Environment Committee on May 29th, 2014

[Alan Latourelle]

As with any park anywhere in Canada, things may change over time, but we always have a boundary that we work with in terms of the initial establishment, and that is the boundary.

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

At this point, are you having any other negotiations with any other entity like the airport to acquire any other lands?

[Alan Latourelle]

We have identified the boundary that we were interested in at the outset of this process. We are continuing that work, and until we've completed that process, we are not supposed to be anywhere—

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

So the answer is no, and 58 kilometres is the ceiling right now.

[Alan Latourelle]

That's what we're working on now, yes.

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

I don't know who to direct this to, but since climate change seems to be the issue du jour, can any one of you tell me what meetings you've had with the oil and gas industry in the last six months? What was the state of the negotiations? Is there any chance that we are going to actually have a price per tonne?

[Bob Hamilton]

We meet regularly with members of the industry and environmental groups. I can't really elaborate on what the minister said. We don't have the regulations now. We're working on them. There have been good discussions with the province. It's a complicated area to try to get right, and when they're ready we'll put them out, but there has been a significant amount of work.

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

So meetings but no negotiations.

[Bob Hamilton]

No, but just to be clear, that's not to say there aren't discussions. But there's no negotiation today—

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

There's nothing on the table.

[Bob Hamilton]

If I meet with the CAPP, the issue of GHG regulations comes up—

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

Megan's been on this committee a lot longer than I have, and she keeps asking the same question since I've come on the committee, which is, what's the state of the negotiations? We're going to keep on getting it right. Well, this is three, four, or five years now, and we still don't have it right. These must be incredibly complicated.

[Bob Hamilton]

I look forward to the day when we have them done.

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

So do I, then I won't have to ask the question.

[The Chair, Conservative, Harold Albrecht]

I'm going to give three minutes each to the last two questioners, so we have a bit of time to actually approve our estimates.

Ms. Leslie, for three minutes, and then Mr. Sopuck, for three minutes.

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Thanks.

I have a question about the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. That's Mr. Hallman.

The main estimates indicate that the actual expenditures were $3 million less in 2012-13 than current main estimates due in part, and I quote, “to lower than expected payments under the Participant Funding Program due to transition from the former Canadian Environmental Assessment Act to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, 2012.”

Can you help me out and help me understand what happened there? Is it that there were lower payments, or fewer people participating? What aspects of the 2012 act have caused this difference? Or is it the 2012 act that caused the difference?

[Ron Hallman, President, Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency]

It's not the act per se, but it's the transition in terms of what we were funding, and how. Now we focus participant funding on certain stages of the EA process. It's based on take-up and need when a proponent is moving through those different phases of a project. If it's at the EIS stage, the environmental impact statement stage, if the proponent delivers on time as per their forecast, then the participant funding would go out to first nations or other aboriginal groups to participate at that—

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

I just want to pick up on a word that you used, though. You used the word “transition”. If this is because of the transition, does it mean it will continue like this or is this just a hiccup with the transition?

[Ron Hallman]

There was probably a little bit of a hiccup in terms of the transition at that time because of projects that were already in process or assessments that were in process were transitioned. However, I would like to make clear we do have with the participant funding program, and the EA process in general, an inherent inability to predict when projects will be completed, when a proponent will deliver an EIS, etc. We make commitments with first nations groups for the funding that they will get, but they only get that money when a project reaches the stage for which it's being funded, and we carry those commitments forward into future years.

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Okay, thank you very much.

Is that it?

[The Chair, Conservative, Harold Albrecht]

Thirty seconds....

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Thirty seconds....

Conservation plan, I think it would be Ms. Najm.

Do you have any idea what money's attached to this? Is this new money? How is this being allocated? There was a number thrown out, $252 million. Is it money already awarded to other programs, like fisheries conservation, or is this new money?

[Carol Najm]

It is new money.

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Okay, we didn't know that.

[Carol Najm]

It was announced in budget 2014 and is not yet reflected in these main estimates.