January is a month of transition, leaving behind the old year and commencing the new. Here at Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA), we’ve been reflecting on the successes of last year, the gratitude we have for our client communities, our many diverse types of supporters, our funders, and the work in the courts and in law reform that are ahead in 2022.
We are pleased to share our recently released 2021 annual report with you.
As a legal aid clinic dedicated to environmental equity, justice and health, CELA has joined many calls for green and just recovery over the last two years. We recognize that the pandemic has revealed many social inequities, often mirrored in the disproportionate impact on the health and environments of low-income, disadvantaged, and vulnerable communities.
2021 saw CELA involved in cases protecting drinking water and opposing air pollution, calling for better protection from lead and PFAS in drinking water, and pushing for better implementation of our environmental assessment laws. CELA’s work is amplified through your support to the CELA Foundation.
In the Courts
Only a few weeks into 2022, and our lawyers and paralegals are already busy with many important cases. On behalf of Grassy Narrows First Nation, we are challenging Ontario’s decision to issue mining exploration permits in their territory. On behalf of Kebaowek First Nation, we are monitoring a federal impact assessment for a pipeline that could impact environmental resources and health and safety in their unceded territory.
CELA will continue to push for the protection of Indigenous rights as Canada proceeds with the Regional Assessment and impact assessments for mineral development projects in the Ring of Fire. We will continue to advocate for climate impacts to be at the forefront of environmental and impact assessments for new mining developments, including our representation of Environment North for a proposed palladium mine in the Lake Superior watershed and collaborative efforts with ENGOs to ensure a new gold mine near Kirkland Lake undergoes a full impact assessment.
On behalf of Citizens Against Radioactive Neighbourhoods, CELA is seeking a judicial review that is key to protecting vulnerable communities from environmental harm, particularly elementary school children who attend school beside the nuclear facility.
For a more fulsome list of CELA’s cases in 2022, refer to this blog post.
Law Reform
CELA’s work on law reform seeks to change policies that disproportionally impact low-income people and disadvantaged communities, and to assist and empower those same communities to have a greater role in decision-making that affects them.
CELA will continue to advocate for better protection of vulnerable communities in Ontario from the impacts of climate change, to call for a federal Office of Environmental Equity, and to push for improvements in regulatory oversight of polluting industries and major projects that threaten the environmental health and safety of the surrounding communities
Our work on freshwater and Great Lakes includes advocating for the full implementation of Ontario’s Clean Water Act, proactively supporting the critical role of conservation authorities, and calling for Ontario’s drinking water framework to be strengthened to better protect vulnerable communities, especially children, from the detrimental impacts of lead in drinking water.
Public Legal Education
Last year CELA hosted over a dozen webinars and published numerous toolkits and resources on a variety of topics, including Indigenous and Treaty Rights, freshwater policy, toxic chemicals, and environmental assessment. 2022 will hopefully see a return to some in-person meetings, though we will continue to offer digital sessions – a number of webinars and workshops are already planned for February. We’re working on a new toolkit for 2022, specific to establishing Indigenous-led and governed Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas – a recognized means of protecting Indigenous rights, lands and biodiversity.
This is just a brief summary and snapshot of the many cases, law reform efforts, research projects, and education and outreach initiatives that CELA is undertaking in 2022, alongside many valued partners and collaborators. For more detail on all this important work, please read the full blog post on our website.