A proposed Wildfire Act is under development to replace The Prairie and Forest Fires Act. The current Act, which was completely updated in 1982, has not kept pace with current wildfire practices and requires a complete rewrite to align with the ministry’s move to a Results-Based Regulatory approach. Learn more about the proposed Act and opportunities to participate in consultation meetings here.

Saskatchewan is adopting a new, results-based model for environmental regulation that will improve protection of the environment, while promoting innovative new tools in environmental management, including the Saskatchewan Environmental Code.

The formal public review period for the Saskatchewan Environmental Code is over. We appreciate the incredible interest and response we’ve received with over 800 individuals attending various meetings and providing feedback. Information on what we’ve heard and how these comments are being addressed will be posted online soon.

Saskatchewan residents may now submit their Big Game Draw applications.  All applications must be submitted by the deadline of midnight May 31^st, 2012, and must be submitted online.

Canadian resident hunters are required to submit an online application for their 2012 white-tailed deer licence.  The online application system will be operational from May 1 until May 31, 2012.

After careful consideration, the ministry has decided not to proceed with regulatory amendments to create the term licence.  Licensing of non-resident waterfowl licences will remain unchanged for the 2012 season.

The Environmental Assessment (EA) Branch’s annual update provides a calendar year review of the EA Branch activities, including policy initiatives, and ongoing and completed environmental impact assessment reviews for 2011.

The Go Green Fund is a financial commitment from the Government of Saskatchewan to assist Saskatchewan's people, communities, non-government organizations and businesses address the province's most important environmental issues. Funding information and ways to Go Green can be found here.

The single most significant environmental challenge facing the globe and citizens of the earth is the changes in our climate that are occurring as a result of greenhouse gas emissions. The Government of Saskatchewan is committed to finding solutions to the environmental challenges facing our province, our country and our planet.

Pink Lake Ecological Reserve will be the Largest Provincially Protected Area in Saskatchewan.

The completion of the Misinipiy Integrated Land Use Plan, developed in partnership by the Ministry of Environment and the Lac La Ronge Indian Band, was celebrated in La Ronge today. Environment Minister Dustin Duncan and Chief Tammy Cook-Searson marked the occasion with a ceremony held in conjunction with Treaty Days in the community. The plan provides a framework to guide land and resource management decisions for more than three million hectares of forest land in northern Saskatchewan.

A recently-completed public review of the draft Saskatchewan Environmental Code shows that support for a results-based approach to environmental regulation is strong. The code, the first of its kind in Canada, will set clear expectations about the environmental results that industry and communities must achieve, while providing greater flexibility around exactly how they get there.

The Ministry of Environment will continue the Boreal Watershed Initiative in 2012, building on the progress made last year. The project looks at identifying regional environmental responses to multiple land uses. The results will help form the scientific basis of measuring the sensitivity of ecosystems to development in the region.

A call to Saskatchewan's Turn In Poachers (TIP) line has resulted in the conviction of three men from Kinistino, Saskatchewan for shooting three moose out of season and leaving one to waste.

A Hudson Bay man has been fined $2,500 in Hudson Bay Provincial Court for burning during a fire ban.

SARCAN Recycling and Saskatchewan's Ministry of Environment is celebrating a 24-year long partnership with the commitment of a new four-year operating contract. The ceremonial contract signing took place today at the Grand Opening of SARCAN's newest depot expansion, located on Rochdale Boulevard in Regina's emerging North West community.

To reduce the risk of Dutch elm disease (DED), pruning of elm trees is prohibited throughout Saskatchewan each year from April 1 until August 31. Fresh cuts from pruning can attract the beetles that spread the disease, increasing the chance of an infection. The annual pruning ban is in effect during the time of year when elm bark beetles are most active.

The Ministry of Environment is initiating a public review of the draft Saskatchewan Environmental Code. This is the next key step in implementing a new results-based approach to environmental regulation.