an environmental assessment and will have to be approved by the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board.
Due to the concerns that have been identified in the Cape Breton block, the board has decided to put a six months hold on any exploration activities so that additional discussions and environmental analyses can be carried out.
A strategic environmental assessment is currently being done for the Cape Breton block in order to identify and provide an initial evaluation of the issues on which future project specific assessments completed by the industry should focus.
During 1999 research will be carried out on the effects of seismic exploration on the east coast fishery through support from the environmental sciences research fund. In addition, the role of Canada-Nova Scotia Petroleum Board in regulating the petroleum industry in—