For an individual environmental assessment (EA), any person may request that some or all matters relating to an EA be referred to the Environmental Review Tribunal (ERT) to address significant outstanding environmental issues. The ERT is an independent tribunal that hears disputes.
A hearing request must be made during the five-week review period after the ministry has issued a Notice of Completion of a Ministry Review. The Minister has absolute discretion on whether to refer matters to the ERT for a decision.
All requests must be made in writing to the Ministry of the Environment. The request should include:
- requester’s name, address and telephone number
- requester’s involvement in the EA process
- attempts made by the requestor to resolve issues with the proponent
- detail about the significant outstanding environmental reason for a hearing
- detail about what is specifically being referred
- a single submission clearly indicating that the submitter is making the request
Requesters should also be prepared to identify how they want to be represented at the hearing (participant or party status*) and need to decide if they need expert witnesses or legal representation at the hearing.
*For an understanding of who may request party/participant status and their respective roles during the hearing process, please refer to ERT’s Rules of Practice and Practice Directions.
Joint Board hearing – A hearing may be directed to a Joint Board which is established when there are multiple hearings on the same topic before different tribunals.
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