The approval officer finalizes the technical review document and writes the decision summary and permit.

• The decision summary explains how the application meets or doesn’t meet the requirements of the act; examines and responds to issues raised by referral agencies or statements of concern; explains how the application does or doesn’t comply with the land use provisions in the municipal development plan; addresses technical issues and the reasons for exemptions; and explains what conditions will be attached to the permit, if any, and why.
• The permit states the permitted facilities and livestock species and numbers, the conditions that are attached to the permit, the construction deadline, and the requirement for a post construction inspection. The permit also consolidates any previously-issued permits.
• The technical review document provides the detailed record of the environmental risk assessments and other technical aspects of the review.

The approval officer contacts the applicant to review the permit and any conditions attached to the permit, including the need for a post-construction inspection and timeline for the inspection.

Copies of the decision, permit and technical document are provided to the applicant and the municipality. All of the decision documents are posted on the NRCB website.

The deadline to submit a request for review to the Board of the NRCB to appeal the decision is set out in the approval officer’s decision cover letter.

The NRCB aims to issue decisions within 65 working days after applications are determined to be complete. The number of working days to issue a decision start to be counted as soon as the Part 2 application is determined to be complete and therefore ready to be processed. The reality is that while most decisions are issued sooner, some more complex applications can require more time.

Extensions

From the time an applicant submits their Part 1 application, they have up to six months to submit their completed Part 2 application. Applicants may request extensions of up to a total of six months to submit their completed Part 2 application. Extensions of more than six months, or a combined total of more than one year, require the applicant to resubmit their Part 1 application and begin the process over. For more information, please contact an approval officer at your nearest NRCB field office.

Factors That Affect the Time Required to Issue a Decision

• Public notification and the type of application—authorization applications don’t require public notification. Approval and registration applications do require public notification. They involve an increase in livestock and can be complex applications. Public notification includes a notice period, an opportunity for the public to submit statements of concern, and an opportunity for the operator to respond to those concerns, at the operator’s discretion. These are important steps in the process. The notice period for the public to respond to the application is 20 working days.
• The status of the operation—if a pre-2002 operation has a municipal permit, its status and permitted livestock numbers and facilities are usually clear. If this information is not on the permit, or the operation doesn’t have a previously-issued permit, the NRCB must make a grandfathering determination. This can take time if clear records aren’t available for the operation for the time period around January 1, 2002. Operations that pre-date 2002 should retain any existing livestock and facility records, as well as photos and other documents, to show the working status and livestock capacity of their operation in that time period.
• Consistency with the land use provisions in the municipal development plan—AOPA requires approval officers to deny applications that are not consistent with the land use provisions. Operators can request the Board of the NRCB to review an approval officer's denial of their application that is based on inconsistency with the land use provisions.
• Concerns from neighbours or the local municipality—concerns about an application may require the approval officer to ask for additional information. They can also result in special conditions being attached to a permit, or appeals of the decision if a permit is issued. Operators who have good neighbour relationships often receive more support for their application.
• The completeness of the application—approval officers can’t deem an application complete until all of the information required by AOPA is provided. Applications that clearly address all technical requirements require less time to process and issue a decision.
• Extensions—extensions requested by the applicant can add to the time to issue a decision. Operators may request extensions of up to six months, to a maximum combined total of one year, to submit their completed Part 2 application. If an extension exceeds six months, the applicant must begin the application process over by resubmitting a Part 1 application. If the extensions exceed a combined total of one year, the approval officer notifies the operator. The operator can then request a shorter extension or decide if they would like to re-submit their Part 1 application.