2002/03 Annual Service Plan Report Environmental Assessment Office

Ministry Role and Services

Introduction

The Environmental Assessment Office leads reviews of large-scale projects being proposed for development in British Columbia. Environmental assessment is a process for identifying, predicting, evaluating and mitigating potentially adverse impacts of major projects. The process examines a broad range of possible effects — environmental, economic, social, heritage and health — and supports balanced decision-making.

Environmental assessment serves the public interest by:

• ensuring that major projects will not threaten public health/safety or adversely affect local communities and the environment, and by instilling public confidence that this is the case;
• supporting sustainable development that improves the provincial economy;
• forestalling project planning errors which could be costly to both private and public interests;
• protecting British Columbia's reputation for environmental integrity in external markets;
• satisfying public expectations for political accountability for project approval decisions; and
• ensuring that decisions on major projects are linked to government's larger responsibility for the management of provincial land and resources.

Agency Vision, Mission and Values

Vision

Sustainable economic development that reflects the social, heritage and environmental values of British Columbians.

Mission

Provide British Columbians with a well-designed and well-delivered environmental assessment process that reflects the government's objectives for economic growth, strong communities and sustainable resource management, based on maintaining high environmental standards.

Values

The Environmental Assessment Office is committed to the following principles which guide its work:

The Environmental Assessment Office is guided in its organizational behaviour by the following values:

• cooperation and teamwork;
• respect for the values and opinions of others;
• continuous improvement to ensure quality service;
• a professional and high-performance culture, encouraging innovation and creativity;
• accountability to the people of British Columbia; and
• a healthy workplace supporting staff development, recognition, and opportunity.

Agency Operating Context

The Environmental Assessment Office strives to meet its mission, goals and objectives within the larger context of many interrelated internal and external factors.

Provincial Economy — Downward trends in prices for, and revenues from, many of British Columbia's natural resources constrain economic growth, although prices for some products (e.g., energy) are expected to increase. Many resource-based communities, particularly those which have experienced workforce dislocations, are anxious for new economic opportunities.

Market Expectations — Environmental assessment is an integral component of broader environmental management systems worldwide. Consumer demands for assurances regarding environmental sustainability and consumer health increasingly affect both global and domestic markets. An environmental assessment approval can be an important marketing and financing asset.

Potential Project Effects — Major projects may raise significant health and safety, community and environmental issues with the public. The public expects opportunities for substantial involvement in environmental assessments, especially for controversial projects. Decision-making needs to be transparent, based on best available technical information, and reflective of government's broader objectives for the management of provincial land and resources.

Federal Government's Role — More than 70% of projects which are subject to the provincial environmental assessment process must also satisfy federal environmental assessment requirements. Over the past decade, federal interpretation of their jurisdiction has resulted in more federal involvement in areas of traditionally provincial resource and land use jurisdiction. This trend is expected to continue with new federal initiatives, as well as with evolving interpretation of and changes to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.

First Nations — Court decisions have provided direction to government on their obligations regarding aboriginal interests. These obligations are fulfilled through the environmental assessment process and are consistent with the approach to First Nations consultation on aboriginal rights and/or title outlined in the Provincial Policy for Consultation with First Nations (October 2002). Besides addressing aboriginal interests through measures to prevent or mitigate adverse effects, impact benefit agreements are often negotiated by proponents, with First Nations. Federal and provincial governments have established several programs designed to address First Nation interests and capacity, including the Economic Measures Fund (Province of British Columbia) and the Resource Access Negotiations Program (Indian and Northern Affairs Canada).

Despite these measures, ongoing challenges are anticipated where First Nations land claims are unresolved or provincial land use-planning is incomplete.

Increased Regulatory Efficiency — Government has made considerable progress towards reducing regulatory burden that hampers sustainable economic investment and impacts productivity in British Columbia. This is leading to a greater emphasis on delivering services more efficiently and effectively to increase certainty. Continued effort is needed to coordinate environmental assessment with permitting and tenuring processes.

