Evidence of meeting #4 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 pesticides.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
Yes, it is.
Conservative
Lawrence Toet Conservative Elmwood—Transcona, MB
We have freedom within the context of those agreements to bring forward our strategy as we see fit.
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
Absolutely.
Conservative
Lawrence Toet Conservative Elmwood—Transcona, MB
I want to talk a little bit about strategies adopted by other countries, for example, the United States, New Zealand, and Australia. I'm assuming their strategies are not identical. Could you give us an idea of some of the differences there?
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
Globally, there is quite a bit of commonality with respect to the strategic thrust of what countries are attempting to do, the focus on pathways and prevention. The United States definitely has that as a priority. New Zealand, especially, is perhaps the most active country with respect to closing those pathways of introduction. Of course, Australia has a long history of some fairly invasive species, so it too focuses on the prevention aspect.
All three of those countries have learned the same lesson we've learned in Canada; that is, once these species become established, it's essentially impossible to eradicate them. It is better to stop them from getting here in the first instance. There is actually a fair bit of commonality around what we are doing.
The second comment I would make is that we have met with the invasive species council in the United States. It is a council of federal agencies. We do talk to make sure we are taking a consistent approach. North America needs a North American perimeter, if you will, because species can get into United States ecosystems and move into Canada. Conversely, they can get into Canadian ecosystems and move into the United States. If we are on the same page with respect to risk assessment, priority species, and priority pathways, we can then collectively be more effective.
Conservative
Lawrence Toet Conservative Elmwood—Transcona, MB
Right, so being signatories to the same international agreements relating to invasive species, is there a collaboration between the countries?
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
Yes.
Conservative
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
One example would be the North American Plant Protection Organization, which I believe my colleague mentioned on Tuesday. This organization is working together with respect to the risk assessment. It is important, if we are doing a risk assessment in Canada on a particular species and the United States is looking at the species, that we arrive at a similar or the same conclusion. That North American organization provides an opportunity to arrive at those shared decisions.
I know, although it's off topic for this committee, that on the aquatics front the exact same thing is happening between Canadian and American officials.
Conservative
Lawrence Toet Conservative Elmwood—Transcona, MB
I want to ask you a bit of a hypothetical question at this point. If we modified our approach to invasive species to be more like another country, such as the United States, New Zealand, or Australia, could it still be done in such as way that we would continue to meet our international obligations? I'm assuming we are meeting those international obligations today. Is there room for modification within that?
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
I am going to venture out and say yes. It would depend on the modification, but I actually don't see impediments to adjusting what we do now. We have that flexibility.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Mark Warawa
Okay. Thank you very much.
The last in this round would be Mr. Casey. You have six minutes.
Liberal
Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Members of the panel, I want you to know that I'm filling in for Kirsty Duncan. The questions you would get from Dr. Duncan would be much more thought out, better researched, and better put together than anything I might ask you. I also didn't have the benefit of your presentation. Please bear with me; it will be over in six minutes or less.
I'm from Prince Edward Island, so my question to you is this. Specifically, what invasive alien species are of concern in my little corner of the world?
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
The one that comes to mind right away, and I can't find it in my notes, is a potato cyst or potato nematode, I believe, that actually resulted in.... It was five or six years ago, so I need colleagues from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency who would have been on that particular file.
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
That's it. It was the potato wart, as you would know only too well, and I'm sure you know better than I that it closed export markets to the United States. That's one of the big risks around invasives. It's a good example--or a bad example.
Liberal
Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE
My recollection of that, though, is that it was effectively dealt with. It did take some time.
Are there any others on the horizon at the present time?
Executive Director, Habitat and Ecosystem Conservation, Canadian Wildlife Service, Department of the Environment
I would beg your indulgence in getting back to you with a list of species that could be invasive to P.E.I.
Are you thinking of established ones or potential new ones?
Liberal
Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE
I would say established. You have a strategy to deal with invasive alien species. My question, from the perspective of Prince Edward Island, is what's relevant to me.
We also are very proud of our national park in Prince Edward Island. Is there anything from the park perspective unique to Prince Edward Island that I should know about?
Executive Director, Ecological Integrity Branch, Parks Canada Agency
Similar to my colleague's response, I will have to obtain that information from the park itself and get back to the committee on that.
Liberal
Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE
Okay.
Thank you, gentlemen.
I'll try to do my part to keep you on schedule. Mr. Chairman, that's all I have.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Mark Warawa
Thank you.
That will end this round of witnesses. We are going to suspend for a few minutes to set up the video conferencing and allow you to have some lunch. I want to thank the witnesses for returning today.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Mark Warawa
We'll call the meeting back to order.
Welcome to our guests. We have Mr. Peter MacLeod and Mr. Dennis Prouse. They are with CropLife.
By video conference, we have Mr. Christopher Majka.
Did I pronounce that correctly?
Christopher Majka Research Associate, Nova Scotia Museum, As an Individual
It's pronounced “mica”, just like the mineral.