Evidence of meeting #12 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was study.
A video is available from Parliament.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Good afternoon, everyone.
I believe we have a new member. Ms. McLeod is joining us.
Welcome to our committee, which is very collegial and a pleasant place to spend time. Welcome aboard.
We will be ending at 7:30 at the latest because of resource constraints, but that should give us enough time.
The first item of business would be to adopt the report of the steering committee. You've had a chance to read it, I'm sure. I don't know if there are any questions.
Mr. Baker.
Liberal
Yvan Baker Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
Chair, I want to say something in regard to the witness list. I don't know if this is the time for that or if that's a separate agenda item.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Well, the witness list is part of the report, I believe. Is it not, Madam Clerk?
Liberal
Yvan Baker Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
Thank you.
I had a chance to have a look at the list of witnesses. I think it's an excellent list. I really think it covers the many different categories of people we need to hear from to perform the study.
I want to propose an additional witness for consideration. If we look at what we're trying to study here, the motion says that we're looking into the government's recent announcement regarding a ban on single-use plastics. The study includes but is not limited to impacts on small business in the plastic production industry, including the impact on jobs and the impacts on human health and the environment.
I think one of the things that would be useful to learn about to achieve this is how the bill would impact the management of plastics and other waste. I say this because the management of waste and plastics will impact the plastic production industry, will impact jobs, will impact human health and it will have other environmental impacts, etc.
Currently, in my view, we don't have adequate expertise or a lot of expertise from the waste processing sector, and I just thought that would be helpful, so I want to recommend someone, Chair, for that, if I may.
Liberal
Yvan Baker Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
The person I want to recommend is Norman Lee. He is the director of waste management at the Region of Peel. He's responsible for managing about 500,000 tonnes of waste per year in Peel.
For those of you who aren't from this part of the country, Peel encompasses Brampton, Mississauga and Caledon. It's about 1.5 million residents. He's also a director and past chair of the Ontario Waste Management Association board of directors, and has 30 years of experience planning, building and operating waste management and diversion facilities. He spent the first 11 years of his career in the private sector as a consulting engineer specializing in the design, approval and construction of waste management facilities. Norm then switched to the public sector and spent 10 years at the City of Toronto before becoming the director of waste management in Peel in 2009. He's a member of many professional industry associations.
I think he can provide objective insight but also inform our study and help us to clarify what we hear from other witnesses in the early meetings.
I want to offer that to enhance the study.
Liberal
Liberal
Conservative
Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC
Before decisions are made, I'd like to make an intervention in here.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Absolutely, but I just have a question for the analysts.
I know that the analysts use a kind of ranking to put together these panels. They have a first ranking, and then.... Did this gentleman, Mr. Baker, rank fourth or fifth? Are the analysts aware of this suggested witness?
Liberal
Yvan Baker Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON
I don't know, and if I made the mistake at my end, I'm sorry—
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
No, sorry. I'm asking the analysts. I don't know which of the analysts—
Conservative
Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC
Mr. Chair, could I just intercede briefly before they answer that?
Conservative
Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC
I do apologize, Mr. Chair, but you know this is one of the reasons why usually when we consider witnesses, we do that in camera. We all may have very reputable people, but it's up to individual parties to kind of rank their priorities. We don't want to make it sound as though someone, as thoughtful as this gentleman is, was ranked a lower priority by anyone.
I think if we start getting into who is a priority and whatnot—and to be fair to all of those who participated, we were given a timeline for submitting witnesses. Again, this is on the committee's report, so if Mr. Baker wants to amend and put that forward, I would just say it would be a bit outside of the process that we've established.
Again, it's out of concern for reputations. We don't want to be saying who's high priority or who's low priority.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Yes. I didn't mean it in the pejorative sense. I just meant that it is a system they use.
Anyway, what I'll do is bring it up with the analysts off-line.
If you've submitted the name, then the name is in the pool that is being considered, so we'll take note that you believe this individual would be a good witness.
Mr. Albas, do you have your hand up for something else?
Conservative
Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC
On that, I was going to say that if there are going to be any changes, there should be a motion that's brought forward. In fact, I would just suggest, while I have the floor, that I move that we receive the report. Then, if someone wants to make an amendment to it, Mr. Chair, you can go to that, just so we're in order and we can move on from that.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
The only thing I would say to that is that in practical reality—for example, when we're setting up the panels for the CEPA study—there are last-minute changes that need to be made or else we can't have a meeting. If I have to go back every time we change a witness, we're never going to get anywhere.
What I would ask is that you just give me some leeway, and I'll try to do my best. As I say, sometimes we have to reorder witnesses at the last minute, and if we have to go back to the committee for a motion each time we do that—
Conservative
Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC
No, Mr. Chair, I'm not asking for that at all. What I'm simply suggesting, though, is that we need to start with the basis of what's there and—