After backlash from local government and industry, B.C. has revised its proposed Heritage Conservation Act modifications, withdrawing changes that would give First Nations more enforcement authority and eliminating reference to “intangible heritage.”
Forests Minister Ravi Parmar said the previous proposals led to “more confusion than answers,” and his goal is to ensure the province meets its constitutional consultation requirements without creating any more obligations.
“When we’re looking at these sorts of proposals, we need to make sure that we are not creating any delays, we’re not adding any more cumbersome processes,” Parmar said in an interview on Thursday (March 26).
The Heritage Conservation Act lays out the rules for landowners who find archeological artifacts on their property. Parmar says the law is not working properly for landowners, industry or First Nations, and that it adds delays in communities trying to rebuild after natural disasters, such as Lytton.
His ministry initially worked behind closed doors with First Nations’ leaders to create 53 changes, revealing a draft of the proposals to local governments in August. But local leaders complained about being cut out of the development process and sought revisions.
So Parmar backed off, twice delaying the legislation and pledging more consultation. This latest batch of proposals is the result.
Parmar expects to introduce the changes in the legislature in the fall. But the legislation is not yet written, and Parmar made no promises.
“I want to reiterate that it’s really important that I get this right,” he said.
Parmar’s office released a document on Thursday explaining the key policy changes being made from the version shown to local governments in August.
Top among these is the removal of references to “intangible heritage” — terminology criticized as overly broad and ambiguous. Current protections for sites with a formal designation or negotiated ceremonial, spiritual or other cultural value will continue.
Also being excised from the latest draft are “heritage management zones,” which would have prescribed additional requirements in the areas surrounding sites listed in the Provincial Heritage Registry. This idea is being abandoned because of concerns about the accuracy of registry data and a lack of clarity on how these zones would be established.
The revision also lessens the involvement of First Nations in enforcement and permitting decisions. Stakeholders had raised concerns about this arrangement because of the potential for inconsistent enforcement across jurisdictions and the lack of provincial oversight.
The requirement for proponents to include a “record of engagement” with permit applications is being scrapped as well. There was concern that this could create additional burdens for both proponents and First Nations. These records will still be recommended as best practice, but not required.
Requirements for local governments to seek proof of a heritage information check before land is developed or sold are still being included in the revisions, but only for building permits or property sales involving a ground disturbance.
These checks are provided for free by the province, and the ministry argues they provide certainty for developers by reducing unforeseen heritage considerations.
Parmar said that whatever the final legislative changes are, the government will enable itself to enact many of the new rules through regulation. This allows fine-tuning — although it also removes legislative oversight at that stage of the process.
First Nations groups, industry and the Union of B.C. Municipalities have all received the changes, but are reluctant to comment before they have conducted a thorough analysis.
“Given the complexity of this issue, we are taking time to thoroughly review the report and gather feedback from our members before providing more detailed comments,” said Braden McMillan, communications director for the Business Council of B.C., in a written statement. “It is our hope that the proposals adopted by government strike the right balance between modernizing the (Heritage Conservation Act) and supporting economic growth in British Columbia.”
The Forests Ministry’s position paper is available online, and Parmar is inviting the public to review the changes and provide feedback at engage.gov.bc.ca/heritageconservationact/technical-policy-paper/.