Offshore staff
OTTAWA, Ontario -- The Honorable John Baird, minister of the Environment and responsible for the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, says the proposed Deep Panuke gas development project is not likely to cause any adverse environmental effects. The minister has referred the project, which will be carried out offshore Nova Scotia, back to the responsible authorities for appropriate action.
Baird recommended the authorities ensure the implementation of mitigation measures described in a comprehensive study report. He also recommended that the responsible authorities implement the follow-up program described in the report to determine the effectiveness of the measures taken to mitigate adverse environmental effects and to verify the accuracy of the environmental assessment of the project.
Deep Panuke lies 45 km (28 mi) west-southwest of Sable Island about 250 km (155 mi) southeast of Halifax, Nova Scotia. The main project components include a jackup mobile offshore production unit, subsea flowlines and wells, and an export pipeline. Deep Panuke will be the second offshore gas project offshore Nova Scotia.
The project was the subject of an 11-month environmental assessment process that ran concurrently with a regulatory review held jointly by the National Energy Board and the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Board.
The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency administers the federal environmental assessment process, which identifies the environmental effects of proposed projects and measures to address those effects in support of sustainable development.
9/7/2007
