Environmental Assessments

An environmental assessment is required before any activity authorization can be granted. It’s one of the first steps in our application process that holds operators accountable to demonstrate how their proposed work can be done without significant adverse effects to the environment.

It’s important for those operating in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area to understand our marine environment and the potential impacts that may be associated with offshore energy activity. Identifying mitigation measures that may be required to help minimize any potential impacts is critical. Environmental Assessments (EA) are the tools used to do this. They inform regulators and decision makers of the potential effects and consequences of their decisions (e.g., to issue a licence, to allow an activity to proceed) and identify appropriate actions to be taken to minimize adverse effects and optimize positive effects.

Understanding the environmental conditions in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area as well as the potential changes that may occur as a result of energy-related activities typically begins with either a Regional Assessment (RA) or a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). Project-specific environmental/impact assessments are just that – specific to a project that has been proposed – and they take place as part of the activity authorization process.

SEAs and/or RAs are conducted or commissioned prior to the issuance of land licences and are used to support the CNSOER’s Call for Bids processes. Their purpose is to consider potential impacts from a broad perspective, the results of which are considered in, and used to inform, future project-specific environmental/ impact assessments. Completion of an RA or SEA does not permit any offshore energy related activities to occur; proponents must make application to the CNSOER for an Activity Authorization, which includes submission of a project-specific Environmental Assessment.

Did you know? There are multiple steps in our Strategic Environmental Assessment and our Environmental Assessment processes with opportunities for engagement. For more information on engagement activity, check our Engagement section.

Types of Environmental Assessments

Regional Assessments (RA) examine past and potential future projects in a specific geographic region and assess their cumulative impacts to help manage the effects of existing and anticipated development in that region.

One RA has been undertaken in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area. The Regional Assessment for Offshore Wind Development in Nova Scotia was formally initiated in March 2023 and completed in January 2025. The RA was conducted by a five-member independent Committee under the authority of the Impact Assessment Act and under a partnership agreement between the federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada, the federal Minister of Natural Resources Canada and the provincial Minister of Energy (formerly Natural Resources and Renewables).

The RA Committee engaged with Indigenous groups, fishers, federal and provincial authorities, non-government organizations, key stakeholders and the public on planning, licencing, and project-specific federal impact assessments of future offshore wind development related activities in a way that helps protect the environment, health, social, cultural and economic conditions while also creating opportunities for sustainable economic development.

The Accord Acts include a provision which grants the authority for the CNSOER to conduct RAs for offshore energy as well. Section 142.018 (1) of the federal Accord Act states that 'The Regulator may conduct a regional assessment of the effects of any existing or future work or activity [referred to in sections 140 and 140.2].' RAs may therefore be conducted by the CNSOER in the future. There have been no RAs prepared for offshore petroleum-related activities in the Nova Scotia offshore area.

SEAs evaluate the environmental effects of a proposed policy, plan, or program and inform decision-making through a careful analysis of environmental risks and opportunities that could arise as a result of implementation of that policy, plan or program. Historically, the CNSOPB conducted SEAs, before a petroleum-related exploration licence was issued, to evaluate the potential effects of issuing petroleum-related exploration licences in specific sections of the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area. Our SEAs have informed petroleum operators, Indigenous communities, fishers, other ocean users, and the public of the potential risks associated with petroleum-related exploration. Strategic Environmental Assessments are updated regularly .

You can view Strategic Environmental Assessment related documents in our Public Registry below.

Proponents of potential offshore energy activities that are proposing to work in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area must apply for an Activity Authorization, which includes completion of a project-specific Environmental Assessment. The outcomes of this Environmental Assessment must be accepted before any activity can occur.

A project-specific Environmental Assessment builds on information presented in the relevant RA or SEA and helps predict how a proposed activity may impact the marine environment, in a specified offshore area. It also sets out the necessary mitigation measures required to minimize or eliminate any potential environmental impacts before an authorization can be granted.

Depending on the activity proposed, project-specific assessments may be required by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) and/or the CNSOER. Environmental Assessments are required for offshore energy related projects that require an Activity Authorization. The scope of the EA reflects the level of risk associated with the proposed project. You can view Environmental Assessment related documents on our Public Registry below.

The Impact Assessment Act (IAA) and the Physical Activities Regulations, administered by the IAAC, designate a number of offshore energy projects as “Physical Activities” that are subject to the federal Impact Assessment process. These designated Physical Activities would technically require an IAAC Impact Assessment and a CNSOER Environmental Assessment; however, to avoid duplication, the CNSOER typically accepts the IAAC Impact Assessment process as fulfillment of its own requirement for Environmental Assessment.

Based on current legislation, oil and gas related projects subject to the IAA include: drilling, testing, and abandonment of wells; construction, installation and operation of infrastructure for a new oil or gas production project; decommissioning and in-situ abandonment, disposal and/or repurposing of existing oil and gas infrastructure; and new offshore pipelines, other than flowlines. Renewable energy projects subject to the IAA include: in-stream tidal greater than 15 MW or more capacity; a tidal power generating facility that employs technologies other than in-stream tidal; offshore wind energy production with 10 or more turbines; and expansion of an offshore wind energy facility that would increase production by 50% or more and has more than 10 turbines.

You can search the Canadian Impact Assessment Registry to learn more about how Assessments are conducted by the IAAC.

Public Registries

Visit our Public Registries for more information on Strategic Environmental Assessments and Environmental Assessments.

For more information, or to obtain copies of current or archived Strategic Environmental Assessments and project-specific Environmental Assessments, please contact us at info@cnsoer.ca or 902-422-5588.

Public Registry Strategic Environmental Assessments

Public Registry: SEAs

Conducting a Strategic Environmental Assessment is an important step in the early planning phase of offshore energy development.

Public Registry Environmental Assessments

Public Registry: EAs

When an operator applies for an activity authorization, we build on the information collected during a Strategic Environmental Assessments.