The federal government says the final offshore oil and gas permits for Canada鈥檚 West Coast have been relinquished.
A news release from the office of Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson says the relinquishment came from Chevron Canada, which has given up its 23 offshore permits along the coast of British Columbia as of Feb. 9.
A spokeswoman from Wilkinson鈥檚 office says that represents the last of the 227 offshore oil and gas permits for British Columbia鈥檚 coastal waters.
The release says giving up the oil and gas permits in Pacific waters fulfils a condition in the federal government鈥檚 commitment to an Indigenous-led conservation initiative that received a pledge of $800 million in support from Ottawa two years ago.
In April 2023, Chevron Canada said it was voluntarily relinquishing 19 offshore oil and gas permits within protected wildlife areas on B.C.鈥檚 West Coast.
The permitting area given up by Chevron at that time was estimated at 5,700 square kilometres and overlapped parts of federal marine protection areas off B.C.
READ ALSO:
