'Toothless and broken' system is little more than a rubber stamp, says Wilderness Committee

VANCOUVER - John Doyle, the Auditor General of British Columbia, today released a damning report regarding the provincial Environmental Assessment Office (EAO).

The report, entitled ‘An Audit of the Environmental Assessment Office’s Oversight of Certified Products’, found that the EAO was not adequately monitoring industrial projects nor ensuring that environmental commitments were being met by development proponents. The EAO is responsible for assessing major industrial projects, including mines, power projects and tourist destination resorts, for their potential environmental impacts.

“The Wilderness Committee has said for the past decade that the Environmental Assessment process in BC is broken and toothless – little more than a rubber stamp for mining and other industrial developments, “ said Gwen Barlee, Policy Director for the Wilderness Committee. “The auditor general’s report confirms many of our criticisms.”

In 2002, the BC government weakened the Environmental Assessment Act which was first introduced in 1994. Since 1995 the Office has assessed 219 industrial projects refusing certification for just one - the Garibaldi at Squamish project, a proposed resort community near Whistler.

“The issue here is that the public interest is not being protected,” said Barlee. “In addition to the environmental implications, we are concerned that the citizens or BC are losing confidence in this and other government processes – it’s a dangerous thing when people lose trust in their public institutions,” said Barlee. "The Environmental Assessment Office needs a complete overhaul to restore the public's trust and to adequately protect our environment."

Contact:

Gwen Barlee, Policy Director, Wilderness Committee: 604-202-0322 (c) or 604-683-8220 (w)