From the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency to Equinor Canada Ltd. re: Conformity of the Joint Information Request Responses Related to the Environmental Impact Statement Round 2 (Part 1) (see reference document # 35)

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Document reference number: 36

Canadian Environmental
Assessment Agency
Suite 200
1801 Hollis Street
Halifax NS B3J 3N4

Agence canadienne
d'évaluation environnementale
Bureau 200
1801 rue Hollis
Halifax, NE B3J 3N4

October 18, 2018

Sent by E-mail

Terry Forkheim
Senior Environmental and Regulatory Advisor
Equinor Canada Ltd.
2 Steers Cove, Level 2
St. John's, NL A1C 6J5
TEFOR@equinor.com

Dear Mr. Forkheim,

SUBJECT: Outcome of Conformity Review of Responses to Round II Information Requirements (IRs) for the proposed Flemish Pass Exploration Drilling Project

On October 3, 2018, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (the Agency) received Equinor Canada Ltd.'s (Equinor) responses to Round II Information Requirements (IRs) sent to Equinor by the Agency on August 27, 2018.

The Agency has determined that the IR responses provided in Equinor's October 3, 2018 submission are sufficient to proceed to technical review. The Agency will review the IR responses and will seek input from government expert departments and Indigenous groups that provided comments on Equinor's Round I IR responses submitted to the Agency on May 15, 2018 and July 5, 2018. Further information may be requested following the technical review of the submission.

Although the technical review is ongoing, the federal timeline for the EA remains paused given that responses to the Agency's October 9, 2018 IRs remain outstanding. Once you have submitted complete responses to all IRs, the Agency will take a period of up to 15 days without the timeline resuming to form an opinion on whether the required information has been provided. If the Agency determines the responses to be complete, it will commence a technical review of the additional information and the timeline for the environmental assessment will resume the following day. If the responses are determined to be incomplete, you will be notified at that time. If the Agency has not come to a conclusion after 15 days, the timelines will resume the next day. For further information, please consult the Agency document Information Requests and Timelines (https://www.canada.ca/en/environmental-assessment-agency/news/media-room/media-room-2016/information-requests-timelines.html)

This letter and your Round II IR responses will be made public on the Canadian Environmental Assessment Registry (CEAR) Internet site: https://ceaa-acee.gc.ca/050/evaluations/proj/80129

The Agency would be available to further discuss the information requirements. Please contact me at 902-426-9460 or via email at ceaa.flemishpass-passeflamande.acee@canada.ca

Sincerely,

Shauna O'Brien
Project Manager – Atlantic Region
Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency

Cc: Elizabeth Young, Canada - Newfoundland Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board
Darrin Sooley, Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Glenn Troke, Environment and Climate Change Canada
Allison Denning, Health Canada
Jason Flanagan, Transport Canada
Veronica Mossop, Natural Resources Canada
Vanessa Rodrigues, Parks Canada
Carla Stevens, Major Projects Management Office