Climate and Energy

West Coast Environmental Law is pleased to present the first in a series of dialogues for legal innovation designed to engage thought-leaders and decision-makers in achieving law reform that protects the environment. West Coast’s Dialogues for Legal Innovation Series will bring together diverse perspectives to help shape solutions to complex legal and policy issues that affect the well being of British Columbians and our communities.

Many British Columbians — including those deeply concerned about climate change — harbour concerns about how renewable electricity is currently planned, promoted and developed in BC. They want to see renewable electricity projects, but they want to be confident that those projects are planned and developed in a way that limits impacts and maximizes benefits for British Columbians.

While direct reductions in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions remain the top priority in meeting the provincial government’s commitment to a carbon neutral public sector and meeting provincial GHG targets, some emissions will remain to be offset. In this context, we support the Pacific Carbon Trust’s mandate to provide quality BC-based offsets that are of high environmental integrity. High quality forest-based offsets would provide both real GHG reduction benefits and biodiversity co-benefits.

The overwhelming scientific consensus is that the global warming we are presently experiencing is due to human-factors. In turn, climate change presents significant risks to the forest ecosystems of BC. West Coast Environmental Law welcomes the MoFR’s recognition of these two key realities.

However; this submission highlights three key concerns with the May 18th, 2006 Preparing for Climate Change report:

The BC government is proposing to implement vehicle greenhouse gas emissions reduction standards in BC, once they are also implemented in California. The government released an Intentions Paper for comments, that set out its current thinking and questions as it starts to prepare the regulation. While West Coast congratulates the BC government for its initiative in taking action to regulate vehicle GHG emissions like this, there a number of areas which need to be strengthened to make the Act truly effective, including public accessibility. 

The BC government is proposing to implement a mandatory greenhouse gas emissions reporting regulation in BC under the “cap and trade” legislation . The government released an Intentions Paper for comments, that set out its current thinking and questions as it starts to prepare the regulation. West Coast, along with the Pembina Institute, the David Suzuki Foundation and the BC Sustainable Association filed a joint submission on the proposed regulation.

West Coast is concerned that in the current debate around independent power producer projects, or IPPs, there is more heat being generated than light. To that end, West Coast is pleased to release a backgrounder that addresses the most Frequently Asked Questions about these controversial projects.

The proposed 1,170 kilometre-long Enbridge Gateway Pipeline project would stretch from the Alberta tar sands to a marine terminal at Kitimat and would result in an estimated 225 crude oil and condensate tankers a year travelling through the territories of coastal First Nations. The project proposal engages the jurisdiction and lawful authority of dozens of First Nations, from the Dene and Cree peoples of the Athabasca River basin in the east to the Haida in the west, as well as the nations who rely on the health of the Fraser, Skeena, and Mackenzie Rivers and their tributaries.

The Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline: Do British Columbians Stand to Gain compares the risks and benefits of the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline.  It examines who will be impacted by the project and discusses the potential hazards c

The Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline: Getting the Decision Right analyzes limitations of the proposed review process for the project and proposes solutions.