House of Commons photoLost her last election, in 2019, with 36% of the vote.
The Environment February 8th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, through this proposed legislation, the Government of Canada has demonstrated its commitment to restoring robust and thorough reviews of major projects while working closely with provinces to avoid duplication. Our goal is to provide regulatory certainty to business, to respect the rights of indigenous peoples, to engage communities, and to protect the environment for generations to come. We know that the environment and the economy must go hand in hand.
The Environment February 8th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak to the issue raised by the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands regarding the role of offshore boards in environmental assessment.
In June 2016, the Government of Canada launched a comprehensive review to restore the confidence of Canadians in federal environmental assessment processes, restore lost protections of our fisheries and waterways, and modernize the National Energy Board. Now, after more than 14 months of extensive engagement with indigenous leaders, provincial and territorial leaders, businesses, environmental groups, and Canadians, the Government of Canada has introduced proposed legislation that reflects the values and priorities Canadians expressed throughout this process.
The proposed impact assessment act, tabled by the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, lays out a vision for a modern impact assessment and regulatory system that recognizes that the environment and the economy must work together to help us build a sustainable future. It represents an important shift in the way that major projects will be assessed in Canada.
First, the proposed changes seek to broaden project reviews from environmental assessments to impact assessments with a focus on sustainability. This means that assessments would consider a broader range of potential impacts to understand how proposed projects could affect not just the environment but also social and health aspects, indigenous peoples, jobs, and the economy over the long term.
Second, regulatory certainty would be achieved by making the system more efficient and predictable, giving companies the clarity and predictability they need with legislated timelines. Also, a single federal agency, the impact assessment agency of Canada, would lead all impact assessments for major projects. This includes projects that are regulated by the offshore petroleum boards in Atlantic Canada. In recognition of the joint management offshore accords with Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, the agency would collaborate with the offshore boards in reviewing major offshore oil and gas projects. This would ensure that we continue to rely on the wealth of technical knowledge and expertise that they have developed over the past 30 years. Under the proposed framework, decisions would be based on whether a project with adverse effects is in the public interest based on key factors.
Another element of the proposed legislation, reconciliation with indigenous peoples, is one of the main elements of the design of the new system. The proposed changes seek to build new partnerships based on recognition of indigenous rights up front. This includes early engagement and participation at every stage. This legislation would create new space for indigenous jurisdictions to enter into agreements with the federal government to exercise powers under the act, including the potential to conduct assessments. Going forward, it would be mandatory to consider and protect indigenous traditional knowledge alongside science and other evidence.
Finally, transparency and science are essential elements of the proposed new process. The new system aims for more openness and transparency. A new online platform would be created to share information and data, and to make it easier for the public to access.
In conclusion, the proposed legislation reflects values that are important to Canadians, including early, inclusive, and meaningful public engagement; nation-to-nation, Inuit-crown, and government-to-government partnerships with indigenous peoples; timely decisions based on the best available science and indigenous traditional knowledge; and sustainability for present and future generations.
Federal-Provincial Relations February 8th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, with tighter timelines, better rules, more certainty for investors, and stronger environmental protections, our new approach to reviewing projects reflects our belief that we must work together to protect our environment and grow our economy to ensure a sustainable future for our children. We are building a better regulatory process that Canadians can have confidence in. Our new system will ensure good projects move forward to create good jobs and grow the economy. We will create a modern, predictable, and timely process that gets good projects built in a responsible, timely, and transparent way. Our legislation is for the—
Natural Resources February 8th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, the decision we took on the Trans Mountain expansion project was the right decision and it is based on facts, evidence, and what is in the national interest. Last week, the Prime Minister was in both B.C. and Alberta and clearly stated his support for this very important project.
We look forward to working with every province and territory to ensure a strong future for Canadians, but the facts and evidence do not change. This project will diversify our export markets, be built on improved environmental safety, and ensure a strong future for all Canadians.
Natural Resources February 7th, 2018
Mr. Speaker, the decision we took on the Trans Mountain expansion project was based on facts and evidence and what is in the national interest.
We look forward to working with every province and territory to ensure a strong future for Canadians, but the facts and evidence do not change. This project will diversify our markets, be built with improved environmental safety, and ensure a strong future for all Canadians. Our government made the right decision when we approved the federally regulated project, and we stand by that decision. The pipeline falls under federal jurisdiction. This pipeline will be built.
Department of Public Works and Government Services Act February 6th, 2018
Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for South Okanagan—West Kootenay for this important and timely bill, and to thank him for his hospitality. He took me around to meet some of the operations in his riding.
This is important because Canada's forest industry is a major driver of our economy, employing more than 210,000 Canadians and contributing some $23 billion a year to our GDP. In fact, forestry creates more jobs per dollar than any other resource sector, and we export more than 34 billion dollars' worth of forest products to 100 countries around the world.
Across the country, it remains the lifeblood of rural Canada and a major source of income for about one in seven municipalities. Just as significant is its role in the lives and livelihood of indigenous peoples, 70% of whom live in forested regions. Not surprisingly, forestry is one of the leading employers of indigenous people, providing some 9,700 well-paying jobs across Canada. These jobs are creating the potential for enduring prosperity and bringing hope to communities for lasting change.
The hon. member's bill is also timely, for a number of reasons. First is that this has been a difficult year for the industry and it needs our support. Over the past 12 months, the industry has faced historic fires, devastating infestations, and punitive protectionism from our largest trading partner on products from softwood to newsprint.
Our government's position has been clear and unequivocal. The U.S. duties are unfair, unwarranted, and unjustifiable. We are vigorously defending Canadian workers by challenging the duties before the World Trade Organization and the through the North American Free Trade Agreement. We will continue to fight and we expect to win, as we have in the past. However, we also know that in the meantime families and communities are hurting.
