In a majority opinion, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada Richard Wagner wrote that that Ottawa’s Impact Assessment Act was largely unconstitutional. (Justin Tang/Canadian Press)
Canada’s top court has delivered a highly anticipated judgment, writing in a majority opinion that Ottawa’s Impact Assessment Act (IAA) is largely unconstitutional.
The IAA, previously known as Bill C-69, allows federal regulators to consider the potential environmental and social impacts of various resource and infrastructure projects. It was enacted in 2019.
The IAA has long been controversial among conservative politicians in Alberta, including former premier Jason Kenney, who frequently referred to it as the “no more pipelines act.”
The ruling was part of a “reference case,” which involves the provincial and federal governments asking courts for advisory opinions.
It doesn’t mean the law is now off the books — a ruling such as this from the Supreme Court of Canada is not necessarily binding, but is traditionally treated as being binding by governments, noted David Wright, an associate professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Calgary.
“I think what we can expect is the federal government is going to get to work very quickly to put together a suite of amendments to bring the act into conformity with the law,” Wright said.
Details of the decision
Writing for the majority in a 5-2 decision, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada Richard Wagner said the process set forth in Sections 81 to 91 of the IAA were constitutional and could be separated out.
Those sections involve projects carried out or financed by federal authorities on federal lands, or outside Canada, and therefore fall under federal jurisdiction. Those provisions were not challenged as unconstitutional.
However, Wagner wrote that the balance of the scheme, involving “designated projects,” was unconstitutional.
Under the IAA, designated projects are those projects that are set out in the regulations or are subject to a ministerial order.
“In my view, Parliament has plainly overstepped its constitutional competence in enacting this designated projects scheme,” Wagner wrote.
Dissenting Justices Andromache Karakatsanis and Mahmud Jamal wrote that they believed the Impact Assessment Act was constitutional in its entirety. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
Wagner wrote that environmental protection remains one of today’s most pressing challenges, and Parliament has the power to enact a scheme of environmental assessment to meet this challenge.
“But Parliament also has the duty to act within the enduring division of powers framework laid out in the Constitution,” he wrote.
Dissenting Justices Andromache Karakatsanis and Mahmud Jamal wrote that they believed the act was constitutional in its entirety.
“Environmental protection requires action by all levels of government because each — whether by action or inaction — can affect the environment,” the dissenting opinion reads.
“This shared responsibility is ‘neither unusual nor unworkable’ in a federal state such as Canada. Rather, it reflects this Court’s flexible approach to federalism, which recognizes that overlapping powers are unavoidable and intergovernmental cooperation is essential.”
Alberta government had previously challenged act
Alberta previously filed a constitutional challenge with the Alberta Court of Appeal, and was supported by the governments of Saskatchewan and Ontario, three First Nations and the Indian Resource Council.
Various environmental and legal groups, as well as other First Nations, supported Ottawa. In a 4-1 decision, the court called the law an “existential threat” when it came to Canada’s Constitution.
The federal government appealed that non-binding opinion, and the Supreme Court held hearings on the act in March. Today’s decision was keenly awaited by legal experts, who recognized its importance in providing clarity to an area of law that has long been under debate.
Jason Kenney opposed Bill C-69 when he was Alberta’s premier. In this photo from 2019, Kenney is joined by Sonya Savage, the province’s energy minister at the time, in addressing the bill at the Senate of Canada Building on Parliament Hill. (Justin Tang/Canadian Press)
Wright, the associate professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Calgary, said it wasn’t the outcome most of those who follow this area of law expected.
“This really does set the the legal landscape for federal impact assessment for decades to come,” said Wright, who was also an intervener on the case. “What we now know is that there are significant constraints on what the federal government may or may not do with respect to legislating in relation to environmental assessment.”
Though the decision of the majority was that the act was an instance of federal overreach, it did affirm that the federal government has the power to enact environmental assessment legislation, Wright noted.
“But in this case, the federal government went too far in exercising that power, or in trying to exercise the power that they thought they had,” Wright said.
Smith and Kenney celebrate decision
During a press conference held Friday, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said the decision marked a substantial win “for the protection of provincial rights in our province.”
“Today’s decision only strengthens our legal position. We work to protect Albertans, and all Canadians, from federal intrusion into our provincial jurisdiction,” Smith said.
