Evidence of meeting #134 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was use.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Executive Director, Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Crops
The level of technology adoption is quite high, but the optimization of the use of the information from that technology is still quite low.
Liberal
Mike Bossio Liberal Hastings—Lennox and Addington, ON
Mr. Chair, you usually say this but I didn't hear it.
I would encourage both of you to send in any reports you have that would expand on what we've discussed today.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John Aldag
We'd like to see briefs of up to 10 pages, if there's anything you have that you feel would add to the conversation and to our report. If it's longer than that, it gets difficult for translation and other purposes, but 10 pages would be great.
Mr. Stetski.
NDP
Wayne Stetski NDP Kootenay—Columbia, BC
Thank you.
I've lived in British Columbia for decades now, and we've had a carbon tax for the last 10 years. In my riding of Kootenay—Columbia, quite frankly, I haven't heard people complaining about the carbon tax. It's more a discussion about how that money should be properly used once its collected.
My interest is in bringing it right down to home. I truly believe people want to do the right thing with domestic waste, certainly in my riding. I would be interested, Mr. Moffatt, and perhaps Ms. Miller, to hear from you, first of all, on the optimum percentage breakdown in GHG between domestic waste and industrial waste—if you don't have it, that's fine—and second, on what we should be doing at home to reduce our waste and what the federal government's role should be in helping us do that.
Prof. Mike Moffatt
I think the biggest thing on the household side is just keeping organic materials out of landfill. Here in Ottawa we have our green bins. We see this as being a useful project that other municipalities could follow. I'm originally from London, Ontario, and we don't have that there. I don't know if there's a role for the federal government to assist municipalities in this, but again, keeping organic materials out of landfill and preventing the methane from escaping does go a long way.
Wayne Stetski NDP Kootenay—Columbia, BC
Basically, I was referring to a report credited to the Smart Prosperity Institute called ”Economic Tools to Reduce Household Waste and Related Greenhouse Gas Emissions”, which addressed incentive-based strategies. If you get a chance after this meeting, Ms. Miller, to talk a bit more about this, that would be great.
Executive Director, Canadian Roundtable for Sustainable Crops
I just want to mention the whole issue of plastics. They don't bale with twine anymore. They bale with plastics and they use plastic bags. I think there is a lot of opportunity between the agriculture sector and the household sector to take a look at innovations in what we do with plastics.
NDP
Prof. Mike Moffatt
I think a lot of it is getting prices right on things like tag programs for garbage and trying to price that externality so people are taking into account the costs of their actions when they take them. That was a lot of that report. I believe it was my colleague Stephanie Cairns who wrote that report. A lot of it was focused on municipalities, with an additional focus on getting prices right and using economic incentives to assist households in making the right decisions.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John Aldag
That concludes this portion of the meeting today.
My thanks to both of you for being here. We had a great discussion.
I'm going to suspend the meeting briefly while we get set up for the next panel with Parks Canada. This is going to be on supplementary estimates (A). We'll be back.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John Aldag
We're ready to get started on the next part of our meeting, which is with our Parks Canada officials. Welcome.
The purpose of having you here today is to go over the supplementary estimates (A) that were directed to Parks Canada. I know you weren't able to join us last week, so it's great to have you here this week.
We've allowed 45 minutes. Actually, it's going to be 40 minutes. We'll have up to 10 minutes for opening comments and then we'll get into a round of questions and answers.
Conservative
Mike Lake Conservative Edmonton—Wetaskiwin, AB
On a point of order, Mr. Chair, again, could I get clarification on what we're doing today? It's not 100% clear to me. When we get to the end of time today, what is the game plan for the supplementary estimates?
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John Aldag
The question that I'll be putting is whether we're willing to consider voting on them today. I know that there is some outstanding business and I'm willing to hear that. Let's have that discussion in the last five minutes of the time.
My preference or my desire is to hear from Parks Canada and then we'll have a discussion as the committee about whether we move to a vote today on the supplementary estimates (A) or if we wait until a later date, given the request that you have.
Liberal
Michael Nadler Acting Chief Executive Officer, Parks Canada Agency
Sure.
Mr. Chair, and committee members, thank you. It's a great privilege to join you here today. It's always a privilege to visit this committee and all of the House committees.
I'm Michael Nadler. I am the interim chief executive officer of Parks Canada. The last time we presented with you, Daniel Watson was sitting in that role.
With me today is Sylvain Michaud, Chief Financial Officer at Parks Canada Agency.
As I mentioned, we're really happy to be with you. It's a privilege for us to present to you.
If you don't mind, I would like to give a brief overview of the Supplementary Estimates (A) 2018-2019 for Parks Canada Agency.
With your permission, as you mentioned, I'd like to begin with a short overview of the Parks Canada Agency supplementary estimates (A) for the fiscal year 2018-19. Then, we'd be pleased to receive any questions committee members might have.
The agency's supplementary estimates (A) submission amounts to an increase to the agency's voted appropriations of $45.5 million. This is approximately 3% of Parks Canada's voted authorities to date for the fiscal year. These supplementary estimates would bring the agency's proposed voted authorities to date to $1.69 billion for the current fiscal year.
This funding is requested for six initiatives.
