Waterkeeper releases primer on federal environmental laws, tools

Hosts of 'Living at the Barricades' Mark Mattson and Krystyn Tully bring to life the Clean Water Primer #2 and speak about the value of and threat to Federal environmental laws and tools in Canada. 

This week, Lake Ontario Waterkeeper released the finalized Clean Water Primer #2: Federal Environmental Laws and Tools: A Canadian's Guide to key policies, rules, and procedures that protect the nation's waterways. The Primer is available here.

The Clean Water Primer #2 is meant to help citizens and environmental groups use existing laws to protect their waterways. It is geared towards people ranging from law students to groups with no legal experience - we have tried to write in a simple style and have avoided technical jargon wherever possible. Primer #2 is not legal advice - it is meant to help you identify some of the legal tools that are available and to help you get on the right track.

Legislation and environmental regulations are changing constantly. In some cases, the rules are improved for clarity and to reflect growing knowledge of environmental matters. In other cases, substantial changes are being proposed that would dramatically change the way environmental laws protect Canadian waters. (One example is Bill C-45, a revised version of the Fisheries Act which substantially changes and weakens the existing rules, that is currently making its way through the legislative process.)

The Clean Water Primer helps Canadians learn about their environmental rights and understand how to use the tools and processes available to them. It also serves as a backgrounder for policymakers and administrators seeking to understand the importance of legal tools to the general public - and what's at stake if these tools are weakened or lost.