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Project Registration and Environmental Assessment Form
The Land and Environment Division (LED) is responsible directly to the Deputy Minister. Included in the expanded scope is the Environmental Management Division (EMD.)The EMD's mandate is to ensure continued environmental management and regulatory compliance during construction and maintenance works performed by the Department, by others on behalf of the Department, or by others within the Province's right-of-way.
EMD personnel include a Manager, an Environmental Coordinator and three TIR Environmental Officers - one for each Provincial county. The Division is responsible to direct, guide and monitor the Department's actions in fulfilling its commitment to environmental protection. Key elements in the Department's environmental management program include compliance to Environmental Requirements contained in TPW's General Provisions and Contract Specifications for Highway Construction and the TPW Environmental Permitting Process. These items are detailed in the following Pamphlet, Sections 2.0 and 3.0, respectively.
To ensure compliance to the Environmental Requirements and additional regulatory standards, the TIROfficers conduct regular inspections/monitoring of ongoing TIR projects, and consult with/advise managers and supervisors of TIR construction and maintenance projects on proper environmental practices. Assistance is also provided to consultants, contractors, developers and TIR personnel to ensure the TIR Permitting Process is effectively implemented. Additional EMD activities include the development of EMD programs and policies including the TIR Environmental Management Program and a field-usable Environmental Protection Plan, conducting Environmental Training, completing Environmental Impact Assessments, obtaining regulatory approvals from other agencies, and addressing public concerns and inquiries relative to environmental management.
The Manager and, in his absence, the Environmental Coordinator have authority to:
- in circumstances where insufficient environmental protection poses no immediate threat to the environment, request appropriate remedial actions be implemented; and,
- in circumstances where insufficient environmental protection, ongoing work activities or site conditions do pose an immediate threat to the environment, either suspend the work immediately or order immediate action to remedy the situation, whichever is appropriate.
The TIR Environmental Permitting Process has been established to ensure that all TIR projects or works by others within the Provincial right-of-way are registered, assessed with respect to potential environmental impact, and assigned an appropriate Approval to Proceed and a Watercourse/Wetland Alteration Permit if appropriate. The Proponent of such projects/work are required to complete an Environmental Assessment/Registration Application and to submit the application to the EMD for review and approval. Once an application is received by the EMD, it is assigned a Registration Number. Every Application will be issued an approval to proceed containing that same Registration Number. Depending on the nature of the work, a Watercourse/Wetland Alteration Permit may also be issued by either the EMD or, for more environmentally sensitive works, the Department of Environment, Energy and Forestry. Since Agriculture, Fisheries and Aquaculture use their own numbering system, the approval to proceed provides a means to match every application with a corresponding Approval Number for tracking purposes.
