The British Columbia Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy recently made changes to the site identification process in the Environmental Management Act and Contaminated Sites Regulation that come into effect on February 1, 2021. These changes aim to streamline the legal regime by making the process clearer and more predictable and will improve the ministry’s ability to carry out compliance verification and enforcement.
As part of implementing these changes, ten protocols have been revised and posted for comment. The ministry requests stakeholder feedback on the draft protocols by Monday, January 11, 2021. The ministry is also reviewing and updating guidance documents and procedures related to the protocols.
The full amendments can be found here:
Environmental Management Amendment Act, 2019 (Bill17): https://www.leg.bc.ca/parliamentary-business/legislation-debates-proceedings/41st-parliament/4th-session/bills/third-reading/gov17-3
Contaminated Sites Regulation OIC 0368/2020: https://www.bclaws.ca/civix/document/id/oic/oic_cur/0368_2020
