B.C.'s provincial budget has left some environmentalists frustrated.

Torrance Coste, associate director of the Wilderness Commmittee, said government's response to the American tariffs appears to be fast-tracking natural resource projects without increasing funding to ensure environmental oversight. 

"We see that reflected in that budget," he said in an interview after B.C.'s Finance Minister Brenda Bailey had presented the budget Tuesday (March 4). He pointed specifically to funding for B.C.'s Environmental Assessment Office tasked with reviewing new mines and fossil infrastructure. Its budget rose by less than $270,000. He added that the ministries of environment and parks, forests, energy and climate solutions and water, land and resource stewardship all saw minimal to no increases.

Coste added later in a statement that promising a wave of new industrial projects with faster review processes without also increasing the budget of ministries and agencies overseeing this development amounts to cutting corners.

B次元官网网址淩esponding to a problem by doubling down on extraction and weakening regulations is a shortsighted conservative policy direction better left in the last century."

Coste also lamented the limited amount of additional funding for B.C.B次元官网网址檚 commitment to protect 30 per cent of its land and water by 2030. He noted that the responsible ministry of water, land and resources stewardship overseeing the commitment saw its budget rise from $219 million last year to $221 million per year for each of the next three years.

The organization also pointed out that the budget mentions old-growth forests once in relation to strengthening the forest industry.

Premier David Eby told reporters during the budget lock up that government would speed up resource projects "consistent with our environmental commitments." 

Still part of the budget is the carbon tax, which helps to fund various programs under the CleanBC program. Bailey re-stated her government's commitment to eliminate the part of the carbon tax paid by consumers, but acknowledged that such a move would impact not only government revenues, but also potentially programs funded through CleanBC.

"I don't want to get ahead of any decisions," she said. "We haven't done that work yet."

Bailey added government does not want walk away from addressing the priorities of British Columbians. "Addressing climate change is one of them, but we will have to look at how we spend those dollars and the implications of moving away from that tax."

Mark Zacharias, president of Clean Energy Canada, praised government's decision to maintain CleanBC incentives for zero-emission vehicles, heat pumps, roof-top solar panels and home renovation retrofits for now. He also praised government's decision to provide $100 million over the next two years for low- and moderate-income households looking to install heat pumps.

"We are pleased to see 100 per cent of the April 1 carbon tax increase go back to the people B次元官网网址揑 think that is good," he said. 

But Zacharias also would have liked to have seen a reference to the upcoming review of CleanBC. He said that review will be critically important to determine B.C.'s long-term climate strategy and how it links to B.C.'s economic direction. "I would have liked to have seen today's budget be a little bit more focused on building the clean economy, not just the economy writ-large." 

Comparable points of criticism about CleanBC and missing economic elements in the budget have also come from the B.C. Greens. 

The Cooperation and Responsible Government Accord signed between the B.C. Greens and the B.C. NDP in late 2024 commits government to initiate and complete a review of CleanBC in 2025, one year earlier than planned. 

B.C. Green Rob Botterell, MLA for Saanich North and the Islands, said CleanBC needs a complete overhaul. "Everything is on the table," he said. "We are in an accelerated climate change environment," he added.

The upcoming review of CleanBC also looms as a test of the agreement between the parties. It is just subject to annual renewal at the sole discretion of each party. When asked about the likelihood of renewing the agreement at this stage, Botterrell said "so far, so good." 

"So far, we have got a good, productive relationship," he said. "Ministers are very committed to see this happening and ... so I am happy right now," he said. "Talk to me in nine months." 

He acknowledged that the fast-tracking of energy projects is a "real concern" because some of them relate to the expansion of LNG and the fossil fuel economy. "The wind projects are a positive," he said. "So we have got our concerns, but it's a package and one of the things we will be really watching closely as we go through this session is the environmental assessment legislation."

The review of CleanBC is just one among several projects on the to-do list of the B.C. Greens and the B.C. NDP and Botterell pointed to some of these items including the review of social assistance rates. Botterell also called for a more innovative economy. 

While Botterell praised the overall budget in helping B.C. weather the tariffs, he also called for systemic changes.

"We have got to get it right now this year," he said. "As you know, our (agreement) has a one-year renewal and we are going to do everything we can to work with this government, to help the government, support the government, to get this result. But if we don't get the results at the end of the year, we will certainly be looking at whether this is the right approach for future years."