Evidence of meeting #113 for Natural Resources in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was trees.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:05 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal James Maloney
I'm going to ask you to stop for one second. There was an interruption on our end.
Please start over again. We're having some audio difficulties, apparently.
12:05 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
The city of Toronto encompasses an area of 630 square kilometres with a population of 2.8 million. Urban forestry is a branch within the division of parks, forestry and recreation, responsible for providing services of maintenance, planting and protection of the urban forest. These services are delivered to areas including parks and natural open spaces as well as streetscapes.
Urban forestry's policy and planning section provides support to the division in environmental policy development, asset and work management administration, council reporting and other services. Approximately 350 staff work in the Toronto urban forestry division.
Forest health care is a service that is provided as part of urban forest maintenance. Forest health care practitioners respond to queries from residents about city tree health concerns, many of which are aesthetic in nature, but some of which are real health issues.
The forest health care group at the city also proactively develops and manages programs for pest management, from pest surveillance to treatment, monitoring and communication. This small team of seven people has developed tools that are required for pest management. They have a history of working with partners such as the Canadian Forest Service, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, the Ministry of Natural Resources, other municipal groups, university researchers and other agencies. These partnerships have been essential in supporting the management of forest pests in Toronto.
Native insects and diseases play an essential ecological role in Canada's forests. However, native and non-native insects and diseases can become significant pests when infestations are so severe they destroy or damage large areas of forest or infest Canadian forest products that are bound for export. Mountain pine beetle, spruce budworm, European gypsy moth and Dutch elm disease are examples of well-known forest pests that have led to significant economic impacts on Canadian forests.
The City of Toronto currently invests approximately $2.5 million annually in forest pest—insect and disease—management programs as part of an overall forest management budget of $68.7 million. Between the years of 2010 and 2018 the City of Toronto invested over $70 million to manage the emerald ash borer problem.
In addition to the ongoing pest management programs and extension services, we perform surveillance for pests that represent a future threat including the hemlock woolly adelgid, sudden oak death, oak wilt, thousand cankers disease and butternut canker. The population of trees associated with these pests in Toronto is small, an estimated 2.5% of the total tree population in Toronto, but the impact associated with the loss of native tree species diversity and the associated flora and fauna communities is of great concern.
There is a social connection to trees that elicits emotions that go far beyond what industry, biologists and real estate agents might see in the value of a tree. The black oaks in High Park, the red oaks in Toronto's neighbourhoods such as Baby Point, the Beaches and Moore Park, and the hemlocks of Toronto's ravines all have a value that is not easily described in environmental or financial terms.
The rally to save the oak tree on Coral Gable Drive in North York is testament to the emotional connection that some residents develop with trees. Urbanites as well as rural landowners are significant stakeholders of Canada's forests, and it's important that we support forest health programs, particularly surveillance and education in all communities, especially where local taxes are insufficient to provide these services.
The federal government through the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has a vital role in the establishment of eradication protocols. Toronto has worked closely with CFIA through the 14 years of Asian long-horned beetle eradication as well as in the early days of emerald ash borer infestation. Toronto participated actively in surveys, and we have also supported research activities to develop early detection tools and to enhance the knowledge base of host dynamics.
When the Asian long-horned beetle was first introduced to Toronto, very little was known about which host species the beetle would infest and successfully breed in. As a result, many trees were cut unnecessarily because they were considered potential pest hosts. Now after years of collaborative research, we have a much better understanding not only of the host species, but also of the dispersal patterns and the best way to complete early detection surveys, as well as how to manage an effective survey team over a long period of time.
Toronto supported this research by providing labour and equipment to collect samples and providing space for a rearing facility. The partnership was mutually beneficial in supporting the evolution of the pest eradication program, and will result in a more effective, less costly program of eradication if and when a new infestation is discovered in Canada.
