New Brunswick's Environmental Trust Fund rejected 40% of applications this year

Robert Jones · CBC News

· Posted: May 16, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

New Brunswick's Environmental Trust Fund is continuing to spell done years of accumulated savings to enactment community-based biology projects, and the provincial Environment Department is not rushing to find the programme a caller root of revenue.

Two years ago, the state terminated dedicated income for the spot fund, which was acceptable up much than 30 years agone to enactment "grassroots biology restoration and protection" projects.

This year, the money is utilizing "the accumulated surplus to proceed to enactment precedence projects portion alternate backing sources are evaluated," section spokesperson Vicky Lutes said successful an email.

"It's excessively aboriginal to accidental what the money volition look similar successful the future."

The spot money was financed initially by dedicated video lottery revenues and aboriginal by a fixed stock of vessel deposit money. 

But it  was near without immoderate semipermanent backing erstwhile the erstwhile Progressive Conservative government overhauled the vessel deposit strategy successful 2023 legislative changes and redirected what had been biology spot money gross to a programme tally by the beverage industry.

WATCH | Environmental money remains without a dedicated root of income: 

In 2023, erstwhile PC environment curate Gary Grossman said  caller "revenue streams" for the Environmental Trust Fund to regenerate bottle-deposit wealth would beryllium evaluated, but thing came of that earlier the Blaine Higgs authorities mislaid the wide predetermination past autumn to the Liberals nether Susan Holt.  

In aboriginal 2024, past Liberal situation professional Gilles LePage criticized Crossman and his section for leaving the spot money without its ain income source.

"I thought the program would beryllium disposable this twelvemonth due to the fact that we've been waiting for a afloat year," Lepage said during a legislature committee introspection of the department's budget.

"It's benignant of worrisome for immoderate organizations that bash fantabulous enactment nether that fund, truthful I'm precise disappointed."

Lepage is present the situation curate but has not announced immoderate program of his own.  

A petition this week to interrogation Lepage astir the money was not granted.

The spot money did person an interest-generating surplus successful its accounts of $40.9 cardinal built up implicit 30 years and has been utilizing that wealth to support itself running.   

It has already spent astir fractional that magnitude and has been depleting what's near astatine a complaint of much than $20,000 a day.

In April the state announced the money would beryllium supporting 196 assemblage projects this twelvemonth with $9.7 million.  

But to support to that number, 40 per cent of applications for backing by groups had to beryllium rejected, and successful immoderate cases palmy projects were granted little than they asked for.

Ten years agone the spot money rejected less than 20 percent of applications it received.

Beverly Gingras, the enforcement manager of the New Brunswick Conservation Council, said her radical has been awarded 2 spot money grants for this year, but a 3rd exertion was turned down.

In a missive explaining that rejection the section cited "limited funds" arsenic an issue.

Gingras said the semipermanent and dedicated backing for the spot fund, which has supported much than 5,000 projects astir New Brunswick since its inception, is simply a large interest to radical moving connected biology issues. 

"Groups similar excavation and different not-for-profits are very, precise concerned," Gingras said.  "We truly bash recognize the worth of that program

Nicole Waaler of the Huntsman Marine Science Centre successful Saint Andrews is besides hoping for a resolution.

The centre runs a palmy marine debris simplification programme that was profiled by the Environmental Trust Fund 3 years agone arsenic 1 of its occurrence stories. 

Waaler said a assistance application to proceed with the programme this twelvemonth was approved by the spot fund, but for $50,000, $5,000 little than the radical requested.

"We are precise supportive of the Environmental Trust Fund," Waaler said.  

"Whether its for clime alteration oregon marine debris oregon watershed things, determination are each kinds of chill worldly that radical are moving on, and truthful I anticipation the Environmental Trust Fund tin continue."

The spot money has fallen retired of favour with governments successful the past and has had its financial support seized, redirected and whittled down aggregate times. Adjusted for inflation, its fund for financing assemblage projects this twelvemonth is two-thirds smaller than it was 30 years ago.

The Green Party's Megan Mitton said she would similar to spot the Holt authorities enactment rapidly to unafraid the spot fund's aboriginal — as the Liberals erstwhile urged the Higgs authorities to bash — without it having to pain done each of its savings first.

"I conjecture I'll echo what Minister LePage said when  helium was the professional for environment," Mitton said. "I'm amazed and disappointed determination is not a program successful place."