Evidence of meeting #21 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 41st Parliament, 2nd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was need.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
But the problem is that 10% of the people will buy your argument—i.e., downspouts and all that sort of stuff—but 90% won't pay any attention to you. So is there a mandating way that you have to do this?
Project Manager, Toronto and Region Remedial Action Plan, Watershed Management, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority
Well, that is why we need to sit down and start working. Whose role is that? Whose jurisdictional area is that? Is that a bylaw?
Liberal
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
Well, the problem is that everybody is going this way....
Project Manager, Toronto and Region Remedial Action Plan, Watershed Management, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority
That's my point exactly. Where I was trying to get to is that we need to start dealing with it, and dealing with it sooner rather than later.
Liberal
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
In the few seconds I have left, I'll go to Ms. Goucher.
There's a big argument in the legal community about water as a right versus water as a commodity. It seems to me to be a very difficult argument, because the price of potable water costs money, and it costs all of us a serious amount of money. Yet water as a right seems to me to assume that water is a free good.
What does your organization feel about that?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Harold Albrecht
Because that's such a complex question, we'll let all of the panellists have a little bit of time to think about that until the following question.
We're going to move to Madam Freeman for five minutes, please.
Conservative
NDP
NDP
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
Thank you, Chair. I feel like it's not that much of a stretch from “Freeman”.
NDP
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
My question is for Ms. Goucher.
Based on your expertise, could you talk about whether you see climate change as something that the government should be addressing as an issue of concern for the Great Lakes region?
Program Manager, Environmental Defence Canada
Absolutely. You've heard from a number of different witnesses who've talked about climate change and the impacts it will have on the Great Lakes.
There are some really basic things. You're going to have warmer waters and more intense rainfall events, and both are going to lead to an increase in algae growth, especially in Lake Erie. Also, with warmer waters and warmer winters, you're going to have less ice cover, which leads to more evaporation, which in turn leads to lower lake levels. It's more complicated than that, but that's one of the important factors.
In terms of solutions, I would say that we really need to be looking at both mitigation and adaptation. In terms of adaptation, conservation authorities and other partners on the ground have been doing a great job in working toward ways to build more resilient cities and resilient communities.
In terms of a federal role, I think there's a direct federal role for the federal government: to support communities in helping them deal with flooding and droughts, in funding infrastructure upgrades and emergency planning, and in renewing the flood damage reduction program so that we're not building in flood plains.
Also, I think we need to be looking at mainstreaming our water policies with climate change. Every decision we make in terms of water will need to consider what will be happening in terms of climate change.
On top of this, we need to be looking at mitigation. At a provincial and even a municipal level, I think we have a lot of communities working on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. We need a stronger federal commitment in that capacity as well.
NDP
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
Thank you.
I have a question for Mr. McLaughlin as well.
You mentioned that there's an implementation deficit, right? This might go a little bit into what Ms. Goucher was just saying. You mentioned that we need more resources and more collaboration and that the federal government needs to take on a role and work with partners.
You also mentioned reducing “external constraints”. What did you mean by that?
Executive Director, Bay Area Restoration Council
Well, you could think of it as clearing a path. External constraints can mean the things that are beyond our control, but in some cases it can mean, in the federal case, granting and reporting that is onerous on organizations. It could mean making adaptations to a funding program to meet local needs rather than forcing a lot of small organizations through the same funnel with the same criteria and being more open-ended that way.
Does that make sense?
NDP
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
Sure.
I'll bounce back to Ms. Goucher here.
You mentioned empowering collaboration among community groups that are working on the ground as well. How do you see that working with the federal government? What can the federal government do, in your view, to make sure communities are sharing best practices and really working towards the same goal at the same time?
Program Manager, Environmental Defence Canada
It's a big question. At least one part of the answer is that I would like to see a national water strategy that coordinates some of the work that's happening at the local level and directing it in the same direction through some common goals that are established thorough a national water strategy.
NDP
Mylène Freeman NDP Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
And what would you see as the priorities in this water strategy?
Program Manager, Environmental Defence Canada
I might refer you to a great document called “Changing the Flow”, written by a group called the Forum for Leadership on Water in 2007. It outlines specifically seven priority areas and a number of recommendations for where the federal government might want to start thinking about it in terms of developing a water strategy.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Harold Albrecht
Thank you, Madam Freeman.
We'll move now to Mr. Woodworth for five minutes.