ARCHIVED - RPP 2007-2008
Environment Canada

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Section I: Overview

Minister's Message

As Minister of the Environment, I am pleased to present the 2007–2008 Report on Plans and Priorities for Environment Canada.

Canada's New Government believes that all Canadians deserve to grow up in a world where they have clean air to breathe and clean water to drink, where well-tended land sustains healthy crops and livestock and where large tracts of unspoiled wilderness are sanctuaries that not only preserve our precious flora and fauna, but also provide opportunities for Canadians to connect with the natural world.

We are building a solid and sustainable foundation for the economy by investing in a cleaner, healthier environment that will improve the quality of life of Canadians and help Canada become a leader in the development of environmental technologies. More importantly, we believe that Canadians want their government to take real action on cleaning up the environment.

As part of our New Government's EcoAction Plan, we have proposed legislation and put forward initiatives that take real action on the environmental issues that matter to Canadians:

• Canada's Clean Air Act proposes a comprehensive and integrated approach to tackling air pollution and greenhouse gases by regulating and enforcing emissions targets;
• Canada's new Chemicals Management Plan provides realistic and enforceable measures that will substantially increase the protection of Canadians from dangerous chemicals;
• EcoEnergy Initiatives provide a $2-billion investment to reduce the smog and greenhouse gas emissions that effect the environment and the health of Canadians;
• The new Canada ecoTrust that provides $1.5 billion in support to provincial projects that will result in real reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants;
• The new ecoTransport Strategy invests in initiatives designed to reduce the environmental impacts of transportation and secure Canada's future prosperity and competitiveness by making the transportation system more sustainable, both economically and environmentally;
• The Government plans to regulate the use of renewable fuels in Canada by requiring an annual average renewable content of five percent in gasoline by 2010 and a two percent renewable content in diesel fuel and heating oil by 2012.

Canada's New Government will also regulate short-, medium- and long-term reduction targets for greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants from major industrial sectors as well as the fuel efficiency of motor vehicles, beginning with the 2011 model year.

These measures reflect the Government's commitment to achieve tangible results for Canadians and for the environment. The objectives outlined in this report are building blocks for the future economic and environmental sustainability of Canada. I encourage all parliamentarians and Canadians to read this report.

The Honourable John Baird, P.C., M.P.
Minister of the Environment

Management Representation Statement

I submit for tabling in Parliament, the 2007–2008 Report on Plans and Priorities (RPP) for Environment Canada.

This document has been prepared based on the reporting principles contained in the Guide to the Preparation of Part III of the 2007–2008 Estimates: Reports on Plans and Priorities and Departmental Performance Reports:

• It adheres to the specific reporting requirements outlined in the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat guidance.
• It is based on the Department's strategic outcomes and Program Activity Architecture that were approved by the Treasury Board.
• It presents consistent, comprehensive, balanced and reliable information.
• It provides a basis of accountability for the results achieved with the resources and authorities entrusted to it.
• It reports finances based on approved planned spending numbers from the Treasury Board of Canada
  Secretariat.

Michael Horgan
Deputy Minister of the Environment

2006–2007 to 2007–2008 Program Activity Architecture (PAA) Crosswalk

Environment Canada received Treasury Board approval to modify its PAA for 2007–2008. The table below provides a crosswalk between Environment Canada's 2006–2007 and 2007–2008 Main Estimates.

Totals may differ within and between tables due to the rounding of figures.

Summary Information

Environment Canada's 2007–2008 Main Estimates

Totals may differ within and between tables due to the rounding of figures.

Planned Financial and Human Resources

Resources by Strategic Outcome and Program Activity

Totals may differ within and between tables due to the rounding of figures.

Summary of Departmental Priorities

Totals may differ within and between tables due to the rounding of figures.

Departmental Plans and Priorities

INTRODUCTION

The government is committed to making Canada cleaner, greener and healthier for all Canadians and future generations. Advantage Canada, released with the Government's Economic and Fiscal Update 2006, stated that protecting Canada's environment is central to the Advantage Canada plan and an important part of Canada's ability to achieve long-term sustainable growth. In particular it stated that:

• A healthier and cleaner environment enriches the quality of life in Canada, and attracts and retains the highly skilled and mobile people we need to succeed in the global economy.
• Responsible development of our natural resources ensures future jobs and wealth creation across the country.
• Energy efficiency and environmentally sustainable business practices are increasingly important competitive advantages for our businesses.
• Canada has the potential to be a leader in the rapidly emerging business of environmental technology.

The government is focused on outcomes and achievable results to create a healthier environment now and for future generations. Through strong, clear environmental laws and regulations coupled with market forces, governments can create incentives and conditions in which businesses and people protect our natural environment and respond to environmental challenges with entrepreneurial innovation.

OPERATING ENVIRONMENT

Canada is particularly rich in natural assets, containing within its borders 20 percent of the world's natural areas, 10 percent of the world's forests, and 7 percent of the world's renewable fresh water. The Canadian economy benefits greatly from this wealth. Roughly 22 percent of Canada's gross domestic product (GDP) is derived from resources such as energy products, forests and agriculture. While Canada is blessed with a richness of natural assets, improved management of these resources is a central need.

Canada is not alone in its efforts to seek out effective ways to manage the environment. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimates that environmental impacts on human health cost OECD countries 0.5 percent of GDP, and that 20 percent of the total burden of disease in industrialized countries can be linked to environmental factors.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was established to assess scientific, technical and socio-economic information relevant to the understanding of climate change, its potential impacts, and options for adaptation and mitigation. The IPCC will release its Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) in four volumes over the course of this year. The first volume of the AR4 to be completed was that of Working Group I of the IPCC. Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis assesses the current scientific knowledge of the natural and human drivers of climate change, observed changes in climate, the ability of science to attribute changes to different causes, and projections for future climate change.

The Government has indicated that the IPCC has presented compelling scientific proof that the world's climate has changed because of human action and industrial growth, and it accepts the findings of this first volume of the Fourth Assessment Report.

Health Considerations
There is growing evidence that the state of the environment is significantly affecting human health. Smog, for example, can worsen existing heart and breathing problems and it results in thousands of premature deaths each year. Smog causes hundreds of thousands of severe episodes of asthma and bronchitis annually, particularly among children and the elderly. The Ontario Medical Association estimates that air-related illnesses result in 60,000 emergency visits and 17,000 hospital admissions annually in Ontario alone. Data show that 12 percent of children are estimated to have asthma and it is now a leading cause of school absenteeism. An analysis in eight major Canadian cities concluded that air pollution is a factor in 1 in 12 deaths—a total of 5,900 preventable deaths per year.(1)

Air quality is of increasing concern to Canadians: 60 percent consider air pollution to be the most important environmental issue. Over half believe it will eventually have a negative impact on their health, and a third believe that air pollution is already having adverse impacts.

Some of the same pollutants that cause smog also impair ecosystems and wildlife. Poor air quality, resulting in acid deposition and long-range transport of contaminants, remains one of the most serious threats to biodiversity, forests and freshwater ecosystems. Hazardous air pollutants such as mercury can be deposited into water and pose risks to wildlife and humans through their accumulation up the food chain.

Economic Considerations
The stress on and degradation of our environment carry real economic costs. These are associated with, among other things, a decline in resource and labour productivity and an increased burden on the health care system. In the province of Ontario alone, poor air quality has resulted in an estimated $200 million per year in crop damage, $77 million per year in forest damage, $374 million in lost productivity in 2005, and direct health care costs of $507 million per year.

These types of costs affect all regions and sectors, and together they represent a serious challenge to Canada's long-term prosperity. In the Okanagan Valley and in Alberta's oil sands region, for example, economic opportunities are increasingly constrained by water availability. In the Prairies, Atlantic Canada and elsewhere, invasive pests that harm crops and forests are estimated to cost Canada's economy $7.5 billion each year.(2)

Natural disasters, particularly weather-related ones such as severe thunderstorms, winter storms, freezing rain, floods or drought, also take their toll on the economy. Based on a U.S. study, about 30 percent of Canada's gross domestic product is sensitive to weather and climate. For example, the insurance industry says it expected to pay out more than $400 million in the wake of a storm that hit southern Ontario on August 19, 2005. This storm was the worst in Ontario's history. Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland of British Columbia were hit by one of the most powerful storms in history on December 15, 2006. It resulted in over $100 million in property losses, hurricane-force winds uprooted thousands of trees in Stanley Park and a record quarter of a million customers lost power during the peak of the storm.

Competitiveness in the Global Economy
Within the global economy, citizens, investors and companies are responding to the reality that environmental sustainability is an increasingly important driver of competitiveness.

