Through its review of the National Energy Board (NEB) and of the federal environmental assessment (EA) regime, the Government of Canada has a tremendous opportunity to ensure the country’s regulatory bodies are fully equipped to serve the public interest in a country transitioning to a low-carbon economy.
This report includes our final recommendations to the Expert Panel on NEB modernization. They focus on the project review processes — including the NEB’s existing role as the responsible authority for interprovincial pipeline and designated power line EAs — as well as the NEB’s data production and modelling functions. We offer recommendations to improve the Government of Canada’s ability to consider climate change in energy project evaluations and decisions, and to address concerns about the NEB’s perceived lack of independence and approach to public, landowner and stakeholder engagement.
Note: The backgrounder also included here, was originally released on January 24, 2017
