What is the Joint Review Panel?
It’s a seven-member independent panel that will listen to evidence at months of hearings and report on what it thinks will be impact of the project on the environment and the lives of the people who live in the region. The federal minister of the environment appointed the panel on Aug. 18, 2004, in consultation with the Producer Group and the Aboriginal Pipeline Group. Sometime after public hearings end, the panel will issue a report which will include its recommendations. The decision on whether to recommend that the project should go ahead – or be stopped in its tracks – will be made by the National Energy Board. After that, the final decision on whether the pipeline is approved is up to the federal cabinet.
