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The federal government has been undermining its own environmental review process, according to a Supreme Court of Canada decision released Thursday that’s expected to affect future environmental assessments on resource development projects across the country.

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The ruling guarantees future public consultation on other large-scale development projects, such as tar sands developments, according to Ecojustice.

Imperial Metals noted in a news release that the ruling does not affect the project’s progress, adding that the process avoided “unnecessary and costly duplication” between federal and provincial environmental review processes. The environmental review’s outcome was never challenged in court.

In a news release issued Thursday, Sierra Club Canada called the federal government’s decision to allow the mine to proceed despite its acknowledgment that it had violated the environmental review process “disturbing.” The environmental lobby groups called for Imperial Metals to resubmit its proposal to the CEAA, requesting a full panel review.