Thank you, Madam Chair, for the opportunity to address the committee as it begins its review of Bill C-18. I look forward to the committee's deliberations.
Rouge National Urban Park, set to become one of the world's largest urban protected areas, is special in its protection of natural and cultural heritage. I am pleased to be here today to speak to the steps that are being taken to complete Canada’s first national urban park.
Rouge National Urban Park’s proximity to Canada's largest city, and 20% of our nation's population, provides Parks Canada with an unprecedented opportunity to encourage Canadians to experience nature and to connect with Canada’s cultural heritage.
While it is located in one of the most densely populated areas of North America, Rouge National Urban Park is home to over 1,700 species of plants and animals, as well as 27 species at risk. It also protects some of the largest examples of rare Carolinian forest habitat and some of the largest marshes and wetlands remaining in the city of Toronto.
This site gives evidence of over 10,000 years of first nations presence in this area. It includes some of Canada's oldest known indigenous sites and villages, showing that this was a well-used gathering place and agricultural area going back for millennia.
Parks Canada will make significant use of Rouge National Urban Park to introduce all Canadians, and especially youth and newcomers, to many aspects of our natural and cultural heritage.
Being able to anticipate the formal inclusion of a full and contiguous body of land into Rouge National Urban Park, we've started the move to a full range of Parks Canada programming. Examples include work with the Toronto Zoo to release over 100 threatened baby Blanding’s turtles into the park—prior to this initiative, only seven turtles remained in that area—partnerships with schools from across the GTA in educational events like Frog Watch and the restoration and creation of wetlands, forests and agricultural lands; and work with the park’s farming community and indigenous partners to complete 31 conservation projects.
With the tabling of Bill C-18, Ontario resumed active work to transfer the necessary provincial lands to Parks Canada. Officials from Parks Canada and the Government of Ontario are working diligently to ensure that those provincial lands are transferred in a timely way. I am pleased to be able to report that we now expect to complete all of these transfers in 2017, with key and major elements of these transfers occurring within the first half of the year. This represents a key step in ensuring that a single and contiguous area, stretching from the shores of Lake Ontario to the Oak Ridges Moraine, falls entirely within the boundaries of Rouge National Urban Park and under the same legislative framework.
Although I do not wish to infringe upon the time for questions regarding Bill C-18 and Rouge National Urban Park, which I will be pleased to answer, I would like to touch on two elements that do not relate to Rouge.
The first is the new parks and historic sites account. This account is a tool used in the development of national parks, historic sites, and marine conservation areas. It was established as a non-lapsing, specified purpose account funded from appropriations, the sale of property and immovable assets, and donations from the public.
In order to support the government's commitment to develop and expand Canada's world-class network of protected heritage areas, the proposed amendment would allow the new parks and historic sites account to be used in a broader manner. Currently, the act restricts use of the account to protected places that are not yet fully operational. The proposed amendment would allow the public to donate funds to expand or complete existing natural and cultural heritage areas.
The second amendment to which I would like to bring your attention sets out the changes to the boundary of Wood Buffalo National Park. It removes a small portion of land to facilitate the creation of the Garden River Indian reserve. The Wood Buffalo National Park management plan from 1984 committed to the excision of lands in the vicinity of the Garden River for the future creation of an Indian reserve under the Indian Act. The Canada National Parks Act from 2000 also includes a provision reflecting the future withdrawal of lands in Garden River for the purpose of establishing an Indian reserve. This commitment was made to the Little Red River Cree Nation following a series of negotiations. The amendment being proposed is consistent with Canada's commitment to reconciliation and to building a nation-to-nation relationship with indigenous peoples based on the recognition of rights, respect, co-operation, and partnership.
Madam Chair, these amendments would ultimately improve Parks Canada's ability to protect and celebrate Canada's natural and cultural heritage.
I am pleased to answer your questions. Thank you.