This fundamental shift in how the environment is valued can be seen in the changing nature of international trade, where countries and industries are increasingly putting in place environmental standards for imported or traded goods and services.

More than ever before, industries are pressured to behave responsibly and to adopt sustainable and ethical practices. For example, the world's top wood buyers responded to campaigns calling on them to stop buying wood from endangered forests, affecting their suppliers across North America and Europe.

Investors, including banks and insurers, monitor corporate earnings related to environmental performance and liability. For example, the Carbon Disclosure Project (which includes 225 institutional investors representing 40 percent of the world's managed assets, or a total of $31.5 trillion), sends a yearly letter to the world's largest 500 companies demanding disclosure of carbon-related financial risks and strategies.

Financial indices such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index have emerged, adding credence to arguments that environmental sustainability is a key component of economic competitiveness in the 21st century. The companies listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index have outperformed the companies on the Dow Jones World Index over the last 10 years.

Departmental Response and Priorities
The Government will adopt an approach to the environment that secures real benefits for Canadians. By developing a better understanding of the interdependencies of the economy, the environment and human health, Environment Canada will be better able to identify priority areas for action. The most pressing environmental challenges are those that have the greatest impact on lives of Canadians.

While Environment Canada will continue to provide a wide range of valuable products and services for Canadians, including environmental research and weather information, focusing the Department's efforts on a number of key priorities will ensure that it achieves real environmental outcomes that benefit Canadians. The Government has identified several key areas for action:

Reducing Air Pollutants and Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The Government of Canada is deeply committed to delivering tangible results that will improve the health of Canadians and their environment. There is a pressing need for federal regulation of air pollution and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions—national requirements that will set mandatory targets for emissions that harm the environment and the health of Canadians.

The proposed Bill C-30, Canada's Clean Air Act (introduced in Parliament on October 19, 2006) was the first step in this new regulatory approach. The proposed Act would strengthen the legislative basis for taking action on reducing air pollution and GHGs based upon three key elements:

• amendments to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 to authorize regulation of indoor and outdoor air pollutants
• amendments to the Motor Vehicle Fuel Consumption Standards Act to set mandatory fuel consumption standards
• amendments to the Energy Efficiency Act to set energy efficiency standards and labelling requirements for a wider range of consumer and commercial products

Following the introduction of Bill C-30, the Government released a Notice of Intent to regulate, among other things, industrial emissions of air pollutants and GHG emissions.

As Environment Canada plays a key role in delivering on the commitments of the Government's proposed Canada's Clean Air Act, the Department will continue to lead consultations with provinces and territories, Aboriginal peoples and other stakeholders on the overall regulatory framework that will guide the development of these industrial sector regulations.

On December 20, 2006, the Government announced that it will enact regulations to increase the renewable content in gasoline as part of efforts to reduce emissions from vehicle use. Regulations will require an annual average renewable content of 5 percent in gasoline by 2010, fulfilling the 2006 Speech from the Throne commitment. The Government also intends to regulate a 2 percent requirement for renewable content in diesel fuel and heating oil by 2012. In addition, $345 million will be provided to assist farmers and rural communities in seizing new market opportunities in the agricultural bioproducts sector. The funding will create two new programs, the Agricultural Bioproducts Innovation Program and the Capital Formation Assistance Program for Renewable Fuels Production, both designed to create new market opportunities for Canada's agricultural producers.

Protecting Canadians from Toxic Substances
The Government of Canada plays a key role in protecting the environment from the risks of chemical substances under a number of laws. Under CEPA 1999, scientists at Health Canada and Environment Canada have completed a review of 23,000 legacy chemical substances (those in commercial use prior to 1994). By completing this categorization exercise before September 14, 2006, the Government of Canada met its legislated deadline under CEPA 1999, and Canada became the first country in the world to have completed such a comprehensive examination of the properties of substances in commercial use prior to 1994.

Categorization has provided the information baseline required to create a shift in how government and industry work together. It also provides a comprehensive way to set science-based environmental and health priorities.

This shift is reflected in the Government's new Chemicals Management Plan, announced on December 8, 2006, which will protect the environment and human health through new regulations under CEPA 1999 and other acts, using initiatives such as a challenge to industry to identify controls and restricted uses, accelerated re-evaluations of some older pesticides, and changes to the way we dispose of pharmaceuticals and personal care products. The Plan, administered jointly by Environment Canada and Health Canada includes:

• regulations and enforcement;
• a challenge to industry to rapidly address concerns relating to 200 high priority substances;
• accelerated re-evaluation of older pesticides;
• mandatory ingredient labelling of cosmetics;
• regulations to address environmental risks posed by pharmaceuticals and personal care products;
• enhanced management of environmental contaminants in food; and
• health monitoring, surveillance and research.

