Evidence of meeting #17 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 million.
A video is available from Parliament.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Okay, but first I will ask the Minister to lift up his mic.
Go ahead, Ms. Pauzé.
Bloc
Monique Pauzé Bloc Repentigny, QC
I don't know if that solved the problem, but the interpreter was saying that she could not hear the Minister well.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Maybe that was the reason. I advise everyone to speak more slowly, for the benefit of the interpreters.
Thank you, Ms. Pauzé.
Liberal
Lloyd Longfield Liberal Guelph, ON
Thank you for pointing out the investments in riparian zones that filter water coming from fields and perform carbon sink action, some things that farmers have been doing thanks to the University of Guelph's developments.
On vote 1c, Madam Saks also mentioned the climate action incentive fund of $9,180,037. Could you comment on the in-and-out nature of this? This afternoon, we had an announcement that St. James Catholic High School in Guelph was getting $230,000 to replace their heating and ventilation system to become even more energy efficient. With investments in schools, as you mentioned, there's 10% going to schools and businesses, and 90% going to Canadians. What's the in-and-out nature of that? We see the expenses in the supplementary estimates, but what about revenue that's collected and then returned?
Liberal
Jonathan Wilkinson Liberal North Vancouver, BC
That's a good question.
Certainly we put a price on pollution because our view is that it should not be free to pollute anywhere in this country. In the provinces that have chosen not to put their own price on pollution, our plan provides a rebate to Canadians every year at tax time through the climate action incentive and funds good projects that are helping Canadian businesses and schools, as you say, to cut pollution and energy costs.
As was noted in last year's greenhouse gas supplementary pricing pollution report, any difference between the rebate and the actual return is carried forward the following year, and we are obligated by law to return all of the proceeds to the jurisdiction from which they come. Certainly, that is important. We have also said in the strengthened climate plan that we will start to return the incentives to families on a quarterly basis rather than on an annual basis.
Liberal
Liberal
Lloyd Longfield Liberal Guelph, ON
—so that they can cover their expenses.
Thank you, Minister.
I have one final question. A few years back, I was able to go to Eureka to look at an Environment Canada weather station that also has a research facility built into it, on Ellesmere Island. It's headed by a Guelph scientist, Pierre Fogal, who is doing his research through the University of Toronto. I see in the funding “to safeguard the continuous operation of the Dr. Neil Trivett Global Atmosphere Watch Observatory in Alert”, just a little north of Ellesmere Island, $750,000 in vote 5c.
Could you comment on the importance of Arctic research with regard to climate change?
Liberal
Jonathan Wilkinson Liberal North Vancouver, BC
Sure. This observatory, which operates continuously in Alert, plays a critical role in our understanding of the impacts of climate change. The observatory is the northernmost research facility of its kind and is globally important in terms of long-term measurement of greenhouse gases, short-lived climate pollutants, atmospheric mercury, persistent organic pollutants and ozone. We know that Canada is warming at a rate twice that of the global average, and the northern communities are bearing the brunt of that change and the impacts on biodiversity. A warmer—
Liberal
Liberal
Bloc
Monique Pauzé Bloc Repentigny, QC
Mr. Minister, in your response to my NDP colleague, Ms. Collins, you said that some organizations supported your position and thought that the government had excellent environmental policies. Seriously, I would like to know which organizations you are referring to. Just this past Monday we welcomed Corinne Le Quéré from the World Meteorological Organization, who is also on France's High Council on Climate. She told us that Canada is the only G7 nation where greenhouse gas emissions were not declining, and she cited the United Kingdom as an example. So we have people telling us the exact opposite.
Which organizations support you?
Liberal
Jonathan Wilkinson Liberal North Vancouver, BC
If you listened when we announced our climate plan in December 2020, you know that a lot of environmental organizations said it was a very good, comprehensive plan. Environmental groups, businesses, academics and almost everyone in the country except the premiers of Ontario and Saskatchewan said it was a step forward for Canada.
Bloc
Monique Pauzé Bloc Repentigny, QC
All right. However, the plan has not yet been set in motion.
I will move on to another question.
At the beginning of this meeting, Mr. McLean addressed the issue of tree planting. It takes 15 to 35 months to produce seedlings, depending on the species. So you have to wonder if any could be planted this summer. Then, we need to think about the future, and that certain tree species are required to fight climate change.
How is this all planned out?
Liberal
Jonathan Wilkinson Liberal North Vancouver, BC
You are right, Ms. Pauzé. We need to choose the trees based on the soil we want to plant them in. Of course, we have to have the trees too and they need time to grow.
We have a proposal for businesses. They can obtain a few trees we can plant this year. A request for information on that specifically is currently under way. The deadline is March 25. I can't give you a figure right now, but I will be able to at the end of the month.
Liberal
NDP
Laurel Collins NDP Victoria, BC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Minister, I'm going to follow up on Mr. Jeneroux's questions, but maybe from a different angle.
I read a recent National Observer article about the industry's opposition to the plastic manufacturing items being listed in CEPA as CEPA toxic. This is despite there being a very strong and legitimate basis for that listing. The article talks about how, to a layperson, the word “toxic” is associated with something poisonous or harmful, but under CEPA it has a bit of a broader definition. A substance can be legally designated as toxic if it harms the environment, biodiversity and health, or a combination of those things.
I'm acutely aware that your government has made some promises around banning harmful single-use plastics by the end of the year. Can you provide an update on the timeline for the listing, the ban and other essential regulations to address Canada's plastics crisis?
Liberal
Jonathan Wilkinson Liberal North Vancouver, BC
Thank you for the comment.
Yes, you have it right in terms of the different ways in which the word is used. To a certain extent it's unfortunate because we end up getting into this debate, which is a debate about different things.
We continue to work very hard on the overall plastic plan. In fact, I met with my provincial and territorial counterparts just a few weeks ago to talk about an update with respect to the work on plastics. As you will appreciate, many of the tools are provincial, but plastic regulation is going to have to be consistent across the country for things like extended producer responsibility and those kinds of things, so that industry can actually ensure that they're doing things that have a big enough scale in terms of market.
We continue to focus on that. The status of that will be a key focus of the meeting of the environment ministers this summer. We certainly are working very hard to make as much progress as we can over the course of the coming months.
NDP
Laurel Collins NDP Victoria, BC
Can I just get a confirmation that you are committed to the listing of this as toxic under CEPA? Do you have an update on timelines or timing?
Liberal
Jonathan Wilkinson Liberal North Vancouver, BC
We went through the scientific process. That's the first step. We've gone through a public consultation process. I have not had all of that come back to me yet. Then I have to make a determination, but we certainly saw in the science that plastics are harmful in the environment. That would meet the bar for listing in the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.