Regulatory Appeal Request
Mr. Knull requested a regulatory appeal of an AER decision to issue a reclamation certificate to Apache Canada Ltd.
The AER determined that a hearing into the Regulatory Appeal would be held as the legislative tests had been met.
The AER noted that:
(a) in his request for regulatory appeal, Mr. Knull raised concerns with the state of the site, drainage, including sinkholes in the driveway that do not let water runoff and issuance of the reclamation certificate for the site;
(b) in an AER letter dated June 21, 2017, the AER advised that, by operation of sections 91(1)(i) and 145 of the Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act (“EPEA”) and section 36 of the Responsible Energy Development Act, the tests for appealable decision and eligible person appeared to have been met in this case; and
(c) the EPEA grants a landowner whose lands are subject to a reclamation certificate an automatic right of regulatory appeal. To limit a landowner’s right of regulatory appeal in such a case requires extraordinary and obvious circumstances mitigating against that right. The AER found that no such circumstances existed in this case.
The AER granted the regulatory appeal and noted that it would be asking that the Chief Hearing Commissioner appoint a panel of hearing commissioners to conduct a hearing.
