The Continuing Discussion of Continuous Disclosure: The Influence of the CSA’s Recent Guidance on Environmental Reporting

This article was originally published in the March 2011 issue of Environews, the official newsletter of the Ontario Bar Association Environmental Law Section.

Reporting issuers, especially those whose businesses involve material or potentially material environmental matters, should carefully consider CSA Staff Notice 51-333, Environmental Reporting Guidance¹ (the Notice), which the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) published in 2010. As many reporting issuers prepare their annual information forms (AIFs) and other continuous disclosure in 2011, now may be the first time that they are considering the Notice in the context of their disclosure.

The Notice is one of a series of developments in the last few years that have sought to increase the amount and quality of environmental continuous disclosure (CD) in various jurisdictions, including Ontario. For example, in 2008, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) released the results of a review that identified