East Coast Environmental Law

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East Coast Environmental Law

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The three pillars of our work are public education, community collaboration, and legal action. Follow us on Twitter:

East Coast Environmental Law is an environmental law charity that supports the development and fair application of innovative and effective environmental laws throughout Atlantic Canada. East Coast Environmental Law is an environmental law charity based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, that works throughout Atlantic Canada to support the development and fair application of innovative and effective environmental laws throughout this region. We envision a future in which strong environmental laws help to keep all residents of Atlantic Canada safe and living in clean, healthy, resilient, and sustainable environments. Among other things, we work to make legal research resources available to the public; we carry out community workshops and legal clinics that are designed to help communities understand their rights and how to act on them; we collaborate with environmental organizations and community groups throughout Atlantic Canada and provide them with legal research support to enhance their programs and initiatives; and, from our website at www.ecelaw.ca, we operate a free Environmental Law Inquiry Service that members of the public can use to seek general legal information about environmental law issues they are facing. As a charity, we work to assist Atlantic Canadians at no or low cost, and we depend on the support of the generous donors who fund us. If you would like to support our work, please visit our website at www.ecelaw.ca to learn more.

10/22/2026

New polling from the AOSWC shows strong support for offshore wind development in Newfoundland and Labrador – as long as it’s done right.

Conducted by Narrative Research, 79% of survey respondents supported the development of offshore wind, and that support was strengthened by including community benefits. Offshore wind could create jobs close to home, boost local economies and support long-term sustainable development. Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are ready to move forward. But success must begin with communities – listening to their questions and concerns, involving them meaningfully in decisions, and ensuring they share in the benefits.

Visit atlanticoffshorewind.ca/resources to read the polling results, and find out more about how we can do offshore wind right.

10/20/2026

On October 15, the Government of Canada announced $100 million to advance offshore wind in Nova Scotia, including support for the Wind West initiative.

Together with our partners in the Atlantic Offshore Wind Coalition, we welcomed this investment. We also called on governments to put just as much into environmental baseline data before development begins.

Atlantic Canadians support offshore wind, as long as it’s done right. Doing it right starts with understanding the fish, whales, seabirds and habitats that share these waters, and how they could be affected, before the first lease is offered. When that data is public, the fishing sector, Mi’kmaq and coastal communities share a credible starting point for talking about how offshore wind can coexist with the ocean and the livelihoods that depend on it.

A Call for Bids is expected in winter 2027, so now is the time to make sure the science keeps pace with the ambition.

Read the full statement:https://atlanticoffshorewind.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/AOSWC_Statement_WindWest-Investment_Oct2026.pdf
Learn more on the Coalition’s resource page: https://atlanticoffshorewind.ca/resources/

10/19/2026

Offshore wind is coming to the waters around Nova Scotia, and the rules that will shape it are taking form now. Do you know how they work?

We released our Guide to Offshore Wind Law and Policy in Nova Scotia. It’s a plain-language introduction to how offshore wind will be regulated in the ocean around our province.

Offshore wind has not yet been used in Canada, partly because until recently there were no laws or policies to govern it. That changed when the federal and provincial governments amended the Canada–Nova Scotia Accord Acts to create a new shared regime for offshore renewable energy.

The guide explains:
-who makes the decisions
-how Wind Energy Areas are chosen
-how companies compete for licences
-how environmental effects are assessed
-what federal reforms could change

The process is moving quickly. Four Wind Energy Areas were designated in July 2025, and the regulator published a list of pre-qualified companies in June 2026. Now is a good time to get familiar with how it all works.

Since 2023, we have advocated for offshore wind laws and policies that uphold Indigenous rights, protect marine ecosystems, reduce conflicts with fisheries, support coastal communities, and enable meaningful public participation. We will continue that work as these rules evolve.

Read the guide here https://www.ecelaw.ca/resources-library/guide-to-offshore-wind-law-and-policy-in-nova-scotia

10/13/2026

Canada has officially ratified the High Seas Treaty. Last month, 100 countries took the step to protect vital marine biodiversity in areas outside of a single country’s jurisdiction, which make up nearly half of the planet! A historic agreement, the High Seas Treaty sets a legal precedent for conservation in the high seas, laying the groundwork to sustainably manage these vital ecosystems and resources.

