The following statement was issued today by Kevin Aylward, Minister of Environment and Labour. It was also read in the House of Assembly:

When the Hibernia oil field begins its production stage, oil from the platform will be shipped to a unit many of us have come to know as the Transshipment Terminal. It is in this facility that oil from Hibernia will be stored, until it is loaded onto tankers for shipment to markets.

The environmental assessment process is the screen through which government analyses projects for their environmental impacts. It begins with the registration of the project's documents with the Department of Environment and Labour, and proceeds with a public review and a thorough and multi-sectoral review by agencies from both provincial and federal governments.

The Transshipment Terminal Project was registered with my department in September of this year and the provincial environmental assessment process proceeded subsequently.

I have written to the proponents, joint venture partners, Chevron Canada Resources Ltd., Mobil Oil Canada Properties, and Petro-Canada, to inform them that an environmental impact statement is not required. This means that the project is released from further assessment by the province, and the proponent may proceed with the undertaking as described in their registration documents subject to all applicable permits, approvals, authorizations and relevant legislation.

This project has been released from the province's environmental assessment process only after a comprehensive and stringent review of the project. The proponent has also volunteered to submit an Environmental Protection Plan, and has also agreed to develop an Environmental Effects Monitoring Program that will include the participation of groups from government, academia and industry, and to submit the program to my department for approval.

I would like to repeat that the project is released from the province's environmental assessment process only. The federal environmental assessment requirements will be addressed through a Comprehensive Study under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.