Eastern Newfoundland Offshore Exploration Drilling Project
From the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency to ExxonMobil Canada Ltd. re: Conformity of the Joint and ExxonMobil-specific Information Request Responses Related to the Environmental Impact Statement Round 2 (Part 1) (see reference document # 39)
Document reference number: 40
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
Stephen Edwards
SSHE and External Affairs Manager
ExxonMobil Canada Ltd.
Suite 1000, 100 New Gower Street
St. John's, NL A1C 6K3
stephen.c.edwards@exxonmobil.com
Dear Mr. Edwards,
SUBJECT: Outcome of Conformity Review of Responses to Round II Information Requirements (IRs) for the proposed Eastern Newfoundland Offshore Exploration Drilling Project
On October 3, 2018, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (the Agency) received ExxonMobil Canada Ltd's (ExxonMobil) responses to Round II Information Requirements (IRs) sent to ExxonMobil by the Agency on August 27, 2018.
The Agency has determined that the IR responses provided in ExxonMobil'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 ExxonMobil'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/80132.
The Agency would be available to further discuss the information requirements. Please contact me at 902-426-9460 or via email at CEAA.ExxonMobil.ACEE@canada.ca.
Sincerely,
<Original signed by>
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