A scientist expert with the Canadian forestry service led a team of science and subject matter experts from Natural Resources Canada, CFIA, MNR, the U.S., universities, as well as municipalities and conservation authorities to guide the eradication program. It proved to be very effective model to guide the eradication of Asian long-horned beetle.
While the role of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency in defining eradication protocols is clear, the transition from eradication to pest management is not. In the case of the emerald ash borer, there was a lack of support for management activities on the level of guidance as well as funding. There's a clear need for more effective delivery of training and management plans to address a range of pests, plans that can be applied to all forms of land type, including Crown land, provincial or national park and conservation land, municipally owned land and private land. Currently, the mandate for defining such management falls to the landowner. In some cases, landowners have qualified staff to assist in developing site-specific plans, but in other cases this expertise is lacking. The management is left to service providers, such as arborists and forest service companies hired on contract, or to “do it yourself” property owners.
There is a case to be made that government could provide more guidance for management activities to direct pruning, tree removal or replacement, as well as disposal. As an example, seasonal pruning restrictions would help reduce the spread of oak wilt, yet documents from the government agencies are primarily focused on identification. Ongoing training opportunities should be available and delivered regionally in workshops or via web-based services.
The Canadian forestry service has provided essential support for the development of pest control products, including TreeAzin and Bacillus thuringiensis, both of which are used by the City of Toronto [Technical difficulty—Editor] and gypsy moth. It's important that the Canadian forestry service continue to support the development of such products.
Forest pests do not recognize municipal, provincial or international boundaries. Federal government scientists are well positioned to coordinate research for pests that are considered a high risk to Canadian forests. The development of science teams is critical in the early stages of pest management to make recommendations for effective prevention and early eradication programs. These teams can also inform management plans that will take effect if eradication is not successful or within regulated areas that are very large.
The science committee that was formed to manage ALHB was extremely effective in elevating the knowledge through support for targeted research and collaborative management. This model is one that should be repeated in advance of new pest introductions. The federal and provincial government experts could lead a group of subject matter experts to collaborate on developing pest management and guiding required research programs.
The importance of collaboration cannot be overstated. Municipalities are not well positioned to lead such collaborative groups, although we do contribute practical knowledge, provide arboricultural services to facilitate research, and assist in programs such as surveillance or engaging the public in educational initiatives. It's critical that different levels of government work together.
With regard to changing weather, our future weather is projected to change. A Toronto report called “Toronto's Future Weather and Climate Driver Study” identified estimated change from the period 2000 to 2009, 40 years into the future. They identified things like maximum precipitation increase in one day from 66 millimetres to 166 millimetres; maximum daily temperature increases from 33°C to 44°C; number of days with temperatures less than -10°C changing from 25 to zero days; and number of days with temperatures greater than 24°C changing from 10 days to 180 days, meaning that significantly more air conditioning will be required.
While it's recognized that the impact of these changes will be significant to Toronto residents, the impact on forest health is largely unknown. As an example, the population of gypsy moth has been controlled naturally in the past, when extreme cold temperatures in the winter months contributed to winter mortality of egg masses. In future, the temperatures will not be cold enough to cause mortality, and forest health practitioners will rely on biological controls or continued spray programs to control the pest.
It's important to support research into predicting, for example, pest movement, expanded host ranges, and changes in pest and host dynamics. In times when there is political pressure for reduced government regulation, it is important that the federal government retain programs for research. In a time of significant ecological and climate change, we need to develop tools for the management of new pests. It's also important to support the approval of new technologies, such as the use of drones to apply ultra-low volume spray.
I recently read in the Globe and Mail an article that referred to our inability to perceive incremental change as one of humanity's greatest weaknesses. Biologists identify that each generation grows accustomed to a diminished ecosystem. Our concept of biological abundance is constantly being downgraded without anyone noticing. My generation has never seen American chestnut. My kids will probably not remember Canada's ash trees, and they will only remember the oaks and squirrels that once dominated their outdoor universe.
