Forest Management Class Environmental Assessment (EA)

Under Ontario’s Environmental Assessment (EA) Act, any major new public or designated private project that will have an impact on the environment is subject to an environmental review and approval, prior to being able to proceed. Under the EA process, the organization proposing the project must:

• conduct a thorough environmental analysis
• solicit public comment on the analysis
• submit a final report to the Minister of the Environment (MOE) for approval.

The EA process is designed to ensure that there is a thorough public review of the social, economic, and environmental impacts of projects, and that overall the proposals are of benefit to the people of Ontario.

Class EA’s

Some classes or groups of projects, that are carried out routinely and have environmental effects that can be predicted and mitigated, have approval under the EA Act through a Class EA.

Each Class EA sets out a planning process to be followed for any project in that class once it is approved. Ontario currently has Class EA’s for such classes of activities as highway construction and maintenance, energy project development, and for forest management activities.

Occasionally, there may be projects being carried out in accordance with a Class EA that warrant a separate examination under the EA Act. In these cases, the EA Act includes the right for any member of the public to request the Ministry of the Environment to require an individual EA for any project in that class.

Forest Management Class EA Approval

The Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) has a Class EA approval for forest management activities. The Ministry of Environment (MOE) granted this approval in 1994 and extended it in 2003 with the approval of Declaration Order MNR-71, referred to as MNR’s Forest Management Class EA approval.

Additional information on the original 1994 Class EA approval can be found in the “Background” section of this page.

The 2003 approval contains 55 conditions MNR must adhere to in undertaking forest management. It covers a wide range of recurring forest management activities. Those activities include building forest access roads, harvesting trees, conducting forest maintenance and renewing the forest. It also provides guidance on the preparation, review, and approval of forest management plans.

The approval outlines a process that must be followed to prepare forest management plans including assessing environmental effects of a range of reasonable alternatives and mitigation measures, and consulting with the public. This process is described in detail in the Forest Management Planning Manual, approved under the Crown Forest Sustainability Act. If the planning process described in the manual is followed, then forestry activities can proceed in that planning area without any further approval from the Minister of the Environment.

The Forest Management Class EA approval requires MNR to develop and implement guides, policies and scientific studies that provide direction and information to be used in forest management planning and reporting requirements.

Maintaining the Forest Management Class EA Approval

The Forest Management Class EA approval is an “evergreen” approval meaning that MNR does not have to seek renewal of the approval. The approval includes a condition (#53) that enables amendments to be made to the approval as required over time. Each approved amendment, which may consist of one or more changes to the conditions of the approval, results in a new Declaration Order that amends the original MNR-71.

Amendments to the approval can be requested at any time by the public, MNR or MOE. A formal framework for undertaking the amendment is built into the condition of approval. Amendments also follow the submission of the Five-Year EA Report required by Condition 52 of the approval. The first of these reports is due on June 25, 2009, and every five years thereafter.

The Forest Class EA approval is an Order in Council. As such, the Minister of Environment must bring proposed amendments forward for approval by Cabinet and Lieutenant Governor in Council for the amendment to take force.

Background

After four years of public hearings, the initial Timber Class EA approval was granted for a nine-year period by the Environmental Assessment Board in 1994.

Since the Timber Class EA approval in 1994, MNR has taken significant steps to enhance sustainable forest management and strengthen Ontario’s forest management framework. Those steps include the development of the Crown Forest Sustainability Act, Ontario’s Living Legacy Land Use Strategy, and the Ontario Forest Accord.

Further information about the EA process can be found by visiting the Ministry of Environment EA web site.

Contacts

For further information about the Forest Management Class Environmental Assessment (EA) Approval, please contact:

Mr. Dan Pyke
Manager
Forest Management Planning Section
Forest Management Branch
(705) 945-6708

or,

 

Environmental Assessment and Approvals Branch
Ministry of the Environment
(416) 314-7967