When the duties were announced, our government stepped up with an $867 million softwood lumber action plan, a plan that included loan guarantees for industry, access to work-sharing programs for employees, funding to help provinces support workers, investments in forest innovation programs, and access to programs that will help companies reach new markets.
The hon. member's bill is also timely because it speaks to an industry that is in the midst of an historic transformation. It was not so long ago that this sector seemed to be on the ropes, its prospects grim, its potential limited, and its practices criticized. To many it seemed like an outdated and dying industry. However, instead of wringing its hands, it rolled up its sleeves and began a transformation whose best chapters are still yet to be written.
Forest industry leaders reached out to their critics, listened to their concerns, and made changes to their operations. With government support, it invested in research, developed new products, and established new offshore markets, creating not only a new image but a new vision of what forest products could be.
The result is that forestry is now one of the most innovative parts of our economy, writing a success story most Canadians do not know well or hear about often. Few areas demonstrate the renaissance of forest products better than its use in construction. New, stronger, and more environmentally friendly products are coming to market every single day. Engineered wood, for example, is as strong as steel, making it safe and practical, not only in buildings but also in infrastructure such as bridges.
These innovations are placing Canada at the forefront of tall wood building. In Vancouver, Natural Resources Canada supported the University of British Columbia in constructing a new student residence that is the tallest hybrid wood building in the world, towering 18 storeys. This magnificent structure is not only an engineering and architectural showpiece, it is also an environmental game-changer, storing more than 1,700 metric tons of carbon and saving nearly 700 metric tons in greenhouse gas emissions. That is like taking 500 cars off the road per year, and UBC is just the start.
Our government is also supporting the construction of a 13-storey cross-laminated timber condo building in Quebec City. The Origine project consists of a 12-floor solid wood structure on a concrete podium, and because cross-laminated timber has no gaps through which heat can transfer, it will have lower energy costs, about 40% less than a traditional building.
Canadian innovation in wood construction is not only creating magnificent new buildings at home but is opening up exciting new opportunities abroad. In Tianjin, China, a new eco-district covers almost two square kilometres and is built using Canadian lumber, ingenuity, and expertise. With its success, there are opportunities to reproduce it right across China.
These new building techniques and technologies also play a major role in combatting climate change. Most of us remember enough of our high school science to know that trees absorb vast amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. What we might not realize is that the carbon remains sequestered even after it is turned into building materials, which means that wood buildings hold carbon for decades. Building with lumber also emits far fewer greenhouse gases than traditional building materials. It is no surprise then that the forest industry is a key part of the pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change. Quite simply, increasing the use of wood for construction will help Canada meet its 2030 climate commitments.
Our government is supporting wood construction, including through our green construction through wood program, which invests nearly $40 million over four years to use wood in non-traditional construction projects. This program is expected to reduce carbon emissions by as much as six megatonnes by 2030.
For all of these reasons, any bill that encourages greater use of wood in construction is to be applauded for the jobs it creates, the markets it opens, and the environmental benefits it brings. The bill before this House seeks to increase wood construction, but while its aim is worthy, its wording is problematic. As other members have pointed out, it raises questions of fairness in procurement by giving preference to one building material over another. It also risks running contrary to Canada's trade obligations, including possibly discriminating against regions that do not produce wood, and by prescribing technical specifications related to design or descriptive character, it might be seen to create unnecessary obstacles to trade, contrary to trade agreements.
While these concerns are significant, they are not insurmountable and I believe could be addressed through amendment. I would therefore encourage hon. members to support this bill in principle so that it can proceed and the appropriate amendments made.
I want to again thank the hon. member for South Okanagan—West Kootenay for all of his work on this initiative, on the natural resources committee, and what I know he will do in the future.
Natural Resources January 31st, 2018
Mr. Speaker, as I said a moment ago, we stand behind our decision to approve the Trans Mountain expansion just as we stand by our commitment to Canadians to implement world-leading measures to protect the environment and our coasts. Through multiple consultations and discussions with Canadians, the decision we took on the Trans Mountain expansion remains in the national interest and this has not changed.
As I mentioned before, the project is subject to 157 legally binding conditions and our investment of $1.5 billion in the oceans protection plan is another example of our leadership to safeguard our—
Natural Resources January 31st, 2018
Mr. Speaker, we have done more to support our country's energy sector and get our resources to market in two years than the Harper Conservatives did in 10.
We have approved infrastructure projects that will create tens of thousands of good-paying jobs across the country: expanded export capacity for the Alberta Clipper project, the NOVA Gas pipeline, the Line 3 replacement project, and the Trans Mountain expansion pipeline. We support the Keystone XL pipeline. I could go on and on.
These projects and others represent tens of thousands of good-paying jobs and billions for the Canadian economy.
Natural Resources January 31st, 2018
Mr. Speaker, we stand by our decision to approve the Trans Mountain expansion, just as we stand by our commitment to all Canadians to implement world-leading measures to protect the environment and our coast.
The decision we took on the Trans Mountain expansion remains in the national interest and that has not changed. The project is subject to 157 legally binding conditions to protect the environment and ensure it moves forward in the safest, most environmentally sound manner.
Our historic investment of $1.5 billion in the oceans protection plan builds on that.
Softwood Lumber December 8th, 2017
Mr. Speaker, our government stands firmly behind the Canadian forest industry, which supports hundreds of thousands of good jobs across the country. Through our softwood lumber action plan, we are investing $867 million to support workers and communities affected by these unjustified duties: to diversify markets, to create access to international markets, and provide financial services on commercial terms.
We will vigorously defend Canada's lumber industry, including through litigation, as we are doing. We are not looking for any deal for Canada; we are looking for a good deal.