If we don't remember what's being lost, such as camping under the hemlocks in Algonquin Park, will we recognize the importance of protecting the landscape after the hemlocks die, to ensure that the site is able to recover to a future forest? History tells us that most people will not, unless we help them to see the changes over time. It's only through effective collaboration and support for environmental education that we can help Canadians to appreciate the remarkably diverse elements of the natural landscapes that exist in Canada.
12:20 p.m.
Liberal
12:20 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
I've listed a number of recommendations. I hope you have received the outline of the presentation in advance. I can list those recommendations again if you don't have that.
12:20 p.m.
Liberal
12:20 p.m.
Patrick Tanguy Assistant Deputy Minister, Emergency Management and Programs, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Thank you very much. I'm very pleased to be here.
When it comes to emergency management, the federal government is responsible at the national level and on lands and properties under federal responsibility. Provincial and territorial governments exercise responsibility for emergency management within their respective jurisdictions, except where legislation allows for direct federal interventions or for shared responsibility. You can think about rail incidents, for instance.
The Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness is responsible for providing leadership relating to emergency management in Canada and ensuring a coordinated response to events affecting the national interest, including natural and human-induced disasters, as well as terrorism. Through the Government Operations Centre and our regional offices, we work closely with other federal departments and agencies, as well as provincial and territorial, emergency management organizations and other key partners, to ensure that impacts to people, property and infrastructure are minimized as much as possible.
The government operations centre is an interdepartmental organization that supports the minister in his leadership and coordination role in emergency measures. The GOC supports the coordination of federal responses to events affecting the national interest, including major forest fires. During a major forest fire, the GOC coordinates responses to the disaster in close collaboration with NGOs and other federal departments.
During the immediate response phase of an emergency event like a major forest fire, communities leverage existing service delivery capabilities within first nations, municipalities, provinces, territories and third party emergency management service providers such as the Canadian Red Cross.
Each year the government operations centre, in consultation with the provinces and territories, conducts a preliminary risk assessment of general trends expected for the upcoming fire season. This assessment is based on potential fire risks that are identified through Natural Resources Canada's modelling capabilities.
The Government Operations Centre engages key federal and provincial stakeholders in preparation for the upcoming season and prepares an annual Wildland Urban Interface Fire Season Contingency plan. In addition to the contingency plan, the Government Operations Centre establishes an event team to coordinate specific planning for the season, ensures arrangements are in place for access to earth observation resources, including satellite imagery, prepares for the provision of geomatics and imagery services that may be requested by federal, provincial and territorial partners and readies the government for potential requests for assistance from provinces, territories, and Indigenous Services Canada.
The Government Operations Centre maintains continuous communication throughout the fire season and, in the case of major wildfire events, shares situational awareness through timely and accurate reporting. The Government Operations Centre monitors these events on a 24/7 basis and shares a daily brief with partners to inform them of events of interest.
During the wildfire season, Natural Resources Canada and the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre coordinate the distribution of firefighting resources across the nation. CIFFC—and you heard about it—will also request international resources when needed. Indigenous Services Canada has a lead role in working with the provinces and territories regarding emergency management to ensure first nations communities receive necessary response and recovery services. During a wildfire event, Public Safety Canada works diligently to coordinate a response to the disaster in close collaboration with a wide range of partners, including the Canadian Red Cross.
Moving to the emergency management strategy, building on Minister Goodale's mandate commitment to work with provinces and territories, indigenous peoples and municipalities to develop a comprehensive action plan that allows Canada to better predict, prepare for and respond to weather-related emergencies and natural disasters, Public Safety Canada is working with partners to build a strategy that ensures all Canadians have access to the tools and resources they need before, during and after a disaster strikes, including wildland fires. After consultations with a wide range of stakeholders, we identified five strategic objectives for the emergency management strategy.
