This Guide to Environmental Law in New Brunswick is based on a similar publication: Handbook on Environmental Law for New Brunswick that was published by the Conservation Council of New Brunswick in 2000.

This revised and updated version was prepared by the staff lawyers of East Coast Environmental Law, and its first edition was published in June 2023. This second edition was published March 2025. Input and content review on the first edition (2023) were provided by a number of students, scholars, and legal professionals, to whom we are very grateful.

Submission regarding Consultation on Coastal Classification Criteria for Nova Scotia

Joint Letter to Minister LePage on Shoreline Habitats

Written Submission to the Public Bills Committee on Bill 6: An Act Respecting Agriculture, Energy and Natural Resources.

Written Submission on Bill No. 1, An Act Respecting Government Organization and Administration

The proposed Gull Island facility underwent a joint federal-provincial environmental assessment more than a decade ago. Residents of Newfoundland and Labrador want to know if the law requires a fresh assessment now, since it has been so long since the original assessment was conducted.

This backgrounder provides an overview of project designation for federal impact assessments under the Impact Assessment Act and provincial environmental assessments in Newfoundland and Labrador under the Environmental Protection Act and Environmental Assessment Regulations, 2003.

In January 2025, the Regional Assessment of Offshore Wind Development in Newfoundland and Labrador (“Regional Assessment”) concluded. This backgrounder offers an overview of the Regional Assessment, explaining its origins and purpose as well as the role it is expected to play in the future regulation of offshore wind developments in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Municipalities have important powers and responsibilities to enact policies and by-laws on matters like land-use, zoning, and development that can play a major role in protecting and stewarding wetlands. This introductory Guide explores what policy and legal tools are available to municipalities in Nova Scotia that may be used to steward wetlands, and it provides examples of how these tools are being used now.

Submission on the Regional Assessment of Offshore Wind Development in Nova Scotia: Draft Report

Submission on the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 Proposed Plan of Priorities and Proposed Watch List Approach

Submission on the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 Right to a Healthy Environment Draft Implementation Framework.

Submission on the Draft Report for the Regional Assessment of Offshore Wind Development in Newfoundland and Labrador

An environmental rights advocacy toolkit prepared by East Coast Environmental Law to support public engagement in a campaign to win a right to a healthy environment in Nova Scotia.

A model bill of Environmental Rights and Responsibilities for Nova Scotia, drafted by East Coast Environmental Law to support a campaign to win a right to a healthy environment in Nova Scotia.

An evaluation of the Government of New Brunswick’s performance under its Species at Risk Act.

East Coast Environmental Law Submission on the Draft Terms of Reference for the Regional Assessment in the Ring of Fire Area

Brief submitted to the Nova Scotia Law Amendments Committee on Bill No. 471, the proposed Advancing Nova Scotia Opportunities Act.

Throughout Nova Scotia, individuals, community groups, and environmental organizations often find themselves wondering whether legal tools exist to prevent or put a stop to environmental harms. East Coast Environmental Law receives numerous inquiries asking that question, and many ask specifically what it would take to get an injunction. This audio guide offers an overview of injunctions in Nova Scotia, explaining what they are, what forms they take, what it takes to get them, and the risks involved in seeking them.

A report evaluating the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador’s performance under the province’s Endangered Species Act.