Fortress Mountain and the Sale of Water from Kananaskis Country

Posted on December 12, 2019 by Shaun Fluker

By: Shaun Fluker

PDF Version: Fortress Mountain and the Sale of Water from Kananaskis Country

Matter commented on: Fortress Mountain Holdings Ltd. Application No. 003-00037369 under the Water Act, RSA 2000 c W-3

This is a short comment to raise awareness about a systemic problem in how Alberta Environment and Parks (AEP) administers its decision-making powers concerning the development of natural resources and assesses the environmental impacts associated with this development. It is a problem of transparency and more particularly, the absence of transparency and lack of any meaningful opportunity for public participation in the AEP decision-making process. This is not a new problem, and it is one which I canvassed more thoroughly in The Right to Public Participation in Resources and Environmental Decision-Making in Alberta published by the Alberta Law Review in 2015. In short, decisions made by AEP under the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act, RSA 2000 c E-12 (EPEA) or the Water Act concerning the use or development of natural resources are generally made behind closed doors with no opportunity for public input and minimal disclosure. This makes a mockery of the statements of purpose set out in section 2 of EPEA and section 2 of the Water Act, which state that a purpose of each Act is to provide opportunities for citizens to give advice on decisions affecting the environment. Continue reading →

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Provisional Application of an Amendment to the London Protocol to Facilitate Collaborative CCS Projects

Posted on December 10, 2019 by Nigel Bankes

By: Nigel Bankes

PDF Version: Provisional Application of an Amendment to the London Protocol to Facilitate Collaborative CCS Projects

Document Commented On: Resolution LP.5(14) on the Provisional Application of the 2009 Amendment to Article 6 of the London Protocol, adopted 11 October 2019, by the 14th Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the 1996 Protocol to the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and other Matters. [Note: Documents relating to the London Convention and Protocol including this document may be accessed on the website of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) here but users have to create an account to obtain access. Follow “Meeting Documents” and then LC Documents (Session 41). For convenience, the text of the Resolution is included at the foot of this post].

This post examines the recent decision of the Contracting Parties to the 1996 Protocol (the London Protocol or LP) to the London Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and other Matters (London Dumping Convention or LC) to agree to the provisional application of an amendment to Article 6 of the LP. That amendment (originally adopted in 2009) when it enters into force will allow the export of CO2 for geological sequestration. The amendment is a crucial piece of the puzzle to permit collaborative projects for the subsea disposal of captured carbon dioxide emissions from industrial facilities located elsewhere than the coastal State responsible for the disposal site. This initiative, which will permit provisional application of that amendment, will help facilitate projects such as the Equinor-led Northern Lights Project on the Norwegian continental shelf. That project is currently drilling a test well: see here and here. Continue reading →

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Canadian Women Still Struggling with Access to Reproductive Care

Posted on December 9, 2019 by Lorian Hardcastle

By: Lorian Hardcastle

PDF Version: Canadian Women Still Struggling with Access to Reproductive Care

Matter Commented On: Federal and provincial barriers to medical abortion

Fifty years after Henry Morgentaler disregarded restrictive federal laws that limited access to abortion and opened his first clinic in Montreal, the health care system continues to fail women by not providing them with evidence-based reproductive care. This post will explore the barriers women face in accessing abortion services at the federal and provincial levels. Continue reading →

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Comments on ABlawg

Posted on December 5, 2019 by Admin

By: Admin

Readers may have noticed that since September we have disabled the comment function on ABlawg. Simply put, and like many other on-line publications, moderating comments had become too demanding of our resources. We recently re-visited this decision and have decided to confirm our new approach. We encourage readers to contact authors directly with their feedback or comments. The email addresses of faculty member authors are readily available on the Faculty’s website and through links at the bottom of each post. Readers can also engage with our posts on Twitter – all of our posts are tweeted by ABlawg. As always, we thank you for reading ABlawg.

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Small Modular (Nuclear) Reactors in Canada – Small Steps Towards Realization

Posted on December 3, 2019 by Rudiger Tscherning

By: Rudiger Tscherning

PDF Version: Small Modular (Nuclear) Reactors in Canada – Small Steps Towards Realization

Matter Commented On: New Brunswick-Ontario-Saskatchewan Collaboration Memorandum on Small Modular Nuclear Reactors

Introduction

On December 1, 2019, the premiers of New Brunswick, Ontario, and Saskatchewan announced that they are formally collaborating by way of a memorandum of understanding to develop small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) and that further provinces and territories may join the collaboration. Premier Ford has identified the opportunity as one for Canada “to be a true leader” on an issue of the future. I have followed the international development of small nuclear reactors, and their implications for domestic and international law regimes, since 2010. This post serves as an introduction to SMRs, both within and outside of Canada, and the legal and policy frameworks involved. Continue reading →

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