One is to enhance whole-of-society collaborations and governance to strengthen resilience. Another objective is to improve understanding and awareness of disaster risks to enable risk-informed decision-making in all sectors of society. Another is to increase whole-of-society disaster prevention and mitigation activities. Then there's enhancing preparedness activities to allow for better response capacity and coordination and foster the development of new capabilities. Finally, there's the objective to leverage lessons learned and best practices to enhance resilience, including building back better, or like my minister would say, building back better faster, to minimize the impact of future disasters.
Public Safety Canada, along with provinces and territories and in partnership with indigenous communities, will continue the work to advance this national vision for emergency management. In May, the federal, provincial and territorial Ministers Responsible for Emergency Management agreed that officials would accelerate the remaining consultations to ensure it reflects the views of their respective stakeholders so that ministers are in a position to approve and release the strategy in early 2019.
In May 2017, the ministers also agreed to work collaboratively with indigenous representatives and communities to develop an inventory of emergency management capability in indigenous communities across Canada.
Public Safety Canada, in partnership with the Assembly of First Nations and other national indigenous representatives, are co-developing the inventory of emergency management capabilities. The inventory will enable risk-informed decision-making by improving our understanding of existing emergency management challenges and resources in indigenous communities. Obviously, we're working very closely with Indigenous Services Canada.
More specifically, FPT ministers and indigenous leaders are committed to developing an inventory of risks facing indigenous communities, and to identifying emergency plans and capacities to address these risks. This approach, based on increased engagement, has been undertaken with the key principles of co-developing solutions—and I'm stressing co-developing solutions with indigenous leadership—that are sustainable, inclusive and culturally sensitive. The indigenous inventory project has brought many partners together to develop a methodology that will allow indigenous communities an opportunity to provide their perspectives on emergency management challenges that impact their communities, as well as community-led best practices that are considered success stories.
The project is in a piloting phase, and we'll be reaching out to select indigenous communities across Canada over the fall. We've been really busy this summer. We've met with about a dozen of them. The outcomes of the pilots will inform the broader pan-Canadian rollout in early 2019.
Despite improvements in federal response coordination, there is still significant modernization required in a broader emergency management system, in order to build resilience and enhance readiness in a climate-impacted future. As with most emergencies, while fires are managed at the local and provincial levels, when an emergency exceeds a province's capacity to respond, it may request federal assistance through the government operations centre, which coordinates the federal response to the events affecting national interests. Public Safety regional offices and the GOC works with the provinces to ensure that their needs are met, and that the safety and security of Canadians are safeguarded.
In 2017-18, first nations communities requested federal assistance, which was provided by the Canadian Armed Forces. In 2017, 25 first nations communities were evacuated, displacing over 1,900 people. In 2018 the same number of communities were evacuated, with greater numbers of evacuees, over 2,200. Federal assistance to the provinces is most visible when the Canadian Armed Forces assist. They have been on the ground, with soldiers helping with sandbagging and mop-up operations.
Other contributions from the federal government include imaging and geomatics services such as the national aerial surveillance program, or the provision of emergency supplies from the national emergency stockpile system. At the end of every wildfire season, the government operations centre leads a lessons-learned exercise with its partners to identify best practices and areas for improvement. The data collected from this process informs future planning processes.
Mr. Chair, I'm going to stop here.
12:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal James Maloney
Perfect. Thank you very much.
Mr. Hehr, you're going to start us off.
12:30 p.m.
Calgary Centre, Lib.
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I listened intently to the excellent presentations. I was struck by a general sense that the federal government is absent the superstructure, shall we say, of pest management in this day and age. Yes, when an emergency hits, sure enough we can go to the Minister of Public Safety and ask for intervention. We have the government operations centre, which organized the efforts in Fort McMurray and in British Columbia this summer.
From your perspective, given the state of play in your jurisdiction, you don't see the federal government playing any overarching command-and-control mechanism, overarching direction, as to where we should be dealing with pests and co-management principles, is that correct?
