Evidence of meeting #2 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 going.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
As soon as possible, but we don't have a date yet. We're looking at early April.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
We're not going to be able to see her in March, unfortunately. She has a full agenda. We are trying to get her in early April.
Conservative
Ed Fast Conservative Abbotsford, BC
Okay, because some of the work we're doing here, the blue-sky work, would be easier to work through if we knew what the minister's priorities are.
Conservative
Ed Fast Conservative Abbotsford, BC
We certainly know that coming up with a national framework to address climate change is something she's working very hard on. We're very anxious to see what that will look like. I'm assuming we'll see something on March 2, when she meets with the first ministers. The earlier she can appear before the committee I think the better we'll be able to prepare the kinds of studies we want to undertake.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
Absolutely. Thanks.
I was thinking everybody would have eight to ten minutes, and you guys are moving awfully quickly. Don't feel there's a rush on this. We have a whole hour.
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
We'll go around, and then we'll do a back and forth on what we discuss. That sounds perfect.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
Thank you. I just don't want people to feel that they're under pressure to rush.
Conservative
Ed Fast Conservative Abbotsford, BC
In summary, the two areas I think we may want to focus our studies on would be clean technology, environmental technologies, and the state of our migratory bird population and how we continue to sustain it going forward.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
Madam Chair, thanks for the clarification on time. I'm sitting here wondering, do I have 30 seconds, one minute? Where are we?
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
I appreciate that clarification. No, I'm not worried about that.
Anyway, thank you for mentioning water. I have some interest in water. We've developed a lot of rural water systems, and one challenge has always been staffing. In the issues I've come across, how do we develop regional water systems that connect with aboriginal communities when they're involved? It becomes a very dicey situation because of rights for moving pipes on different types of land. There are some issues in developing regional water, which rural municipalities have begun to work at and have been successful at. I think we need to work more on regional water systems.
Then there's the staffing issue that comes along with it. One reason many rural municipalities got into regional water is they didn't have enough trained staff. I think it's one thing to build a lot of water treatment plants, but if we don't have staff able to work them 24/7, we quickly run into problems. One reason rural municipalities moved into regional water systems was the staffing issue. I think it's something we need to look at in the sense of training, whether it's aboriginal, whether it's rural. We need to have that study, asking what does it take to man 24/7, no matter where you are in this country, to maintain safe water? Where are the training programs? How do we facilitate that? I think we should study it in that sense. It has been an issue of finding staff. When you're working with water, if you don't have staff 24/7, it goes sideways on you in a hurry and you get into trouble.
If you're investing in infrastructure for water treatment, it also gets to waste water. We're now beginning to talk about waste water and how to treat it in rural municipalities. It's a very expensive process. How can we deal with rural or aboriginal waste water?
Major cities have done an excellent job, except for stormwater. Whatever's on the streets goes into water waste, and that's a huge issue. We haven't touched that stormwater issue. As we pave more urban areas, we have a lot of stuff going into our water.
That gets to the agricultural sector. The ag sector's very concerned about the water they use. They need clean water for agricultural production in this country, or we'll get into situations where we have health issues that happen in a hurry. Those things are important with water.
That's part of where I come from, the ag sector, urban and rural, in the sense of clean, fresh water, drinkable water, potable water, regional and trained people to do it. If you don't have trained people, we can build everything you want, but without the manpower to run it, it just falls apart.
The last one I bring up is national parks. I grew up beside a national park and I claim it's the best one in Canada. It's Waterton Lakes National Park. If you haven't been there, you should go.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
My grandfather's homestead in 1900 was on the north side of Waterton Park, so I grew up in the park system.
February 16th, 2016 / 11:20 a.m.
Liberal
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
Yes, you should go. It's where the prairies meet the mountains and it's beautiful.
I've been in many of the parks from one end of the country to the other. They're phenomenal places. But the concern I have is with youth and young families. They're not in the parks. Us old guys like to go and stay in four- and five-star hotels and walk out on the trails on the nice days, but as kids, we were there doing a lot of camping. My kids grew up on the trails in the parks, but they're not there anymore. The average age of people in the parks is well into their fifties.
I know there was a report done in 2012. There was a round table. There was a study done of plans to try to change the use of the parks and bring more people in with immigration and new Canadians, but I don't know what has happened.
I love the free park pass for 2017. That's a good one. I'll be down there buying my two-year pass real quick, but my grandkids spend time in the parks because I take them.
I have one family that can't afford to go, one of my daughters and her kids. They can't afford to go to the park. I think we have to look at that. What are the barriers that are keeping Canadians from enjoying what I think is a phenomenal park system in this country and our national sites? That's an area I have a strong interest in.
Is that enough?
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Deb Schulte
Yes, that was great. That's what I was filling in, so that everyone has a perspective on where you lie and what you're passionate about.
