The Government of Alberta announced that environmental reporting temporarily paused by government during the provincial public health emergency will resume on July 15, 2020 – four weeks earlier than planned.
“The temporary reporting relief provided through Environment and Parks allowed industry time to ensure the health and safety of staff and the communities in which they work,” said Jason Nixon, Minister of Environment and Parks. “Now that the public health emergency is no longer in effect and Alberta is reopening as part of our phase two relaunch, industry can resume business while keeping communities and employees safe.”
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the Alberta Environment and Parks also authorized a three-month extension to industry to submit regulatory reports for emissions reduction achievements and renewable fuel operator compliance. These reports are due June 30. All documentation related to Water Act approvals and licences, reports for public land rentals, and reports related to Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act authorizations that were collected since the ministerial order was put in place must now be submitted. Drinking water facilities were not affected by the order and were still required to submit reports during the pandemic.
Ministerial orders put in place by the Ministry of Energy are also being rescinded on July 15, earlier than anticipated.
“There is no higher priority than the safety of workers and the communities they work in. The unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic required us to operate under an abundance of caution during the height of the health emergency,” said Sonya Savage, Minster of Energy. “While this pause was of low risk, it is also important that we maintain full confidence in the rigour of our regulatory system and return to all regular reporting activities as soon as it is safe to do so. While we expect precautionary measures to be taken, we have no doubt that industry is more than capable of adapting to these challenges.”
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