Ensuring Water Quality and Quantity
The effort to ensure a safe and secure water supply in Canada will focus on priority ecosystems such as the Great Lakes, and will also entail work with provinces, territories and municipalities on municipal wastewater.

Supporting Clean Land and Biodiversity
Work towards clean land will begin with steps to encourage the clean-up of contaminated sites and brownfields. Adopting a comprehensive, outcomes-based approach to biodiversity will mean focusing on: healthy and diverse ecosystems, viable populations of species, access to genetic resources and sustainable use of biological resources.

The strong links between these areas mean that progress in one area will contribute to progress in another. For example, measures to reduce smog-causing pollutants can also help address GHG emissions that contribute to climate change, as well as acid rain that damages lakes and rivers and their broader ecosystems.

Promoting Environmental Sustainability
The approach to delivering on these priority initiatives will be guided by the notion that preserving and enhancing environmental quality is a means to achieving sustainable growth, where the health and well-being of Canadians is protected, Canada's natural environment is preserved, Canada's long-term competitiveness is strengthened and Canadians' quality of life is improved. It will focus on achieving results, rewarding leaders and empowering citizens.

The recognition that Canada's natural assets provide goods and services that fuel the economy and help keep Canadians healthy provides a new basis for understanding and appreciating natural assets as "natural capital." The management of natural capital would benefit from the same rigor that is applied to the management of human and produced capital, including developing an understanding of its real value and tracking its status and rate of depletion.

Other aspects of this approach include an emphasis on taking a long-term perspective. Setting long-term environmental objectives will help coordinate efforts to achieve shared goals, provide predictability and planning certainty for industry, provide transparency and accountability for citizens, and will drive investments in technology. Within the federal government, improved sustainability planning and reporting across sustainable development strategies will provide greater coherence, consistency and accountability to Canadians.

Working effectively with partners
A successful approach will see Environment Canada working collaboratively with its partners to organize efforts around common priorities and a long-term outlook. Working with the provinces and territories to achieve shared goals will improve transparency and accountability, and ensure that resources are used most efficiently. Developing single-window approaches to streamline compliance promotion and enforcement, as well as looking to the long term, will help reduce compliance costs for another important partner, industry. Working with industry and others such as Aboriginal peoples, governments and environmental non-governmental organizations will help to set shared priorities and generate recommendations about how to achieve objectives in a way that strengthens long-term competitiveness.

To encourage the highest level of engagement from key stakeholders, targeted approaches will reach out to Canadians to encourage them to play a role in protecting the environment. These approaches will also support communities, and implement regulatory processes that are fair, sustainable and transparent.

Environment Canada's education and engagement activities focus on working with partners to contribute to ecological literacy and engaging Canadians on key issues where their actions can make a difference. For example, the Biosphère located in Montreal is the Department's centre of expertise in education, engagement and experiential learning and it is a gathering place for environmental education and training.

Principles of good governance provide a foundation for advancing the Government's priorities:

• Informed, inclusive, and flexible decision-making to align efforts across jurisdictions;
• Usable, accurate information to enable sound decision-making and accountability;
• Nationally coherent science and technology focusing on priorities and key opportunities;
• Clear incentives to drive performance and enforcement integrated across jurisdictions, focused on outcomes; and
• Meaningful education and engagement to empower Canadians and decision-makers.

Strategic Outcomes and Departmental Plans
Environment Canada has changed its governance to enable the Department to better deliver on its mandate of ensuring the highest quality of environment for Canadians. This change includes implementing an integrated approach that is supported by new results management and governance structures.

Environment Canada's results management and governance structures support the "one-department" approach by better aligning accountabilities and the way the Department's work is organized to support the results that we expect to achieve.

In preparing for the 2007–2008 planning cycle, the Department had reorganized its activities and resources into an updated Program Activity Architecture (PAA). This architecture enables the Department to better manage how its activities interact and contribute to its overarching strategic objectives. As well, it will provide an important new tool to help senior managers redirect the Department's efforts to higher priorities when necessary.

