Overview
Environmental compliance in Canada means understanding the overlapping maze of federal and provincial laws and regulations. Municipal by-laws impose a third level of regulation - from land use controls to noise control and sewer use by-laws.
Public hearings are often required for project approvals, under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, provincial environmental assessment acts and regulations, and provincial environmental protection acts, as well as land use planning, resource extraction and power generation legislation.
Willms & Shier helps new businesses identify and obtain all of the necessary regulatory approvals. We help existing companies negotiate reasonable approval terms with provincial environment ministries and federal departments such as the Department of Fisheries & Oceans (DFO). Willms & Shier lawyers help clients negotiate achievable approval terms, develop alternative compliance options and break regulatory logjams. We are often able to help clients avoid downtime or non-compliant operations.
We represent clients at approval hearings. When negotiations fail, we represent our clients in appealing regulatory refusals, or unreasonable terms and conditions, before tribunals, and in the courts.