Environment Committee on May 8th, 2012
Evidence of meeting #34 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was sites.
A recording is available from Parliament.
On the agenda
MPs speaking
Also speaking
- Scott Vaughan Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
- Kimberley Leach Principal, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
- Bruce Sloan Principal, Sustainable Development Strategies, Audits and Studies, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
- Trevor Shaw Principal, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
3:50 p.m.
Bruce Sloan Principal, Sustainable Development Strategies, Audits and Studies, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
Thank you.
There's really no consistent closure mechanism to reporting mechanisms across the departments. So trying to get consistency across all departments is important, because it lets you know whether the various departments are assessing the risks in a consistent manner to facilitate roll-up.
I think the other thing is performance reporting on what has been accomplished—the reasons for closure.
3:50 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Mark Warawa
Thank you so much. Your time has expired.
Mr. Woodworth, you have seven minutes.
May 8th, 2012 / 3:50 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Kitchener Centre, ON
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, and my thanks to the witnesses.
I'd like to go back over some ground that Ms. Ambler broke to make sure I understood things correctly.
Sorry, it wasn't Ms. Ambler, it was Ms. Rempel. I am a little under the weather. I'm sure Ms. Rempel and Ms. Ambler were both complimented by that confusion.
In particular, I wasn't sure if I heard correctly whether the inventory data that was released in April of this year was or was not reflected in your report.
3:50 p.m.
Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
It was not.
3:50 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Kitchener Centre, ON
All right
Did I hear correctly that the inventory data that was not reflected in your report dealt with 2010 emissions?
3:50 p.m.
Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
That's correct. There's a lag between the year and when Environment Canada compiles all the data and releases it. It would be similar to Stats Canada and the Bank of Canada. There's a lag between when it happens and when—
3:50 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Kitchener Centre, ON
Sure. I don't mean that in any critical sense on your part. You have to work with the data you're given. I just want to make sure everyone understands where the data comes from.
I understand that the most recent inventory data included in your report would be from 2009. Is that correct?
3:50 p.m.
Principal, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
On the National Inventory Report information, that's correct.
3:50 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Kitchener Centre, ON
That would explain why on page 51, when I look at the chart that's exhibit 2.7, the last actual emissions mentioned are the 2009 emissions.
Then the July 2011 trends data is reflected in your report.
3:50 p.m.
Principal, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
That's correct.
3:50 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Kitchener Centre, ON
I'm going to suppose that the July 2011 trends data must be based on emissions data from some earlier period. Is that a correct supposition?
3:50 p.m.
Principal, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
Yes. We used the most recently available information from Environment Canada on Canada's emission trends. The modelling for that—I'm just reading here from the report itself —was completed in December 2010.
3:55 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Kitchener Centre, ON
So the modelling for the July 2011 trends report was completed in December 2010 and presumably reflects data from no later than December of 2010, and possibly earlier. Is that correct?
3:55 p.m.
Principal, Office of the Auditor General of Canada
I'd have to look through the report to be sure of that detail. I'm just reading the information here, and the modelling was completed in December 2010.
3:55 p.m.
Conservative
Stephen Woodworth Kitchener Centre, ON
My understanding is that when Environment Canada completes that trend report they only take into account the measures that have in fact been implemented up to the date of the report. Is that a correct assumption?