Provincial Fiscal Goals — The provincial government is committed to sound fiscal management, and is reducing its costs and programming responsibilities as part of its overall strategy to balance the budget. Major projects entail large commitments of government's administrative and technical resources at a time when internal government financial and human resources are being reduced. Innovative approaches and procedural adjustments are required to adapt to current fiscal and resource constraints, and to accommodate future changes in the government's corporate strategic direction.

Strategic Shifts and Significant Changes in Policy Direction

The strategic shifts summarized below were adopted as part of the Environmental Assessment Office's Core Services Review direction. Beginning with the introduction of the new Environmental Assessment Act in December 2002, and the other measures described in the first section of this report, the Environmental Assessment Office is undertaking major reform of the current environmental assessment process:

• from a prescriptive and standardized process to a flexible and customized process that can be tailored to the specific needs of the project;
• from a process that placed heavy administrative burden on ministries to a process that can be flexible to reduce government's administrative burden and reduce costs;
• from a process that could be quite lengthy to a shorter overall review process that places greater responsibility on proponent deliverables to shorten the time requirements;
• from a process that provided limited options as to the projects that would be reviewed to a process that provides more flexibility in designating projects as reviewable.

Update on New Era Commitments

The Environmental Assessment Office's principles and organizational values support the government's core values. The goals, objectives, and strategies of the Environmental Assessment Office reflect government's commitment to operate in an innovative, results-oriented, and accountable manner consistent with the following managerial principles:

• high standards of accountability, consultation and ethics;
• focused and efficient delivery of government services;
• social and fiscal responsibility;
• open and transparent government; and
• an innovative and goal-oriented public service.

While the New Era commitments do not specifically refer to the work of the Environmental Assessment Office, the changes to the Act and reforms to the environmental assessment process support the key strategic shifts endorsed by the government during the Core Services Review (see above) and several important commitments, including:

• a thriving private sector economy and enhanced competitive business climate;
• cutting red tape and providing faster approvals and greater access to Crown land and resources;
• effective and sustainable use of provincial land and resources;
• a scientifically-based, balanced and principled approach to environmental management;
• protecting human health;
• eliminating federal/provincial overlaps that increase costs, and frustrate economic development;
• improving the regulatory regime and reducing the number of regulations by one-third within three years;
• increased focus on customer service and leadership in electronic government;
• open and accountable government; and
• responsible fiscal management of tax dollars.

Agency Structure

British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office

The Environmental Assessment Office is a neutral, independent agency that receives shared services from the Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management. Recent restructuring initiatives to meet Workforce Adjustment goals and the introduction of the new Act resulted in the number of Environmental Assessment Directors being reduced and new Project Assessment Managers and Project Assessment Officers positions being created. The new structure is a matrix management environment involving the shift of resources between project teams where priorities are identified. The organizational chart for the office may be found in Appendix 3.

Core Business Areas

Major Project Environmental Assessments

The Environmental Assessment Office oversees and manages the province's major project environmental assessment process. The process identifies the potential environmental, economic, social and other aspects of a proposed project, and determines ways to eliminate, minimize or mitigate any negative impacts. The Environmental Assessment Office serves a range of clients including proponents, First Nations, the public, other federal and provincial agencies and local government. The Environmental Assessment Office provides British Columbians with a carefully designed and well-delivered environmental assessment process that reflects the government's objectives for economic growth, strong communities and sustainable resource management, based on maintaining high environmental standards.

Corporate Operations

Many of the Environmental Assessment Office's corporate operations are supported by a shared services model, implemented in cooperation with the Ministries of Sustainable Resource Management and Water, Land and Air Protection. The corporate operations provided internally include service planning, budgeting, strategic human resource planning, staff development, policy and legislation, communications, records management, the electronic project information centre (ePIC) and the website.

Agency Goals, Objectives and Key Strategies

Goal 1: Efficient and Effective Delivery of Environmental Assessment

Goal 2: Organizational Excellence