Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank the Commissioner of the Environment for her audit delivered today. All Canadians are concerned about clean air, water and soil.
Once again the government has been given a failing grade in the protection of human and environmental health by the commissioner. The commissioner identifies lots of government plans but little evidence of actual implementation.
The report is a terrible indictment against the environmental protection the government has provided since it took power in 1993. It provided vague goals and good intentions but little action to meet these goals. Its intentions become little more than just empty words.
The lack of commitment to sound science which is the foundation of achieving the goals is severely lacking. Some examples are that there is a water problem and yet there are decades old regulations with no national standards for drinking water. It plans to ratify Kyoto but it has no idea of the cost. The government must show leadership and must implement solid scientific plans if it wants to protect the environment