Canadian Energy Law : Lawyers & Attorneys for Environmental Energy Law

At the Stikeman Elliot energy blog, we decided to get into the spirit of the season and compile our own list of the top 5 Canadian energy stories of the year.

5.GHGs and Cap-and-Trade

There continued to be developments in the regulation of greenhouse gases (GHGs) across the country and globally in 2011. From January to March, Manitoba sought public comment on a proposed cap-and-trade system for GHGs following the Western Climate Initiative (WCI) framework, and in October, Quebec published draft harmonizing regulations in accordance with its WCI commitments to enable a functional cap-and-trade system for GHGs, and adopted them on December 14. Quebec’s cap-and-trade legislation will come into force on January 1, 2012.

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Jason Streicher -

On December 14, 2011, the Government of Québec officially adopted the Regulation respecting the cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gas emission allowances (the Regulation) which is based on the rules established by the Western Climate Initiative (WCI).

The Regulation will come into force on January 1, 2012. The first year of the system will be a transition year which will allow emitters and participants to familiarize themselves with how the system works. In 2012, emitters and participants will be able to register with the system, take part in pilot auctions and buy and sell greenhouse gas (GHG) emission allowances on the market. No reduction or capping of GHG emissions will be required during this transition year.

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Gianfranco Matrangolo -

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) will delay proposing the country’s first-ever greenhouse gas limits on oil refineries. The EPA agreed to implement these regulations under a settlement agreement (“Settlement“) that stemmed from two multi-state lawsuits where environmental groups sought court orders to require the EPA’s action on greenhouse gas regulation.

Pursuant to the Settlement, the EPA agreed to propose standards for oil refineries by December 10, 2011, and to enact the new regulations by November 10, 2012.  According to a spokeswoman for the EPA, “the EPA expects to need more time to complete work on greenhouse gas pollution standards for oil refineries.”  The EPA did not meet the December 10 deadline for the standards but is currently working with the litigants from the Settlement to set a new date for submitting the proposed standards.  It is unclear whether the EPA will also miss the deadline to enact the regulations.

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Gus Lu -

On December 2, 2011, Enbridge Inc. entered into an equity participation agreement with the Gitxsan First Nation, pursuant to which Enbridge will assist the Gitxsan First Nation in purchasing a stake in the proposed $5.5 billion Northern Gateway pipeline which has the potential to result in $7 million in profits for the Gitxsan over the project’s lifetime.  Northern Gateway’s proposed route does not cross the Gitxsan First Nation’s territory, although the route passes several tributaries which feed into a lake used by the Gitxsan.

This announcement arrived shortly after 61 British Columbia First Nation groups signed the “Save the Fraser Gathering of Nations” declaration, a document which states that the federal process to approve Northern Gateway violates the signatories’ “laws, traditions, values and inherent rights as Indigenous People under international law.”

The federal Joint Review Panel, established by the National Energy Board and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, will begin community hearings on Northern Gateway in Kitimat, B.C. on January 12, 2012.

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Patrick Duffy and Christopher Yung -

On December 8, 2011 the Ontario Energy Board dismissed a motion by the Consumers Council of Canada (CCC) challenging the constitutionality of the Board’s assessments to recover costs in respect of energy conservation or renewable energy programs.

The assessment is made under the  Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998, to recover costs associated with the Home Energy Savings Program and the Ontario Solar Thermal heating Initiative.  It is imposed on licensed electricity distributors and the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO). In turn, distributors and the IESO pass the assessment onto their customers. 

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Patrick Duffy and Daniel Suss -

Grand Renewable Wind LP (GRW) has received approval from the Ontario Energy Board to construct a new transmission line and associated facilities for the Grand Renewable Energy Park (GREP) located in Haldimand County.  The Board’s approval is subject to GRW obtaining all other necessary approvals, including its Renewable Energy Approval for the GREP, and complying with certain mitigation measures.

GRW’s application was one of first leave to construct applications since the enactment of the Green Energy and Green Economy Act, 2009 and it raised novel issues that the Board has not considered before. Of particular interest in this case was a request from Haldimand County Hydro Incorporated (HCHI) for access to GRW’s transmission facilities so that HCHI could connect a new transformer station for its distribution system. GRW denied that it had an obligation to provide HCHI with access to its transmission facility.

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