MINISTER WELCOMES THE 2005 REPORT FROM THE COMMISSIONER OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

29/09/2005 – On behalf of the Government of Canada, Federal Environment Minister Stéphane Dion today welcomed the 2005 Report of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (CESD). “My Cabinet colleagues respect and value the Commissioner’s advice,” Minister Dion said. “We are listening and taking action. In fact, work has already started on some of the recommendations that she has just made.”
Recommendations made by the CESD this year deal mainly with Canada’s Oceans Action Plan, Canada’s National Parks, the safety of drinking water, and federal strategies on sustainable development. The Minister feels that the Government has made significant progress this year in environmental matters. He highlighted the creation of the Ad Hoc Committee of Cabinet on Sustainability and the Environment, the fact that Project Green is now in operation, and the updated Climate Change Plan, “Moving Forward on Climate Change 2005: A Plan for Honouring our Kyoto Commitment”, is being implemented.
Project Green includes action plans to improve energy efficiency and waste management, conserve biodiversity, protect water, clean up contaminated sites, ensure cleaner and healthier air and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Project Green is designed to unite Canada’s economic strategy with its environmental policy.
In responding to the CESD report, the Minister acknowledged that much remains to be done in the specific areas analyzed by the Commissioner. He also made the point that moving forward on Canada's sustainability agenda requires action in other areas. In many of these, much environmental progress has been achieved over the last year. Examples include:
• To preserve marine ecosystems and biodiversity, the government recently passed Bill C-15, an Act to amend the Migratory Birds Convention Act and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. The Act, which came into force in June, substantially enhances Canada’s ability to deal with oil deposited into the marine environment by extending its enforcement regime to the outward edge of the Exclusive Economic Zone.
• To protect the ecological integrity of Canada’s national parks, Budget 2005 allocated $269 million in additional funds. This is good news for the preservation of the natural environment, and good news for the economy. National Parks are not only a magnificent part of Canada’s heritage, they also contribute $1.2 billion to Canada’s GDP - the equivalent of 38,000 full time jobs. The Parks are an essential source of revenue for Canada’s tourist industry, for many communities and for Canada’s aboriginal people.
• The Government of Canada's agenda for water is also substantial. It includes the five-year Water Management Strategy to improve water and wastewater services for First Nation reserve communities; the $28 million that Budget 2005 devoted to the first phase of the government's Oceans Action Plan; and the Canada-wide management strategy for municipal wastewater effluents currently in development.
Recently, the Prime Minister asked the Environment Minister to provide leadership and guidance in the preparation of sustainable development strategies by federal departments and agencies. As part of this new role, the Minister will work with his Cabinet colleagues to ensure greater coherence and integration of sustainable development priorities and activities across the government.
Minister Dion feels that this new mandate strengthens the Government of Canada's commitment to both environmental sustainability and economic competitiveness. “Through the enhanced coordination now taking place within Project Green, our action plans for clean air, water, nature, contaminated sites and climate change will provide enormous benefits for Canadians. They will also be linked by an improved decision-making process – a new framework for competitiveness and environmental sustainability. We are moving forward, and I am confident that future reports will chart the progress we are making.”