In his decision, Wagner wrote that “the fact that a project involves activities primarily regulated by the provincial legislatures does not create an enclave of exclusivity.”
When asked what that would mean for the province, Smith said her government was working collaboratively.
“I guess we can keep on battling this out in the Supreme Court to find out exactly where the line is, but I’m asking for the [federal government] to accept that there is exclusive provincial jurisdiction under the Constitution … and to work with us on those areas of shared priority,” Smith said.
Smith also thanked former premier Kenney as part of her remarks.
“[He] tirelessly fought back against federal overreach during his term as premier,” Smith said.
Smith ‘extremely pleased’ on Supreme Court ruling
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith reacts to news that the federal Impact Assessment Act, previously known as Bill C-69, is ruled unconstitutional by Canada’s top court.
In an interview, Kenney said he was “thrilled” with the decision, calling it a “historic win” for Alberta. He said he wasn’t surprised to learn of the decision and pointed to the Alberta Court of Appeal case.
“It was a 4-1 decision, with a very powerful majority by the Chief Judge, saying that the Trudeau Impact Assessment Act was a wrecking ball to the Constitution. So they used the strongest language I’ve ever seen,” Kenney said.
“I really think that set the tone, the parameters and the stakes for the Supreme Court of Canada. I also worked really hard at getting eight of the other provinces on-side.”
‘A historic day:’ Jason Kenney reacts to Impact Assessment Act decision
The Impact Assessment Act has long been controversial among conservative politicians in Alberta, including former premier Jason Kenney. In an interview with CBC, Kenney says the Supreme Court ruling is a reminder that provinces do have important powers.
When asked about his view of Ottawa’s suggestion of adding amendments to the act, Kenney said that Ottawa was “maybe talking about some cosmetic face-saving.”
“It would be nice to have some actual darn humility here … it’s over, it’s done, stick a fork in it, and come back to the drawing board with an approach that collaborates with the provinces,” he said.
Reaction from across the country
Reaction from across the country came swiftly on Friday, including from Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who said his province welcomed the decision.
“The federal impact assessment process needlessly duplicated Ontario’s rigorous and world-leading environmental assessment requirements,” Ford is quoted as saying in a statement.
“At a time when it’s never been more important to build critical infrastructure, including highways, transit, and critical mineral projects, we now have the certainty we need to get shovels in the ground.”
Speaking in Vancouver, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called the decision “good news.”
“A Poilievre government will repeal this law entirely and replace it with one that consults First Nations, protects our pristine environment, but gets jobs approved so that we can bring home beautiful, powerful paycheques to this country,” he said.
The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), an intervener in the process, also said it was pleased with the decision.
“In the spirit of the court’s call for co-operation, CAPP looks forward to collaborating with both the federal and provincial governments to ensure that projects in the national interest — those reinforcing energy security, providing lower emissions energy, and maintaining affordability to Canadians — will proceed in a timely manner,” wrote Lisa Baiton, CAPP president and CEO, in a statement.
Joshua Ginsberg with Ecojustice, an environmental law charity, said it was disappointing to hear that an “important environmental law had been weakened” due to constitutional problems. Ecojustice was also an intervener in the process.
“In the end, I’m positive and hopeful that we’re going to come out of this with a clearer and effective environmental assessment process,” Ginsberg said.
Guilbeault says Ottawa remains committed
Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault and Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson held a joint virtual media availability on Friday morning to respond to the ruling.
During that event, Guilbeault said Ottawa respected the role of the Supreme Court and would follow the court’s guidance, and work to improve the legislation through Parliament.
Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault said the government’s immediate priority would be to provide guidance to stakeholders and Indigenous partners after the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)
“We accept the court’s opinion. It provides new guidance on the Impact Assessment Act, while explicitly affirming the right of the government of Canada to put in place impact assessment legislation and collaborate with provinces on environmental protection,” he said.
“We developed the Impact Assessment Act to create a better set of rules that respect the environment, Indigenous rights and ensure projects get assessed in a timely way. We remain committed to these principles.”
There are currently 23 projects in the federal impact assessment process under the IAA, according to the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada. Eight final decisions have been issued by the minister or the agency allowing those projects to move forward.
NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. syphilis epidemic slowed dramatically last year, gonorrhea cases fell and chlamydia cases remained below prepandemic levels, according to federal data released Tuesday.
The numbers represented some good news about sexually transmitted diseases, which experienced some alarming increases in past years due to declining condom use, inadequate sex education, and reduced testing and treatment when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Last year, cases of the most infectious stages of syphilis fell 10% from the year before — the first substantial decline in more than two decades. Gonorrhea cases dropped 7%, marking a second straight year of decline and bringing the number below what it was in 2019.
“I’m encouraged, and it’s been a long time since I felt that way” about the nation’s epidemic of sexually transmitted infections, said the CDC’s Dr. Jonathan Mermin. “Something is working.”
More than 2.4 million cases of syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia were diagnosed and reported last year — 1.6 million cases of chlamydia, 600,000 of gonorrhea, and more than 209,000 of syphilis.
Syphilis is a particular concern. For centuries, it was a common but feared infection that could deform the body and end in death. New cases plummeted in the U.S. starting in the 1940s when infection-fighting antibiotics became widely available, and they trended down for a half century after that. By 2002, however, cases began rising again, with men who have sex with other men being disproportionately affected.
The new report found cases of syphilis in their early, most infectious stages dropped 13% among gay and bisexual men. It was the first such drop since the agency began reporting data for that group in the mid-2000s.
However, there was a 12% increase in the rate of cases of unknown- or later-stage syphilis — a reflection of people infected years ago.
Cases of syphilis in newborns, passed on from infected mothers, also rose. There were nearly 4,000 cases, including 279 stillbirths and infant deaths.
“This means pregnant women are not being tested often enough,” said Dr. Jeffrey Klausner, a professor of medicine at the University of Southern California.
What caused some of the STD trends to improve? Several experts say one contributor is the growing use of an antibiotic as a “morning-after pill.” Studies have shown that taking doxycycline within 72 hours of unprotected sex cuts the risk of developing syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia.
In June, the CDC started recommending doxycycline as a morning-after pill, specifically for gay and bisexual men and transgender women who recently had an STD diagnosis. But health departments and organizations in some cities had been giving the pills to people for a couple years.
Some experts believe that the 2022 mpox outbreak — which mainly hit gay and bisexual men — may have had a lingering effect on sexual behavior in 2023, or at least on people’s willingness to get tested when strange sores appeared.
Another factor may have been an increase in the number of health workers testing people for infections, doing contact tracing and connecting people to treatment. Congress gave $1.2 billion to expand the workforce over five years, including $600 million to states, cities and territories that get STD prevention funding from CDC.
Last year had the “most activity with that funding throughout the U.S.,” said David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors.
However, Congress ended the funds early as a part of last year’s debt ceiling deal, cutting off $400 million. Some people already have lost their jobs, said a spokeswoman for Harvey’s organization.
Still, Harvey said he had reasons for optimism, including the growing use of doxycycline and a push for at-home STD test kits.
Also, there are reasons to think the next presidential administration could get behind STD prevention. In 2019, then-President Donald Trump announced a campaign to “eliminate” the U.S. HIV epidemic by 2030. (Federal health officials later clarified that the actual goal was a huge reduction in new infections — fewer than 3,000 a year.)
There were nearly 32,000 new HIV infections in 2022, the CDC estimates. But a boost in public health funding for HIV could also also help bring down other sexually transmitted infections, experts said.
“When the government puts in resources, puts in money, we see declines in STDs,” Klausner said.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Scientists can’t know precisely when a volcano is about to erupt, but they can sometimes pick up telltale signs.
That happened two years ago with the world’s largest active volcano. About two months before Mauna Loa spewed rivers of glowing orange molten lava, geologists detected small earthquakes nearby and other signs, and they warned residents on Hawaii‘s Big Island.
Now a study of the volcano’s lava confirms their timeline for when the molten rock below was on the move.
“Volcanoes are tricky because we don’t get to watch directly what’s happening inside – we have to look for other signs,” said Erik Klemetti Gonzalez, a volcano expert at Denison University, who was not involved in the study.
Upswelling ground and increased earthquake activity near the volcano resulted from magma rising from lower levels of Earth’s crust to fill chambers beneath the volcano, said Kendra Lynn, a research geologist at the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and co-author of a new study in Nature Communications.
