Public Participation
Public participation is essential for an open, honest, and balanced impact assessment process
Why is public participation important?
Every EMRIRB screening has a public comment period of 21 days. When a screening is initiated, a Notice of Screening is issued and is made public. Interested parties are invited to submit their comments regarding the proposed project and its potential effects to the EMRIRB for consideration. All comments made during an assessment are posted to the EMRIRB Public Registry and can be viewed by the public.
The EMRIRB operates under the principle that public participation is an important element of an open, honest, and balanced impact assessment process. Effective public participation strengthens the quality of the screening and review processes, resulting in better decisions and better projects.
The EMRIRB considers the potential eco-systemic impacts (e.g., land, air, water, fish and wildlife) and socio-economic impacts (e.g., health and well-being of people and communities) of proposed projects to determine whether a project has the potential to have significant adverse impacts on the environment. In order for your comments to be most useful to the EMRIRB, you will need to outline the ecosystemic and socio-economic impacts you deem important.
How can I get involved?
Follow the EMR Facebook Page and look out for notices of new projects undergoing screening
Send an e-mail to info-irb@eeyoumarineregion.ca to be added to our distribution list. That way, every time a proposed project in the EMR is undergoing screening, you will be notified.
How can I submit comments?
There are three ways to submit comments to the EMRIRB:
- Fill out a comment form on the Public Registry (see guide below for more information)
- Send an email to info-irb@eeyoumarineregion.ca with your comments
- Call the EMRIRB at: 819-895-2202
What kind of information will I be asked to provide?
What do you value in the proposed project area?
Values may include specific wildlife species, environmental elements (water, islands), or cultural values and activities (trapping, way of life).
How will this project impact you? Do you have suggestions for how these impacts could be reduced or eliminated?
How to submit a comment on the EMRIRB Public Registry
Before you can comment on a project, you need to register for an account on the EMRIRB Public Registry. Go to www.emrirb.ca/registry and create an account by clicking on Register an account. You will be asked to provide your contact information and will need to select “I will be commenting on projects” as your account Status.
Once your request is submitted, you will receive an email with a verification link. Please check your email and click on the link to verify. If you do not receive the activation email, please check your spam or bulk email folder. Once you verify your email, your request for an account will then be sent to the EMRIRB staff for approval and you will be notified by email when your account is active.
If you already have an account on the EMRIRB Public Registry, proceed to Step 2.
Once your account has been approved by staff at the EMRIRB, you will be able to log in by clicking the “Login” button in the box at the top of the main Public Registry page. This will bring you to a login form where you can log in using your email and the password you created when you registered.
- Once logged in, all projects that are currently open for commenting will be listed in your account dashboard.
- Click on the project you would like to comment on, which will bring you to the Project Details page.
The Project Dashboard page will show you all the project details, such as the complete project application, maps, additional documents, and what phase of assessment the project is currently undergoing. On the far right, click on the “Comments” tab.
- The comment form will load, which you are asked to fill out.
- You may also upload a document to support your comments or provide additional information.
- Once you have filled out your comments, you can submit them by clicking on the "Submit Comments" button.
- EMRIRB staff will then receive and review your comments before posting them on the Project Dashboard, along with other comments received.
