Environment committee  Wareham, I really think this needs to protect the atmosphere, biodiversity, terrestrial landscape, freshwater, groundwater, and marine protected areas. You've mentioned climate change a number of times. What do you think this conservation plan should include to address climate change?

Environment committee  We need to integrate our protected areas into sustainably managed land and seascapes so that wildlife can move between them. It's particularly important in the context of climate change. We need to allow plants and animals the space they need to shift and adapt to changing conditions. Nature conversation enjoys broad support in Canada. Wildlife and wilderness are part of our national identity.

Environment committee  Such increasingly pronounced fluctuations in the weather are precisely what is predicted to occur in the course of climate change. Consequently, it would be reasonable to expect that as climate change proceeds, red spruce in eastern Canada will be affected by such weather fluctuations, will suffer corresponding declines in health and vigour, and consequently that more suitable habitat will be available for the BSLB and many other native species.

Environment committee  I can't give you the answers on the economic impacts of climate change. Where our council and province have been at is that the changing climate is allowing species.... Even on the horticulture side, they're regrouping the grow zones in the eastern states.

Environment committee  We found several improvements in the completeness and transparency of the information contained in the climate change plans. However, we also found that the government lacks the tools it needs to achieve, measure, and report greenhouse gas emission reductions. As a result, the government doesn't know what it has accomplished so far with $9 billion allocated in the 2010 climate change plan.

Environment committee  We look at wilderness protection, sustainable forestry, local food, urban gardens, food security, renewable energy, sustainable and active transportation, coastal protection, water conservation, climate change, sustainable fisheries and seafood, and policy at the provincial, national, and international levels. All of those are pieces of what we see as important in working towards a sustainable environment.

Environment committee  We have supplying support staff in conservation efforts, assessment of projects, and public consultations in relation to conservation. We have educational efforts, protection of specific species, and efforts at climate change adaptation. We heard about ecotoxicology this morning. We have funding of conservation groups, and we have incentives or stewardship programs. Those are on the checklist I have so far.

Environment committee  When you talk about the reduction in technical support capacity, I'm sure you're aware that the government's responsibilities include enforcement, actually establishing protected areas, research, other conservation projects, assessing projects, things like GHG monitoring, GHG regulation, clean air and particle pollutant cleanups, contaminated site cleanups, invasive species, weather monitoring, media requests, oil sands monitoring, international negotiations, specific court-ordered actions, clean energy research, climate change reparations to other countries. How do you propose to prioritize the technical support capacity in among those other things, sort of like draining the swamp when you're up to your hind end in alligators?

Environment committee  We need protected areas, we need systems of protected areas, and we need linked systems of protected areas, so that as environment changes it's possible for species, organisms, and systems to move within that system of protected areas. That's the adaptive approach. Regardless of what will happen with respect to climate change in the future, we can certainly expect the climate to change. But as to what will happen, we don't absolutely know. By consequence, what we need is a framework that allows for change to occur or assumes that change will occur and allows for adaption.

Environment committee  Drive it similar to what you did with the Oceans Act, but push this forward so we develop out of that, plan the metrics, the other tools that we can use to assess what's going to happen if we cut or we do not provide the resources necessary to carry forth. With regard to the climate change issue, yes, I agree with everything that's been said here before, but what I do know, especially in zones like the Arctic, where we're operating right now, is things are changing very rapidly.

Environment committee  I'm not qualified, really, to talk about climate change. I do want to talk about, though, one of the points you did mention, and that's the budgetary rollbacks we're experiencing with the various federal departments. For an individual who has spent 20 or so years walking rivers with waders and helping community groups, what's happening with those budgetary rollbacks is that the technical people in both provincial and federal governments are disappearing.

Environment committee  Yesterday, as part of our site visit, we met with Peter Darnell, a mussel farmer from Indian Point Marine Farms, and he explained to us how the propagation of invasive species has been encouraged by changes in climate, by warmer weather. Do you think that a national conservation strategy should take climate change adaptation and mitigation into account?

Environment committee  It's a voluntary program with the goals of reducing soil erosion and filtration of water courses to improve water quality and wildlife habitat and reduce the impacts of climate change. They provide incentives to private landowners to do the right thing, through tax breaks or through monetary means. In conclusion, we would like to thank the standing committee for the opportunity to present our thoughts.

Environment committee  I wrote down the seven-point vision you recommended. I believe the third point pertains to climate change. Is that right, or did I just misunderstand?

Environment committee  No, there is a fair amount of science that suggests that climate change may be occurring. Why is up in the air, but certainly that is true. I would say that from an economic standpoint Canada has a comparative advantage around the world in a number of ways.