Transport Committee on Oct. 31st, 2024

[Sarrah Storey]

No. I'll make that answer really short. There's no one else.

There have just been concerns from local residents on both lakes that are close to me. Then we talk at Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako as well about the safety of the lake. There's no one really working on this that I know of. It's just become an awareness strategy to protect people.

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

I boat mainly on Quebec waterways, but I also boat in Ontario. I will be sailing on the Ottawa River, located on the border of Quebec and Ontario, and on Lac des Deux Montagnes, in the Montreal area.

I can tell you that the lake associations we work with do incredible work in my riding. There are 41 municipalities in my riding, and many of them are supported by lake protection organizations or associations. They are doing a great job.

Do you think it would be a good idea to encourage citizens or people living along the lakes in the Village of Fraser Lake to join in such an organization or to create one?

[Sarrah Storey]

I truly think that is a great idea.

I'm not going to say “unfortunately”, but I'm just going to say that the capacity of volunteers seems to have waned. It seems to be the same five people who do everything in my community, and I'm one of them.

I think it's a great idea and if I can make that happen, I think I would. Yes, I like that idea. That's a great idea. I will host a meeting. I'll invite you to come, too.

There we go. You're all invited.

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

I used to be a city councillor, and I was involved in my community also.

Ms. Renaud-Langevin, you're familiar with the Intelligent Boating project in your region, right?

[Laurence Renaud-Langevin]

Yes, I'm familiar with it.

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

You did sign on to that program. You've received nearly $260,000 in federal funding. Also, Massawippi Lake has been a Canadian model for swimming, and your organization has been researching boating safety since 2017.

Can you explain to us how government funding has benefited your organization, based on the studies you've done?

[Laurence Renaud-Langevin]

I'll try to summarize.

It enabled us to actively educate the people who were going onto the lake. We would talk to them about how to behave on the lake, regardless of the type of vessel used. It could be a motorized boat, a rowboat, a kayak or a wakeboat.

It also enabled us to install buoys, create navigation corridors and design an interactive map, together with the municipality. Users were given information on how to act on the lake, and we encouraged them to adopt best practices.

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

Thank you.

There is something in your answer that is important for my colleague Mr. Barsalou-Duval.

Some federal programs provide funding to install buoys, conduct awareness campaigns, assess the condition of banks and riverbeds, and ensure the protection of aquatic life.

I know that your organization is sensitive to the environment and that this is a priority for you. However, do you also care about the well-being of users, vessel speed and water safety?

[Laurence Renaud-Langevin]

Yes, that's absolutely the case. We've been working on that.

As part of one of the components of the Intelligent Boating grant, we surveyed users to see if they were comfortable sailing on the lake and if they felt safe.

We found that almost 35% of them felt unsafe on the lake for a variety of reasons.

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

Was it under that same project that you studied the increased presence of zebra mussels in the lake since 2021, which has an impact on the lake bottom?

I think that's actually another grant.

Can you tell us a bit about it?

[Laurence Renaud-Langevin]

Yes, it is another grant.

We were lucky because our projects were all interconnected. You can never apply for a second grant for the same project. You have to constantly reinvent yourself for every grant. For a project that is to last 10 years, we have to find ways to make new applications for other complementary projects, if we want to do what was originally planned.

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

Can we then say thank you to the government?

[Laurence Renaud-Langevin]

We can certainly do that. Thank you.

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

You're welcome.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Philip Lawrence]

That's what you get for being a nice guy.

Mr. Barsalou-Duval, go ahead for three minutes, because I was generous to Mr. Lauzon.

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

First, I think my colleague Mr. Lauzon misunderstood what I said when I mentioned that it was impossible to get funding to install buoys. I was talking about the posting of regulations. There is funding for prevention and awareness raising, but unfortunately, there is no funding to make it easier to post the regulations. That's a big problem.

My next questions are once again for the Massawippi Blue representative.

Ms. Renaud-Langevin, I'm sure you're happy to have received funding, but I'm also sure you would have liked to have quite a bit more. The funding needs are much greater than what is currently available.

That said, many witnesses have told us they were disappointed with the regulatory process. There is a very long period between the time a regulatory process is undertaken and the time the regulations are implemented. They're finding it difficult.

What do you think could be considered a reasonable time frame for the process? Would it be one year, five years, 10 years, two years, six months?

Of course, municipal elections sometimes have to be considered, as well. What amount of time would be acceptable to avoid discouraging Canadians?

[Laurence Renaud-Langevin]

I will answer you based on my experience as a human resources manager. I've also worked on many cases on the ground.

Based on the discussions we've had with municipal representatives, I think the ideal time frame for a regulatory project is three years. Beyond that, the process is too lengthy. Four years is a very long time. After seven years, everyone has had time to change roles and, ultimately, you have to start all over again.

So I think three years or less is reasonable. Beyond that period, it seems to me that we are straying from the reality of municipalities or organizations.

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

Mr. Chair, how much time do I have left?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Philip Lawrence]

You have one minute.

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

In closing, if you had to choose a single priority, a single change to make at Transport Canada to the regulatory process, what would it be?

You talked a lot about boating licenses, and you made that point well. However, in your opinion, is there another irritant that should be prioritized for change?

[Laurence Renaud-Langevin]

As a priority, I think direct access to funding should be given to municipalities, or at least to RCMs. This could make it easier for them to manage the process and ease their financial burden. As an organization, we can support them in doing some of the work, such as in the context of public consultations, but there are things we can't do and for which our scope is limited.

I think the priority should be to simplify the process and shorten it some more.

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

Thank you.

[Philip Lawrence, Conservative, Northumberland—Peterborough South, ON]

Thank you.

Our final questioner is Ms. Dance.

[Leila Dance, NDP, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Perfect.

Can you remind me how much time I have? Is it three minutes?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Philip Lawrence]

Yes, you have three minutes. I apologize.