Whereas the Riparian Areas Protection Regulation regulates development within a riparian assessment area and a local government cannot approve a development application until an assessment report from a qualified environmental professional QEP has been submitted through the Riparian Areas Regulation Notification and approved by the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship; And whereas the Ministry response time to review QEP reports continues to increase, unreasonably delaying local government development and significantly impacting local economies; And whereas the effectiveness of the Riparian Areas Protection Regulation relies on local government compliance which is compromised by the Ministrys lack of resources and inability to respond in a timely manner: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM ask the Province to grant local governments the authority to accept and review qualified environmental professions QEP reports for developments within its own jurisdiction.
Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship and Ministry of Forests The Ministry has significantly improved the Riparian Area Protection Regulation RAPR program in the past year. We have cut ministry review response times from 8 months to 15-30 days. It is expected that these improvements will address many of your concerns. Alternatively, local governments can use the Meet or Beat approach outlined in RAPR Section 124b, bypassing provincial review if their bylaws meet or exceed standards. RAPR staff are available to support local governments who want to implement this approach. Please reach out to: riparianareasvictoria1.gov.bc.ca for support.