June 26, 2024 – The Government of Canada released an action plan—Building Canada’s Clean Future—to modernize federal assessment and permitting processes, and get projects “that help us fight climate change, create and support jobs, and grow our economy built faster”.

“We need to build big things in this country,” said Seamus O’Regan Jr., Minister of Labour and Seniors. “This is our plan to give industry, investors, and workers the certainty and confidence they need to build.”

Chaired by O’Regan, the Ministerial Working Group on Regulatory Efficiency for Clean Growth Projects worked to develop an action plan that would accelerate “clean growth” project decisions.

The resulting action plan proposes steps to make current processes more efficient by clarifying and reducing timelines, mitigating inefficiencies, reducing duplication, and improving engagement.

Key actions guiding Building Canada’s Clean Future include:

• Assessment and permitting targets of 5 years for federally designated projects, 2 years or less for non-federally designated projects, and 3 years for nuclear projects.
• Establishing a Crown consultation coordinator to ensure consultation with Indigenous peoples on the issuance of federal authorizations.
• Establishing a federal permitting coordinator on clean growth projects within the Privy Council Office’s Clean Growth Office, and issuing a Cabinet Directive that clearly outlines roles and responsibilities for all relevant federal departments.
• Using Natural Resources Canada’s Regional Energy and Resource Tables, which have been established for 11 out of 13 jurisdictions, to test permitting efficiencies and find better ways to coordinate with provinces and territories.
• Amending the Impact Assessment Act.
• Establishing a new federal permitting dashboard that will provide a snapshot of the status of clean growth projects requiring federal assessment and permitting decisions, to improve predictability and transparency.

DOWNLOAD Building Canada’s Clean Future (PDF): CAN Building Canadas Clean Future PLAN