10/08/2026

Did you know New Brunswick doesn't yet recognize your right to a healthy environment in provincial law?

We released Understanding Your Right to a Healthy Environment: A Guide for New Brunswick Youth, a short, plain-language guide that explains:
-what law is and where it comes from
-why law matters for the environment
-what a right to a healthy environment means
-how other places in Canada already protect it
-how you can make your voice heard

Environmental rights exist today because people pushed for them, and youth voices can be especially powerful. Whether you contact your MLA, write a letter to your local paper, or join an environmental club at school, this guide shows you where to start.

The guide is available in English: https://www.ecelaw.ca/resources-library/understanding-your-right-to-a-healthy-environment-a-guide-for-new-brunswick-youth and French: https://www.ecelaw.ca/resources-library/comprendre-ton-droit-a-un-environnement-sain-guide-lintention-des-jeunes-du-nouveau-brunswick

10/06/2026

Our September 2026 Newsletter is now available. This month's edition covers new legal guides for New Brunswick and offshore wind in Atlantic Canada, along with our response to major federal changes to environmental review:
-ECEL released the third edition of its Guide to Environmental Law in New Brunswick, available in English and French. The plain-language guide explains the laws that protect the province's land, water, air, and wildlife, and now reflects the law as of September 2026.
-We released two new guides on offshore wind law and policy, one for Nova Scotia and one for Newfoundland and Labrador, offering an accessible introduction to the regimes that now govern offshore wind in each province.
-ECEL issued a statement on Bill C-39, the proposed Building Canada Strong Act, calling for the Bill to be referred to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development for careful study.
-Our staff also responded to federal changes removing independent impact assessment requirements for major energy infrastructure projects like interprovincial pipelines and electrical transmission lines.

Read the full newsletter here: https://mailchi.mp/6775a3f295a6/september-newsletter-17468179 To receive our monthly newsletters directly to your inbox, you can sign up here: https://www.ecelaw.ca/-newsletter

09/28/2026

Recent polling from the Atlantic Offshore Wind Coalition (AOSWC) found strong support for offshore wind development in Nova Scotia – as long as it’s done right.

Across age groups, genders and political affiliations, nearly three out of four respondents (73 per cent) held positive impressions of offshore wind. But this support is conditional on meaningful protections for marine life and ecosystems, as well as clear benefits for Nova Scotian communities.

Offshore wind is an unprecedented opportunity to create jobs, boost local economies and transition away from polluting fossil fuels. Nova Scotians are ready to move forward. But success must begin with communities – listening to their questions and concerns, involving them meaningfully in decisions, and ensuring they share in the benefits.

Visit atlanticoffshorewind.ca/resources to read the polling results, and find out more about how we can do offshore wind right.

Nova Scotia Environmental Network
Halifaxnoise

09/23/2026

This week, the Government of Canada introduced Bill C-39, the proposed "Building Canada Strong Act", in the House of Commons. The Bill proposes concerning changes to several federal laws designed to protect the environment, human health, Indigenous rights, and wildlife species.

The Bill is the latest in a series of federal initiatives designed to fast-track the assessment and authorization of major projects. These initiatives are drastically condensing impact assessment timelines, removing some impact assessment requirements altogether, and giving federal ministers and the Cabinet wide-ranging powers to override other environmental laws to facilitate project approvals.

These sweeping changes have been proposed in the name of “building a stronger, more independent, and more sustainable economy”, but they ignore the warnings and recommendations of Indigenous peoples and environmental law scholars and practitioners across the country.

There are ways to ensure good projects get built quickly in Canada, but gutting Canada’s environmental laws is not the answer.

In the coming days, the ECEL team will be reviewing Bill C-39 carefully to fully understand the sweeping changes it proposes. Today, we are calling for the Bill to be referred to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development, where its contents can be studied and amendments can be considered.

