Minister's Response — La Ronge Area Peat Harvesting Project

Physical Activities

Lambert Peat Moss Inc. is proposing the construction, operation, decommissioning, and abandonment of the La Ronge Area Peat Harvesting Project (the physical activities referred to as the project), located approximately 15 kilometres south of La Ronge, Saskatchewan. As proposed, the project would extract peat for the production of horticultural products at four harvesting sites that, together, would represent 2,619 hectares potentially harvestable area. Other components of the project would include access roads, staging areas, and drainage networks.

Decision

The project does not warrant designation.

Reasons

Pursuant to section 9 of the Impact Assessment Act (the IAA), I, Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, considered the potential for the project to cause adverse effects within federal jurisdiction, adverse direct or incidental effects, public concerns related to these effects; as well as adverse impacts on the Aboriginal and Treaty rights of the Indigenous Peoples of Canada. In forming my opinion, I took into account the analysis prepared by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.

I am of the opinion that the designation of the project is unwarranted for the following reasons:

• The legislative processes that currently apply to the project and related consultations with potentially impacted Indigenous peoples provide a framework to address the potential adverse aforementioned effects and impacts, and concerns raised by Indigenous peoples and members of the public. These processes include:
  • the provincial environmental assessment process under Saskatchewan's The Environmental Assessment Act, which includes consideration of environmental effects (including effects on caribou [boreal population] and impacts on Indigenous rights) and, if approved, can include terms and conditions to mitigate potential environmental effects for all stages of the development;
  • the provincial legislation, as applicable, such as The Fisheries Act (Saskatchewan), The Environmental Management and Protection Act, 2010, and The Heritage Property Act; and
  • the federal authorizations, approvals, and reporting that may be required under the Fisheries Act; Canadian Navigable Waters Act; Species at Risk Act; Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994; and Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999.
• The project must be carried out in compliance with provincial and federal legislation, including The Environmental Assessment Act; The Fisheries Act (Saskatchewan), The Environmental Management and Protection Act, 2010; The Heritage Property Act; the Fisheries Act; the Species at Risk Act; the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994; the Canadian Navigable Waters Act; and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999.