12:30 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Emergency Management and Programs, Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
When it comes to that question I will confess that this is outside my level of comfort. To be totally honest, I don't have the expertise to be pointing in that direction. We have colleagues over in Natural Resources Canada and other federal organizations who actually would be better positioned than I to be providing a good answer.
12:30 p.m.
Calgary Centre, Lib.
Ms. McEwen, did you hear that question?
Ms. McEwen, during your presentation I heard you discussing that the City of Toronto had many efforts going on, but you put forth that the federal government should be taking more of a leadership role. Is that your assertion? How would you think that should be done?
I don't know if anyone can hear me, Mr. Chair.
12:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal James Maloney
Ms. McEwen, were you able to hear the question that was just put to you?
12:30 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
No, I'm sorry. I wasn't.
12:30 p.m.
Calgary Centre, Lib.
I listened very intently to your presentation. You rightfully noted the complexity of many of the challenges faced by Toronto given that pests don't know the end of a civic jurisdiction, provincial jurisdiction, or national or international jurisdictions. You don't see the federal government playing much of a role right now.
Can you enlighten us as to what you think they should be doing?
12:30 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
I'm sorry if my presentation didn't highlight that. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has a clear role in regulating pest entry and taking on the responsibilities associated with eradication for a pest like Asian long-horned beetle. When it comes to management of the problem, there is not a clear role across the different land types based on ownership. That management falls to the land owner.
I think that the federal government could be helping to form some of the collaborative groups—the science committees, so to speak—for each of the different types of pests that are potentially going to enter and cause such significant damage.
As I said, in Toronto, the emerald ash borer was a $70-million problem for us to manage. As Canadians, we've lost an incredible part of our forest. Oak wilt is on the border of Canada. We have great concerns about what kind of impact that is going to have when it comes to Toronto, and Ontario as a whole. We feel there could be a committee struck now to help inform some of the things that we should be doing to stop it from coming into the country or to stop it from spreading. I mentioned things like pruning restrictions. Maybe those should be regulated, or maybe there needs to be more education for the public or for the industry to understand the danger associated with pruning an oak in the summer period when beetles are around and are at risk of infecting other trees.
I feel there could be more effort put into developing the management objectives that will help to reduce the spread, as well as simply the regulatory objectives that we have in place to try to stop the entry into the country.
I also mentioned the importance of Canadian scientists in helping to predict some of the changes and helping to develop tools like the biological pesticides that we currently use. TreeAzin is one that they helped develop. Other things like drones, as I mentioned, would be a lot cheaper than bringing [Technical difficulty—Editor] and spray an area.
Jozef, can you say the area in Toronto that we're...?
12:35 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
For next year's gypsy moth spray.
12:35 p.m.
Supervisor Forest Health Care, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
It's 700 to 800 hectares.
12:35 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
We're looking at an area of about 800 hectares. Having new tools and new technology available to us, which is developed and approved by the federal government, is important.
12:35 p.m.
Calgary Centre, Lib.
You also indicated in your presentation that Toronto had done some modelling. Your modelling indicates that, because of climate change, you're going to have hotter temperatures in the future, as well as more precipitation. Have you been able to use your best guesses, or best working assumptions to understand whether you're going to have more or less outbreaks as a result of this increased heat and rain? Can you make some sort of hypothesis on that at this time?
12:35 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
I'll let Jozef speak to that.
12:35 p.m.
Supervisor Forest Health Care, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
We can expect different outbreaks. The existing ones might disappear as the host species disappear, as the emerald ash borer wiped out ash species in Toronto. We might have them back in the future.
The gypsy moth is a good example, which Beth brought up. The minimal temperatures over the winter have kept them in check, but as long as we have these higher temperatures over the winter, gypsy moth outbreaks are going to happen more frequently.
Oak wilt is a good example. It has been south of the border for over 40 years. Now it's approaching the border and we have it critically close.
Other pests will probably thrive in these new climatic conditions.
12:35 p.m.
Manager Forest and Natural Area Management, Urban Forestry, City of Toronto
I will just add to that.
