House of Commons Hansard #124 of the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was chair.

Topics

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 p.m.

Conservative

Steven Blaney Conservative Lévis—Bellechasse, QC

Madam Chair, I have a few questions for the Minister of the Environment.

In my speech, I spoke a lot about the St. Lawrence action plan. The river starts in the Great Lakes. Could the minister explain about the Great Lakes? I spoke a lot about the measures he has taken in the St. Lawrence action plan, but I would like to know more about the Great Lakes.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I would like to thank the hon. member for Lévis—Bellechasse.

The whole Great Lakes-St. Lawrence system is considered part of the agreement activities and projects when feasible. For example, the numerical environmental prediction program will develop a water management model for the St. Lawrence and, in order to do so, will necessarily take into account the entire Great Lakes-St. Lawrence basin.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 p.m.

Conservative

Steven Blaney Conservative Lévis—Bellechasse, QC

Madam Chair, I see that there is an integrated plan for the St. Lawrence River and the Great Lakes.

When I look at the data, I am a bit surprised. We have an effective plan with which we have achieved a third of our targets. However, I see that, in the past decade, under the Liberals, carbon dioxide emissions in Canada increased by 28.4%.

I would like to know how the minister did it. Under the Liberals, our country had completely lost control of our carbon dioxide emissions. We see that when we, the Conservatives, came to power, we managed to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions and finally reduce them.

Could the minister talk about the measures that cover the transportation industry, the source of a quarter of Canada's greenhouse gas emissions? How did he manage to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation industry? Did our government implement a regulatory regime and, if so, did the government do this alone or in partnership with other countries?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

10:55 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I thank my colleague for refreshing the collective memory of the House about those who went before us.

Under the Copenhagen accord, this government made a commitment to reduce Canada's greenhouse gas emissions by, as I have said today, 17% below 2005 levels by 2020. We are firmly committed to achieving this target. We were about a quarter of the way to achieving that target about a year ago. We have progressed significantly since then. I should have some new numbers in the weeks ahead.

What is important is with our sector by sector strategy we are systematically addressing all major sources of emissions. As I have reminded the House this evening, we have already addressed transportation, which contributes about a quarter of our annual greenhouse gas emissions. New regulations are about to be presented with regard to the coal-fired electricity sector. We are consulting with oil and gas, including the oil sands. We will move on to talk to other major emitters: cement, steel, buildings, both commercial and residential, as we work our way around the pie chart and closer to achieving our target of a 17% reduction by 2020.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

NDP

The Chair NDP Denise Savoie

The hon. Minister of Veterans Affairs has one minute left to ask a very brief question.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

Conservative

Steven Blaney Conservative Lévis—Bellechasse, QC

Madam Chair, I believe that the minister answered everything quite well.

My last question concerns contaminated sites. Could the minister tell us what has been done in this regard over the past two years? We know that there are contaminated sites in this country. Have investments been made to deal with these sites? Some of them were very badly contaminated.

What has been done in regard to those contaminated sites that we have here?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I have reminded my critics on the other side of the House this evening that the environment commissioner complimented us on our progress to date with regard to the major contaminated sites program in which our government has invested $3.5 billion. We have closed 42% of those sites. We are working for the next seven years to close the rest of those targeted sites.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, I will get right to the questions.

Why is the government dismantling the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, this is a well-visited question, and I will offer my hon. colleague the stock response.

When the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy was created a full quarter century ago, there were no other similar public policy bodies which examined the relationship between the economy and the environment. Today there are any number of public policy bodies across academia and private foundations and any number of boards and chambers which now provide that information.

The $5 million that had been spent on the national round table enables us to avoid making cuts in more significant parts of my department.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, why did the Minister of Foreign Affairs tell this House on Monday that the round table was being eliminated because of its climate change research?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, my answer as I have given it is the decision was mine. The decision was taken for the reasons that I have just explained. Where the national round table was at one time unique and relevant, it is no longer so.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, when was the decision to eliminate the national round table taken, and with which groups did the government consult in making the decision to eliminate the round table?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, the decision is mine.

I think we would more profitably spend our time here this evening talking about exactly what our department is doing to fulfill its mandate, and—

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

NDP

The Chair NDP Denise Savoie

I am not purposely cutting off the minister, but I am trying to allocate the same amount of time, approximately, as the hon. member. I will go back to the hon. member.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, I think it would be valuable if the minister actually responded to the questions that we are asking him.

We have an issue. The national round table released a report on climate change adaptation and impacts on businesses, a 136-page advisory report, a 42-page guide for businesses, and 99 pages of case studies. Can the minister name a national organization that produces similar research?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I am not going to run through the list for my hon. colleague, but there are any number of organizations. I must say that I was quite impressed when his counterpart, my critic, earlier this evening said that she was not going to set her hair on fire about this.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, the record shows that the minister was not able to name one organization.

In 2011, the government made two research requests to the round table asking for help analyzing provincial climate change plans and life cycle approaches to environmental management. How many references or research requests has the government given to the round table since 2006?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I will come back to the fact that we are here to talk about my department and my department's mandate.

I will just remind my colleague of the fact that I am here to manage a clean environment, to manage substances and ways to reduce pollution, to provide for a safer environment, and to provide for a sustainable environment.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, again, there is no answer. I will give the minister one more chance.

How many research requests has the government given to the round table? How many requests are still pending?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, the short answer to that, and I can only speak for myself in the recent 18 months, is a request was made to the round table to investigate a number of issues with regard to water. We are awaiting two final reports.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, in that spirit, how many times has the round table's report on climate prosperity been downloaded? The minister surely must know that.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, we are getting into the ridiculous here. The reports of the round table can be downloaded and they can be acquired by hard copy.

As I have said, we thanked the round table for its service for over a quarter century and with respect and consideration we bid them good fortune in the future.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, the minister should have been able to answer that question.

The minister said earlier that there is an expanded community of environmental stakeholders. Would the minister consider the Canadian Environmental Network to be one of these stakeholders?

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, no.

Environment—Main Estimates, 2012-13Business of SupplyGovernment Orders

11:05 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Chair, could the minister then list examples of this community of environmental stakeholders since the government seems intent on crushing and closing the doors on many of the reputable environmental organizations that exist in this country?