The Honourable Bernard Davis, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, has announced the following relative to Part 10 Environmental Assessment of the Environmental Protection Act.

DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT GUIDELINES FOR PUBLIC REVIEW:

Indian Head Hatchery Expansion Project                                    (Reg. 1975)

Proponent: Northern Harvest Sea Farms Ltd.

The proposed Indian Head Hatchery Expansion Project is undergoing a provincial environmental assessment and an environmental impact statement (EIS) is required. The environmental assessment committee has prepared draft EIS guidelines that identify the information that must be included in the EIS. The public is invited to review these guidelines and provide written comments by February 21, 2024. Comments received will be reviewed and considered before the EIS guidelines are finalized and issued to the proponent.

More information on the project is available on the department’s website at: https://www.gov.nl.ca/ecc/projects/project-1975/

Written comments must be submitted by February 21, 2024, to:

Environmental Assessment Division

Department of Environment and Climate Change

West Block, Confederation Building

P.O. Box 8700

St. John’s NL  A1B 4J6

Email: EAProjectComments@gov.nl.ca

UNDERTAKING RELEASED:

Appleton Mineral Exploration Project Expansion                        (Reg. 2273)

Proponent: Newfound Gold Corp.

The Project is released from environmental assessment subject to the following conditions:

• The Proponent must uphold all commitments made in the environmental assessment submission to mitigate the effects of the Project on the environment, including your commitments to maintain the following undisturbed minimum buffers: a 30-metre buffer on all waterbodies and wetlands that appear on 1:50,000 National Topographic Systems maps or on the topographical mapping layer of the Provincial Land Use Atlas; a 100-metre buffer on tributaries to Gander Lake; a 300-metre buffer from the high water mark around Gander Lake; and a 300-metre buffer from the high water mark around salmon pools along Gander River.
• Commitments made in the environmental assessment registration document for Reg. #2106, the Appleton Mineral Exploration project, apply to this Project, as do the conditions of release in the Minister’s decision letter of December 11, 2020. The Minister’s decision letter is available on the department’s web page at https://www.gov.nl.ca/ecc/files/env_assessment_y2020_2106_release.pdf.
• The Pollution Prevention Division (PPD) of the Department of Environment and Climate Change requires that an updated waste management plan for the Project must be approved by PPD prior to Project construction.
• The Water Resources Management Division (WRMD) of the Department of Environment and Climate Change requires the Proponent to provide the following:
  • Satellite imagery of the reclaimed areas that are within Protected Public Water Supply Areas (PPWSA).
  • An Access Road and Trail Maintenance Plan (the Plan) to the WRMD to describe measures that are currently being taken and additional measures that will be added to prevent potential surface run-off and sedimentation of access roads/trails within the PPWSA. The Plan must also describe how the roads and trails will be decommissioned.
  • A minimum of 14 days’ notice to the WRMD, including the location of each drill pad, prior to drilling and trenching activities within the PPWSA.
  • An annual report to the WRMD containing information on the number of drill pads, drilling locations, the location of access trails, and the number and locations of drill sites that have been rehabilitated in the PPWSA.

• The Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture (FFA) requires the following:
  • Vegetation clearing is not to occur within 800 meters of a bald eagle or osprey nest during the nesting season (March 15 to July 31) and not within 200 meters of Bald Eagle or Osprey nests during the remainder of the year. The 200-meter buffer also applies to all other raptor nests (e.g., Northern Goshawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Merlin, American Kestrel, Great-horned Owl, Boreal Owl, Northern Saw-whet Owl). The location of any raptor nest site must be reported to the Wildlife Division.
• The Provincial Archaeology Office (PAO) of the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation requires that a draft Historic Resources Impact Assessment (HRIA) report must be submitted to PAO for review prior to the commencement of the Project. For more information, please contact PAO at (709) 729-2462.
• The Tourism Product Development Division of the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation requires a 50-meter undisturbed buffer around the following outfitting lodges:
  • Bear Cliff Lodge – Crown Lands LTO# 107866
  • Baine Johnson Properties Limited (Twelve Acre Lodge) – Crown Land LTO #98839
  • Browning Harvey Limited (Beaver Lodge) – Crown Lands 80167
• The Proponent must advise the Environmental Assessment Division when the conditions of release have been met, by e-mailing a written description, documents, and images (where applicable) to demonstrate that the conditions have been fulfilled.
• The Proponent must update the Environmental Assessment Division on the status of the Project, including a copy of all permits, licenses, certificates, approvals and other authorizations required for the Project, one year from the date of this release letter and provide additional updates if required.

Learn more
Environmental Assessment Division

Department of Environment and Climate Change

West Block, Confederation Building

P.O. Box 8700, St. John’s, NL A1B 4J6

Environmental assessment information is available at:

https://www.gov.nl.ca/ecc/env-assessment/

https://www.gov.nl.ca/ecc/files/GUIDE-TO-THE-PROCESS_Jan-2024.pdf

Follow us on Twitter: @GovNL and @ECC_GovNL

Project comments may be forwarded to: EAProjectComments@gov.nl.ca

Anyone submitting comments on a Project under environmental assessment is asked to please advise the Department if they DO NOT wish to have their comments shared with the Project Proponent.