Environment committee  My apologies, I didn't understand. I can't say when the group was established. It's a group that has just come to me over the summer. I'm a little less familiar with its history, but I do know that it has been very active in its engagement with the provinces and territories. We're going to be hearing the results of some of their deliberations around the targets next week at an ADM level call with our colleagues from across the country.

Environment committee  It's the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Environment committee  We've been developing a series of targets on a variety of aspects around biodiversity, including protected areas, species at risk, but also the degree to which urban centres in Canada have been able to incorporate biodiversity into their planning and so on. We'll be hearing the results of the deliberation of the working group next week.

Environment committee  There are a variety of programs, and these are national programs. They're not just targeting urban centres. For the habitat stewardship program, that's about promoting actions to support species at risk that are focused on habitat. As we know, the major issue for most species at risk, but not all, relates to habitat.

Environment committee  I'll come back to the statement. Municipalities are the ones that are going to be setting the laws and the by-laws in their particular local area. I think what is helpful is that the people who are responsible for planning are factoring in the need for conservation in an urban setting.

Environment committee  The approvals for the habitat stewardship program have gone out. Letters have gone to proponents of various projects, so I can't speak to why there is a sense that no projects in Quebec were approved. I would have to confirm this. I believe there are a fair number of projects in Quebec.

Environment committee  Within Environment Canada, one program we have is the EcoAction program. It's not just for cities; it's for Canadians looking to promote eco-friendly practices and whatnot. People can come in and apply for the program, and, depending on what their proposal is, they can be funded.

Environment committee  The way in which I think about climate change is really driven by my mandate. For the Wildlife Service, we're concerned about species at risk. We have some protected areas and migratory birds. When we're thinking about climate change, we're thinking about the way in which the landscape is likely to change because of climate change, and how we can help wildlife to adapt to those changes.

Environment committee  We're pretty much focused on adaptation.

Environment committee  I'll start, but when it gets hard I'm going to toss it that way. I think it is possible to design a city, and in most instances you are not going to start from scratch. People are already living in cities, and cities are growing. I think the cities that are most successful are the ones that think ahead to where they want to be in 20, 30, 40, years.

Environment committee  I think so.

Environment committee  I'll take a stab at this. It's a hard question. I would preface my comments by saying that most land use planning is within the jurisdiction of the provinces and territories. I think what we can do as federal officials and a federal government is provide information that can inform how provinces and territories might wish to think about planning the land we are going to be living on in a city or maintaining it as rural.

Environment committee  I confess I don't have a lot of background on brownfield remediation. I am aware that Sudbury has undertaken a great deal of work. I can remember being quite a young child a number of years ago, going through Sudbury and seeing, I would say, almost a bleak landscape. When you go to Sudbury today, it is quite beautiful, quite green, with lots of open spaces, natural areas, which speak to a healthy community and a lot of very clever city planning.

Environment committee  Mr. Chair, and members, thank you very much for the opportunity to be here. My name is Virginia Poter and I am the director general of the Canadian Wildlife Service within Environment Canada. The topic is urban conservation, so I've tried to give a perspective on that. Urban conservation means protecting and managing the valuable ecological spaces and species in and around cities, as well as the ecosystem services that they provide.

Environment committee  I'm sorry, I'm not familiar exactly with what's happened in the United States, so it's hard to comment--