Noia makes last-ditch plea against Bill C-69 offshore environmental protections

As Bill C-69 returns to the Senate with sweeping amendments, the association that represents Newfoundland and Labrador's oil and gas sector is in Ottawa to plead for changes it says will protect this province's industry.

"Canada is blessed with natural resources; we need the ability to further develop them. So I'm here today to again show our opposition to some of the things in Bill C-69," said Charlene Johnson, CEO of Noia, the Newfoundland and Labrador Oil and Gas Industry Association, from Ottawa on Monday morning.

Before the organization's annual conference in St. John's this week, she participated in a press conference organized by thegroup Save Canadian Jobsto reiterate concerns about Bill C-69 before it passesinto law should the Senate accept the latest incarnation of the bill, which would overhaulenvironmental assessment legislation.

"The main concern for us in Newfoundland and Labrador is the issue of joint management. Joint management was eroded in the past, and of course the Atlantic Accord of 1985 says that the federal and the provincial government would have equal say in managing our offshore," Johnson said, and that includesenvironmental concerns.

Noia, province share concerns

Her main issues with thelegislation, which wouldgive Ottawa more power in environmental assessments of energy projects, are shared by the provincial government: joint management, and a place for the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board, on the new regulatory agency under Bill C-69, the Impact Assessment Agency.

"[This bill]doesn't recognize the local knowledge of the regulator, who has 30 years of doing these environmental assessments. They're adjacent to the resource" and equally representthe federal and provincial governments, said Johnson.

She said Bill C-69 is about centralizing power in Ottawa, a criticism the Senate seemingly echoed as some of the changes the federal Liberals accepted includegiving more power to the provinces and limiting those of the environment minister.

This province would like a blanket assessment for exploration wells, allowing companies to operate more quickly within a certain area.

"We see environmental exploration wells in Norway being done in 79 days, Australia in 144 days. And that takes approximately 905 days here in Newfoundland and Labrador," said Johnson, making this province less competitive at a time of "great momentum."

Catherine McKenna, the federal minister of environment and climate change, has argued some requested amendments are simply from oil lobbyists. When asked about that, Johnson said the federal government "needs to recognize that there has to be a balance, and right now we're seeing a balance tipped far the other way."

"I always say, protection first, progress, but not added process," Johnson told CBC Radio'sSt. John's Morning Show.

"Just because environmental assessments take longer and they're lengthier, it doesn't mean that there's added protections for the environment, so we need to keep that balance in mind. And look to the facts and the science of this and hear from both sides," she said.

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