01/29/2025
Good day,
As you may be aware, the federal and provincial government have been undertaking several key initiatives related to offshore renewable energy, specifically offshore wind. In recent months, significant progress has been made on legislative and regulatory frameworks (e.g., Bill C-49 and amendments to the Accord Acts, Nova Scotia’s Bill 471, and the Canada Offshore Renewable Energy Regulations) and supporting processes (e.g., Regional Assessment of Offshore Wind Development in Nova Scotia).
We understand the importance of sharing information and meaningful engagement and are interested in your feedback, so representatives from Natural Resources Canada and the Nova Scotia Department of Energy would like to meet with you and your organization to provide an overview of key initiatives and updates on ongoing processes and plans related to offshore wind. We recognize that pursuing offshore wind development in the Canada-Nova Scotia offshore area could potentially impact you and how you conduct your commercial fishing activities.
Therefore, we would like to hold a two-hour meeting in late February with you to address your questions and concerns and provide information regarding next steps as the processes continue to advance. We have identified some key items that we intend to cover in this meeting but are also open to covering any other topics that are of interest and answering any questions you have.
General Progress on Advancing Offshore Wind in Canada (e.g. legislation, regulations, etc.)
Land Tenure Process
Proposed Wind Energy Areas
We are proposing to meet virtually over the week of February 24; we do have colleagues based in the Ottawa region, but if there is a strong desire for an in-person component, we can look into possible arrangements. We hope to land one time that can suit most, if not all, groups, but we may be scheduling multiple sessions during that week to accommodate variations in schedules.
To support organizing this meeting, we kindly ask for everyone to please provide the following information:
preferred day(s) to meet for the week of February 24
windows of availability for those days (10:00-12:00, 1:00-3:00, or 2:00-4:00)
Interest and/or capacity to take part an in-person meeting (in Halifax)
You are welcome to indicate multiple days/times, should it be feasible for your schedule. Please communicate with Melissa P**n ([email protected]) on your preferences and availabilities to attend this session by Friday January 31.
We understand that you all have busy schedules and appreciate the time that you would be taking to meet with us. We look forward to meeting and engaging further with you.
Thank you,
Melissa P**n, on behalf of Jon Brady and Sandra Farwell
Melissa P**n
Policy Advisor, Offshore Renewables | Conseillère en politiques, Énergie extracôtière renouvelable
Renewable and Electrical Energy Division | Division de l’énergie renouvelable et électrique
Natural Resources Canada | Ressources naturelles Canada
[email protected] | Tel: 343-598-2798
Jon Brady
(he/him/il/lui)
Deputy Director - Offshore Renewables/ Directeur adjoint - Énergie Extracôtière Renouvelable
Renewable and Electrical Energy Division | Division des énergies renouvelables et électriques |
Natural Resources Canada | Ressources naturelles Canada
Sandra Farwell
Director, Marine Renewables
Energy Resource Development Branch
Nova Scotia Department of Energy
[email protected]
The North of Smokey Fishermen's Association (NOSFA) is a registered, incorporated society representing fishermen in both the Gulf and Scotia Fundy.
