Help us push for stronger environmental assessment laws to safeguard wild salmon
Help us push for stronger laws to safeguard wild salmon
Can we count on you to help us push for stronger laws to safeguard wild salmon?
Environmental assessments are one of the most important ways we can ensure resource extraction doesn't irreparably harm wild salmon and the ecosystems on which they depend.
The new BC government has committed to overhauling the BC Environmental Assessment Act, but those who benefit from weak environmental laws are pushing back hard.
We need you to help us support stronger environmental assessments in BC.
The Province recently released a discussion paper outlining some of the ways it intends to improve our environmental assessment laws. It includes some good stuff, like honouring the rights of indigenous people and improving citizen engagement. But there are lots of things missing, too, such as:
- ensuring independent evidence and oversight of assessments;
- ensuring meaningful public participation and providing participant funding;
- addressing cumulative effects within a region through more project assessments and mandatory regional assessments; and
- rejecting projects if they don’t meet important legal criteria, including a climate test and Indigenous consent.
Want more background? West Coast Environmental Law has published a backgrounder on how the existing legislation falls short and how it can be improved. Their blog post includes some helpful tips on making an effective submission.
How to submit your comments:
Use the online form provided by the Environmental Assessment Office.
The deadline for submitting comments is July 30, 2018.
The more comments the BC government receives that call for a strengthened environmental assessment process, the more likely we are to see real change.
Thank you!
- Friends of Wild Salmon