EA simplification: Canadian processes and challenges

ABSTRACT Environmental Assessment (EA) has been the subject of much debate about its role in resource development. Some have argued that EA in Canada is too complex and should be simplified to enable timely and efficient project development decisions; others have argued that the scope of EA should be expanded to tackle larger environmental and societal challenges, many of which extend well-beyond individual development projects. This paper reflects on past and recent reforms in Canadian federal EA to simplify EA requirements and processes, alongside simplification of the increasingly complex issues that are being introduced to EA.