The Environmental Statutes Amendment Act
Chamber
manitoba
Stage
Introduced
This Manitoba bill updates three environmental laws to improve transparency, strengthen enforcement, and allow new inspection fees.
Key Changes
- Makes it explicitly illegal to knowingly give false or misleading information to environmental officers or the department under two Acts
- Extends the deadline to start prosecuting environmental offences from one year to two years
- Allows the government to charge fees for inspections, document reviews, and document preparation under the Dangerous Goods and Environment Acts
- Requires appeal notices and outcomes to be posted in the public registry for environmental decisions
- Allows the director to post additional compliance, monitoring, and enforcement information in the public registry at any time during a development's life cycle
- Moves the calculation of the waste reduction and recycling support levy to regulation, allowing easier updates without new legislation
Gotchas
- The new inspection and document review fees are not set in the bill itself — the amounts will be determined later through regulation, so the financial impact on regulated parties is not yet known
- Several provisions, including the new fee authorities and the Waste Reduction and Prevention Act changes, only come into force by proclamation (a future government decision), meaning they may not take effect immediately after royal assent
- The extended two-year prosecution window applies going forward; it is not clear whether it applies retroactively to past offences
- The transitional provisions clarify that new public registry requirements for appeals do not apply to appeals already filed before royal assent, limiting any retroactive effect
- Moving the waste levy formula into regulation gives the government more flexibility to change levy amounts without a legislative vote, reducing direct legislative oversight of that process
Who's Affected
- Businesses handling or transporting dangerous goods in Manitoba
- Companies or individuals seeking environmental approvals or licences
- Operators of hazardous waste disposal facilities
- Waste disposal ground operators subject to the recycling levy
- Environmental officers and department staff
- Members of the public who use the environmental public registry
Vibes
0 responses
Gotchas
- The new inspection and document review fees are not set in the bill itself — the amounts will be determined later through regulation, so the financial impact on regulated parties is not yet known
- Several provisions, including the new fee authorities and the Waste Reduction and Prevention Act changes, only come into force by proclamation (a future government decision), meaning they may not take effect immediately after royal assent
- The extended two-year prosecution window applies going forward; it is not clear whether it applies retroactively to past offences
- The transitional provisions clarify that new public registry requirements for appeals do not apply to appeals already filed before royal assent, limiting any retroactive effect
- Moving the waste levy formula into regulation gives the government more flexibility to change levy amounts without a legislative vote, reducing direct legislative oversight of that process
Summary
Bill 37 amends three Manitoba environmental laws: The Dangerous Goods Handling and Transportation Act, The Environment Act, and The Waste Reduction and Prevention Act. The changes make it illegal to give false or misleading information to environmental officials, extend the time limit for starting prosecutions from one year to two years, allow the government to charge fees for inspections and document reviews, and require more information to be posted in a public registry — including details about appeals, monitoring, and compliance. The bill also updates how the waste reduction and recycling support levy is calculated, moving the formula into regulations so it can be adjusted more easily without changing the law itself. These changes are meant to make environmental oversight more transparent and give regulators stronger tools to enforce the rules. The bill affects businesses and individuals who deal with hazardous goods, seek environmental approvals, or operate waste disposal facilities in Manitoba. It was introduced to modernize and strengthen Manitoba's environmental enforcement framework.
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Vibes
0 responses