N.L. gives environmental blessing to refinery plan

A proposal to develop North America's first oil refinery in two decades has received environmental approval from the Newfoundland and Labrador government.

A brief statement Thursday said that Newfoundland and Labrador Refining Corp.'s amendments to a prior environmental statement satisfy the government's concerns.

"It certainly is a milestone," company director Brian Dalton told CBC News, reacting to the decision that helps pave the way for a refinery planned for the head of Placentia Bay and near the existing North Atlantic Refining operation in Come By Chance.

The company spent 15 months working on the environmental review to convince the province that the refinery is environmentally sound.

"I'd go as far as to say that maybe the environmental assessment process of Newfoundland had seen the most public input of any of the major projects," Dalton said.

The project now needs the federal government's environmental blessing.

The provincial nod comes on the heels of a labour agreement that Newfoundland and Labrador Refining made shortly before Christmas with 16 unions.

The deal guarantees a top-up on existing wage structures in the province, which the company says will help it compete with higher-paying employers in Alberta.

Newfoundland and Labrador Refining wants to break ground on the site this spring.

Gus Doyle, local president of United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners, said the environmental approval is great news for his members.

"What it means to workers is simply this, is that there is less chance they'll have to travel back and forth to Alberta this summer," he said.

"There'll be more of them staying home in the province and of course there'll be great spinoff jobs for all areas of the province, once it gets started."