First, there is $21 million to purchase a unique and important property located within the boundary of Bruce Peninsula National Park. The funds originate with budget 2018 for the protecting Canada's nature, parks and wild spaces initiative. This parcel of land will bring the Bruce Peninsula National Park to nearly 90% completion. It's home to 10 species at risk as well as rare ancient cliff-edge ecosystems. The expansion of Bruce Peninsula National Park is one of the priority initiatives of a nature legacy for Canada.
Second, there is $14.8 million, also from budget 2018, to help us conclude an impact and benefit agreement for Nahanni National Park Reserve and advance indigenous collaborative management and reconciliation initiatives at Tallarutiup Imanga, or Lancaster Sound, the marine conservation area in Nunavut. These efforts are also part of a nature legacy for Canada and support the advancement of conservation of natural and cultural heritage while strengthening Parks Canada's collaborations and relationships with indigenous peoples.
Third, there is $7.5 million from budget 2017 to provide a contribution to the Trans Canada Trail, which is a registered non-profit charitable organization dedicated to enhancing and maintaining Canada's Great Trail, a national network of multi-use recreational trails that links 15,000 communities across the country and spans some 24,000 kilometres. Canada's Great Trail is one of the longest recreational trail systems in the world.
Fourth, there is $1.1 million to advance Parks Canada's involvement in negotiations on rights reconciliation agreements with the Mi'kmaq, Maliseet and Peskotomuhkati first nations in the Atlantic region. These negotiations are for renewal of treaty-related measures on fisheries governance and access and to test new treaty-related measures relating to governance and fisheries access. Also being negotiated in these treaty-related measures are stewardship of natural and cultural resources, harvesting and co-operative management in Parks Canada places in the region.
Fifth, there is $673,000 from Treasury Board to provide for surge capacity to increase support services to employees with pay issues at Parks Canada as a result of the implementation of the Phoenix pay system. This includes assistance in informing employees of the support and information available to them.
Sixth, there is $475,000 in the form of a transfer from the Department of Transport to complete three climate risk assessment reports looking at climate change risks to highway infrastructure in Kootenay National Park, the Trans-Canada Highway in Glacier National Park, and the Eastport causeway highway in Terra Nova National Park.
The transportation assets risk assessment program's aim is to improve the understanding of climate risks to federal transportation infrastructure by providing those responsible for the assets with the information upon which investment decisions and asset management plans can be based in the future.
Thank you for your attention. We'll be glad to answer any question you may have.
Many thanks, Mr. Chair and members, for your attention.
Sylvain and I would be pleased to take your questions at this time.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John Aldag
Thank you so much for those opening comments.
We'll get right into the questions.
First up for six minutes is Mr. Fisher.
Liberal
Darren Fisher Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Thanks, folks. We appreciate your being here.
It's nice to see you again, Michael.
We studied and produced what I think was a really great report on protected areas, and I believe it was unanimous. We asked the government to do everything in its power to protect more land and nature. We had a recommendation that the federal government work directly with municipalities in acquiring land so that we could hit some of our targets. The government delivered. They announced the $1.3 billion, of course, to protect nature, parks and wild spaces in our budget 2018.
Bruce Peninsula National Park was a file that our chair, Mr. Aldag, worked on back when he was a public servant with Parks, so I'm happy to be his voice now that he's chairing, because he's not allowed to ask questions. I'm sure, though, that this would be the one he would ask. I know that he and many Canadians have advocated for the expansion of Bruce Peninsula.
You mentioned in your remarks, Michael, and I was happy to hear that Parks Canada had reached an agreement to acquire a parcel of land in Georgian Bay to expand this park, so $21 million is included in the estimates for this acquisition.
I wonder if you can tell me a little bit about this land parcel, specifically its significance, maybe ecologically. I'm not from that area of the country. I don't have the in-depth knowledge that our chair would have on this, but I do find it fascinating, because we have a park that I consider to be Halifax's Rouge Park in Blue Mountain-Birch Cove. I hope someday I'll be reading a question to a Parks Canada person about a massive acquisition of land in Halifax for our version of this park or Rouge Park.
Acting Chief Executive Officer, Parks Canada Agency
Sure. I could give a bit of context on that acquisition.
Actually, since 1987, when the park was established—now it's a provincial park and before it was a national park—we've made 140 parcel purchases of land to complete the park. This is among the most sizeable....
The lands being acquired are 1,300 hectares, or 3,217 acres. The lands themselves are cliff-edge ecosystem lands, so there is significant waterfront on these lands. There is some recreational trail infrastructure there as well. There's a facility on the lands.
Important to Parks Canada is that these lands protect some unique ecosystems in the region. There is some karst geography there, as well. Sandstone geography is relatively rare in the region, and important for us to protect.
As I mentioned in my remarks, there are 10 species at risk in the area. Habitats for these species are in this 1,300 hectares, including a habitat that's used by the massasauga rattlesnake, which is an important species that we're protecting in that region.
It brings that park to 90% completion. We're still not quite complete with the Bruce Peninsula National Park. Before considering any expansion, we'd want to focus on completing the park.
Liberal
Darren Fisher Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Are you familiar with the park that I mentioned in Halifax?
Liberal
Darren Fisher Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
You can take a city bus to this current park, but proposed massive urban park, which has the support of the people of the municipality of Halifax.
I'll switch for a second, since you're not up on it, but maybe we can chat offline about it sometime.