The Program Activity Architecture identifies three strategic outcomes:

1. Canada's natural capital is restored, conserved, and enhanced.
2. Weather and environmental predictions and services reduce risks and contribute to the well-being of Canadians.
3. Canadians and their environment are protected from the effects of pollution and waste.

In the context of the existing PAA, the Department will organize work to achieve progress towards these strategic outcomes and priorities in three main areas:

Ecosystem Sustainability
Goal: To develop and implement innovative strategies, programs, and partnerships to ensure that Canada's natural capital is sustained for present and future generations.

Weather and Environmental Services
Goal: To provide Canadians with world-class meteorological and environmental information, predictions, and services to ensure safety and to support economic activity.

Environmental Protection
Goal: To develop and implement innovative strategies, programs, and partnerships to protect Canadians and their environment from the effects of harmful substances.

The details of the activities to be delivered in support of the outcomes and themes are provided in Section II of the Report on Plans and Priorities.

In addition, recent changes to the organization of government transferred responsibility for the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Initiative from the President of the Treasury Board to the Minister of the Environment. The mission and expected results of the Initiative have not changed. Under this Initiative, Environment Canada manages a grants and contributions program focused on investments in infrastructure and urban renewal. The purpose of the Initiative is to revitalize the Toronto waterfront through investments in both traditional city-building infrastructure, such as local transportation and sewers, and more contemporary urban development, including parks, green spaces, tourism-related facilities and the rebirth of underutilized post-industrial areas. It is expected that investments in these areas will result in social and economic benefits for the Toronto region. Environment Canada's planned spending excludes funding for the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Initiative. This authority will be transferred from the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat through the Supplementary Estimates.

Indicators of Environmental Sustainability
The second annual report, Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators 2006, prepared by Environment Canada, Statistics Canada and Health Canada, was released on November 23, 2006. The report provides updates on three indicators: air quality, greenhouse gas emissions and freshwater quality. The indicators are intended as annual measuring sticks by which governments and the public can track trends in the three areas.

The following (extracted from the report) are the three main components of the Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators (CESI):

• "Air quality: The national air quality indicators in this report focus on human exposure to ground-level ozone and fine particulate matter (PM2.5), both key components of smog. Human exposure to ground-level ozone and PM2.5 is of concern because there are no established thresholds below which these pollutants are safe and do not pose a risk to human health.

• Greenhouse gas emissions: The greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions indicator focuses on total national emissions of GHGs. Emissions rose 27 percent from 1990 to 2004. In 2004, emissions were 35 percent above the target to which Canada committed in December 2002 when it ratified the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. That target was set at 6 percent below the 1990 baseline by the period 2008 to 2012. Thermal-electric power generation, road vehicle use and oil and gas production were the principal sources of the increase in emissions. While total emissions rose, emissions per unit of Gross Domestic Product fell 14 percent from 1990 to 2004. The expansion of the Canadian economy, however, more than offset gains in fuel and emissions efficiency, resulting in a net increase in total emissions. Over the same period, GHG emissions also grew faster than the Canadian population, resulting in a 10 percent rise in emissions per person.

• Freshwater quality: Good-quality fresh water is fundamental to ecosystems, human health and economic performance. Freshwater quality in Canada is under pressure from a range of sources, including agriculture, industrial activity and human settlements.

Linkages to Government-wide Reporting
Canada's Performance 2006: The Government of Canada's Contribution, the annual report to Parliament by the President of the Treasury Board, includes a selection of available indicators that provide a view of change across a certain set of issues. These include indicators related to air quality, biodiversity, climate change, toxic substances in the environment and water use.

To a large extent, Environment Canada's activities are primarily aligned with the Clean and Healthy Environment theme of Canada's Performance. However, in keeping with the broader policy vision of natural environment, health and competitiveness, Environment Canada's activities also contribute significantly to the government-wide themes of economic, social and international affairs.

1. Ontario Medical Association, Illness Costs of Air Pollution: 2005-2026 Health and Economic Damage Estimates (June 2005). Available at http://www.oma.org/Health/smog/report/ICAP2005_Report.pdf.
2. An Invasive Alien Species Strategy for Canada, September 2004. http://www.cbin.ec.gc.ca/issues/ias_invasives.cfm.
3. Canadian Environmental and Sustainability Indicators 2006 http://www.ec.gc.ca/environmentandresources/CESIFull2006_e.cfm.

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