Overview
The Cabinet Directive on Regulatory and Permitting Efficiency for Clean Growth Projects focuses on the federal efforts needed to accelerate regulatory efficiency for clean growth projects. It is intended to help get clean growth projects built faster by accelerating decision-making related to these projects.
Overview of Natural Resource Canada’s Role in Supporting Regulatory and Permitting Efficiency
Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) role is to support regulatory and permitting efficiency via the streamlined and efficient regulation of explosives and their restricted components in Canada. Through the administration of the Explosives Act and its regulations, NRCan ensures the economic and reputational benefits of a safe and secure explosives industry, while reducing administrative and regulatory burden. This is achieved through the maintenance of a modern regulatory regime focused on efficient licensing, permitting, and certification, as well as the streamlined implementation of the national compliance and enforcement program.
Results for Thematic Areas of the Cabinet Directive
| Theme 1: Strengthening service standards | |
|---|---|
| Planned results: | NRCan has as a mandate to regulate the safe and secure handling of explosives and their restricted components (precursor chemicals). This is accomplished by the administration of the Explosives Act and the Explosives Regulations, 2013, whereby NRCan’s Explosives Regulatory Division authorizes and classifies all explosives in Canada and regulates the manufacture, storage, acquisition, sale, import, export, and transportation of explosives through the issuance of licences, permits or certificates, depending on the activity, as well as by the national compliance and enforcement program. The Explosives Regulatory Division has service standards for issuance of new licences and renewals of existing licences. The Explosives Regulatory Division will maintain its digital system to track service standards and any legislative timelines. |
| Theme 2: Providing timely guidance to proponents | |
| Planned results: | NRCan guidance documents related to explosives for internal and external stakeholders will be revised to align with any future regulatory changes, and to maintain consistency with the objective of the Clean Growth initiative in providing predictability for the stakeholder throughout the application process. Supplementary internal training and quality control measures will continue to be reviewed to ensure consistency and alignment with new industry standards and regulatory requirements, as they become available. These efforts, alongside an ongoing IT project to modernize the digital application system, are expected to enable NRCan to better meet efficiency and predictability expectations. |
| Theme 3: Coordinating consultation with Indigenous Peoples | |
| Planned results: | As the national regulator for the safety and security of explosives, NRCan will continue to ensure that implicated Indigenous Peoples are aware of, and have opportunity to provide feedback on, explosives licence applications. |