Open AccessFederal and Alberta Energy Project Regulation Reform — At What Cost Efficiency?
Author(s) -
Rowland J. Harrison,
Lars Olthafer,
Katie Slipp
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
alberta law review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1925-8356
pISSN - 0002-4821
DOI - 10.29173/alr67
Subject(s) - government (linguistics) , energy law , resource (disambiguation) , public administration , business , regulatory reform , regulator , natural resource , public economics , political science , economics , environmental law , law , computer network , philosophy , linguistics , biochemistry , chemistry , computer science , gene
Changes to regulatory regimes at the federal and provincial levels have recently transformed the way that energy resource projects will be considered and approved. The federal Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012 and amended National Energy Board Act, along with the Alberta Responsible Energy Development Act, have taken decision-making power away from the regulators to government in an effort to align regulatory decisions with broader government policies. This article examines a number of the effects of the new regimes including the impact that the changes might have on the role of the regulator, the functioning of regulatory processes, and the development of Canada’s natural resources.