When pressure was high enough, the magma broke through brittle surface rock and became lava – and the eruption began in late November 2022. Later, researchers collected samples of volcanic rock for analysis.
The chemical makeup of certain crystals within the lava indicated that around 70 days before the eruption, large quantities of molten rock had moved from around 1.9 miles (3 kilometers) to 3 miles (5 kilometers) under the summit to a mile (2 kilometers) or less beneath, the study found. This matched the timeline the geologists had observed with other signs.
The last time Mauna Loa erupted was in 1984. Most of the U.S. volcanoes that scientists consider to be active are found in Hawaii, Alaska and the West Coast.
Worldwide, around 585 volcanoes are considered active.
Scientists can’t predict eruptions, but they can make a “forecast,” said Ben Andrews, who heads the global volcano program at the Smithsonian Institution and who was not involved in the study.
Andrews compared volcano forecasts to weather forecasts – informed “probabilities” that an event will occur. And better data about the past behavior of specific volcanos can help researchers finetune forecasts of future activity, experts say.
(asterisk)We can look for similar patterns in the future and expect that there’s a higher probability of conditions for an eruption happening,” said Klemetti Gonzalez.
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Waymo on Tuesday opened its robotaxi service to anyone who wants a ride around Los Angeles, marking another milestone in the evolution of self-driving car technology since the company began as a secret project at Google 15 years ago.
The expansion comes eight months after Waymo began offering rides in Los Angeles to a limited group of passengers chosen from a waiting list that had ballooned to more than 300,000 people. Now, anyone with the Waymo One smartphone app will be able to request a ride around an 80-square-mile (129-square-kilometer) territory spanning the second largest U.S. city.
After Waymo received approval from California regulators to charge for rides 15 months ago, the company initially chose to launch its operations in San Francisco before offering a limited service in Los Angeles.
Before deciding to compete against conventional ride-hailing pioneers Uber and Lyft in California, Waymo unleashed its robotaxis in Phoenix in 2020 and has been steadily extending the reach of its service in that Arizona city ever since.
Driverless rides are proving to be more than just a novelty. Waymo says it now transports more than 50,000 weekly passengers in its robotaxis, a volume of business numbers that helped the company recently raise $5.6 billion from its corporate parent Alphabet and a list of other investors that included venture capital firm Andreesen Horowitz and financial management firm T. Rowe Price.
“Our service has matured quickly and our riders are embracing the many benefits of fully autonomous driving,” Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana said in a blog post.
Despite its inroads, Waymo is still believed to be losing money. Although Alphabet doesn’t disclose Waymo’s financial results, the robotaxi is a major part of an “Other Bets” division that had suffered an operating loss of $3.3 billion through the first nine months of this year, down from a setback of $4.2 billion at the same time last year.
But Waymo has come a long way since Google began working on self-driving cars in 2009 as part of project “Chauffeur.” Since its 2016 spinoff from Google, Waymo has established itself as the clear leader in a robotaxi industry that’s getting more congested.
Electric auto pioneer Tesla is aiming to launch a rival “Cybercab” service by 2026, although its CEO Elon Musk said he hopes the company can get the required regulatory clearances to operate in Texas and California by next year.
Tesla’s projected timeline for competing against Waymo has been met with skepticism because Musk has made unfulfilled promises about the company’s self-driving car technology for nearly a decade.
Meanwhile, Waymo’s robotaxis have driven more than 20 million fully autonomous miles and provided more than 2 million rides to passengers without encountering a serious accident that resulted in its operations being sidelined.
That safety record is a stark contrast to one of its early rivals, Cruise, a robotaxi service owned by General Motors. Cruise’s California license was suspended last year after one of its driverless cars in San Francisco dragged a jaywalking pedestrian who had been struck by a different car driven by a human.
Cruise is now trying to rebound by joining forces with Uber to make some of its services available next year in U.S. cities that still haven’t been announced. But Waymo also has forged a similar alliance with Uber to dispatch its robotaxi in Atlanta and Austin, Texas next year.
Another robotaxi service, Amazon’s Zoox, is hoping to begin offering driverless rides to the general public in Las Vegas at some point next year before also launching in San Francisco.
