OTTAWA—The head of the Mining Association of Canada says the hotly contested federal environmental assessment bill is welcome in the industry it will affect the most. “This promises to be a better system than what we’ve had for the last seven years,” said Pierre Gratton, the president of the association. Bill C-69 overhauls Canada’s environmental assessment regime for major national resource and transportation projects but the high-octane opposition from the oil and gas sector has drowned out much of the comment from other affected industries. While the bill affects interprovincial pipelines, oilsands projects, offshore oil projects and oil refineries, it also applies to hydro dams, natural-gas power plants, the construction or decommissioning of military bases and airports, and most commonly, mines. Read more:Environment groups blast Senate committee for amendments to Bill C-69 Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said Wednesday she would accept 62 Senate amendments as written and 37 more with some adjustments.

Source: thestar June 13, 2019 19:49 UTC