Read Bill C-39, Building Canada Strong Act, here: https://www.parl.ca/DocumentViewer/en/45-1/bill/C-39/first-reading and backgrounder here: https://www.canada.ca/en/one-canadian-economy/news/2026/09/cabinet-directive.html

09/21/2026

Last week, the Government of Canada amended the Physical Activities Regulations under the Impact Assessment Act, removing independent impact assessment requirements for several major energy infrastructure projects that are regulated federally, including international and interprovincial pipelines and electrical transmission lines. Going forward, the Canada Energy Regulator will be solely responsible for conducting environmental reviews of these projects. This change has been made in the name of streamlining federal assessment processes and avoiding duplication.

It is disappointing to see the Government of Canada take another significant step away from federal impact assessment. For projects regulated by the Canada Energy Regulator, the impact assessment regime was already designed to avoid duplication by integrating review by the Regulator and the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (the “Agency”). Doing away with impact assessment requirements simply removes the Agency's independent impact assessment expertise from the equation.

Environmental reviews by the Canada Energy Regulator share some similarities with impact assessments under the Impact Assessment Act, but the two processes are not the same.

The Impact Assessment Act was designed to exemplify "next-generation" environmental assessment: to move Canada away from a process that asks how we can reduce the harms caused by major projects and to focus instead on identifying and approving major projects that can truly benefit Canadians by protecting the environment, contributing to social and economic wellbeing, and preserving human health for the benefit of present and future generations.

With that objective in mind, the Impact Assessment Act requires the Agency and government decision-makers to consider how the likely effects of proposed projects would contribute to sustainability and to exercise their powers under the Act in a way that fosters sustainability. The Canadian Energy Regulator Act (“CERA”) does not give the Canada Energy Regulator the same responsibilities.

Additionally, under the Impact Assessment Act, if an impact assessment finds that a proposed project would likely have significant negative effects, the project can only be approved if those effects are found to be justified in the public interest. The CERA does not impose the same requirement on federal decision-makers. Although the CERA does require federal decision-makers to consider any public interest that would be affected by project approvals, the Act does not require a public-interest justification for negative effects. This means that federal decision-makers can approve projects under the CERA without formally considering whether public-interest justifications for environmentally-harmful projects outweigh projects' negative effects. This may lead to less transparent decision-making and fewer paths to hold decision-makers accountable.

Last week’s changes to the Physical Activities Regulations were signalled in a federal discussion paper on “getting major projects built in Canada”. To learn more about East Coast Environmental Law’s views on these changes and other changes that have been proposed, see our submission on the discussion paper’s proposed law and policy reforms: https://www.ecelaw.ca/resources-library/submission-on-major-projects-discussion-paper.

09/16/2026

Our August 2026 Newsletter is now available. The edition looks back at a busy August: a free webinar on the law and policy of herbicide spraying on Crown lands in New Brunswick, a new report on municipal coastal protection in Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia’s Wetlands Appreciation Week, and a staff retreat in Fredericton:
-ECEL hosted a free public webinar on the law and policy of herbicide spraying on Crown lands in New Brunswick, featuring ECEL staff lawyers alongside guest speakers from Stop Spraying New Brunswick and the Conservation Council of New Brunswick.
-We released a new report, Municipal Coastal Protection in Nova Scotia: Municipal Planning Strategies and Land-Use By-Laws, mapping the patchwork of coastal protection rules across the province's municipalities.
-ECEL took part in Nova Scotia's Wetlands Appreciation Week (August 3-16), hosting a Lunch and Learn webinar on coastal wetlands and species at risk.
-Our team gathered in Fredericton, New Brunswick for our annual staff retreat.

Read the full newsletter here: https://mailchi.mp/f68a511da1c4/june-newsletter-17467142 To receive our monthly newsletters directly to your inbox, you can sign up here: https://www.ecelaw.ca/-newsletter

Address

6061 University Avenue, PO Box 15000
Halifax, NS
B3H4R2

Telephone

1-902-494-7121

Website

https://www.ecelaw.ca/

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