Speech

 

Thank you and good morning everyone!

It’s a pleasure for me to join you for this informal discussion about economic issues from an environmental perspective.

Our Economic Action Plan 2012 focuses on the drivers of growth and job creation—innovation, investment, education, skills and communities—underpinned by our commitment to keeping taxes low, and returning to a balanced budget by the end of this Parliament.

While the federal government is working to be a partner with the private sector in economic growth, my role is to ensure that this growth happens in an environmentally responsible way.

Economic Action Plan 2012 includes streamlined regulations through changes to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and the Navigable Waters Act. This complements our progress on regulatory streamlining that follows the recommendations of the Red Tape Commission.

In the past, businesses endured the burden of layers upon layers of federal, provincial and territorial processes.

The path that we are on now leads to better processes that pay dividends not only in terms of smart regulations that help improve prospects for economic growth, but also in terms of ensuring better value for Canadian taxpayer dollars.

Since I took on this portfolio in January 2011, I’ve spent a tremendous amount of time thinking about environmental issues.

I’ve become better acquainted with the files, of course, and with environmental stakeholders. And yet, despite all we’ve accomplished, I still see a gap in the general public awareness of the Government’s environmental record of achievement.

That gives me pause, because every day, my challenge is to tell the story of Environment Canada in a way that inspires... that helps Canadians understand—and take pride in—the degree to which our nation is a world leader on many environmental issues.

Through our expert scientists and using the best available research, Environment Canada provides Canadians with policies and regulations that work. Our science is behind timely weather forecasts. Science is essential to monitoring changes in the environment. Enforcement ensures our actions have meaning. All of this helps to make us a World Class Regulator.

We provide strong leadership in protecting endangered species and our nation’s rich biodiversity… in land conservation through the creation of a record number of new parks and through partnership with organizations like the Nature Conservancy of Canada… in state-of-the art chemicals management planning… and in the measures we have taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions which have helped bring us halfway towards our target for 2020.

But that is not all.

We can be proud of what we’ve accomplished. And all the more so because we’ve persevered at a time when public and private sector budgets are very lean and we must be as efficient as possible. We have done all this in a way that complements and supports our economic agenda.

This Government understands that an economy is very much like the ecosystems we work so hard to protect: we need to manage changes in one part carefully to avoid creating new challenges elsewhere.

We have high environmental standards in Canada but we also understand that Canadian companies that create Canadian jobs compete against companies from countries that are not subject to the same environmental standards and therefore do not have the same fixed costs.

We can be proud of the degree to which collaboration, consultation and partnership frame our approach to the environment. Granted, sometimes the complexities take a little longer to resolve. But there’s just no other way for a world-class regulator like Environment Canada to proceed.

As you know, the oil sands are an important driver for our domestic economy, but they must be developed in a responsible way.

That means ensuring that we have the best scientific information available on the cumulative impacts of oil sands projects.

We’re equally determined to work in partnership with Alberta and a broad range of stakeholders—including environmental groups, scientists, communities, Aboriginal peoples and corporations—to make certain our solutions are comprehensive, rigorous and sustainable.

In February, we announced the Canada–Alberta Implementation Plan for Oil Sands Monitoring. Environment Canada is working closely with its provincial counterparts to phase in enhanced monitoring over the next few years. This new monitoring system will be scientifically comprehensive, integrated and transparent.

I was in Fort McMurray in July, touring some of the newest monitoring facilities with Alberta Environment Minister McQueen. And I have to say we were both impressed with how much has been done. But there still remains much to do.

We’re integrating and coordinating all the various monitoring activities. We will be transparent with that data to ensure that we have the most scientifically-credible picture of the water, air, land and biodiversity issues in the region.

This is the only way to understand the cumulative effects of oil sands development in a timely context. We are deploying Environment Canada’s world class scientific capacity and expertise and working closely with Alberta.

We’ve got the support of industry too. Oil sands producers have committed to help fund the enhanced monitoring system being advanced through this joint federal-provincial effort.

While the oil sands have been portrayed in some quarters as a climate change threat, the latest statistics show Canada’s efforts on greenhouse gas emissions are paying off.

And we are delivering results in our sector-by-sector regulatory plan. Over the past five years, we have made significant progress in de-linking greenhouse gas emissions from economic growth.

In July 2012, the Government of Canada released proposed regulations that would implement new standards to reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions in the marine sector. That builds out on the new tailpipe standards we already introduced for cars and heavy trucks.

In September, we tabled final regulations to bring greenhouse gas emissions from coal-fired electric power generation down to the same level as natural gas sources. These new regulations are the culmination of a very long and inclusive process—we received five thousand responses to our initial draft and we took the time necessary to consider that feedback.

The end result—with which we’re very pleased—was shaped by the fact that each province and each power utility have a very different profile. And while we want to take action against pollution, the cost of electric power for Canadian households and businesses must be managed with respect—to my point about respecting our economic ecosystem.

Another aspect of the coal-fired regulations is that they provide flexibility in terms of potential incentives to develop carbon capture and storage solutions.

The new coal regulations are an important step toward reducing Canada greenhouse gas emissions and Environment Canada is working on regulations for the oil and gas sector.

This approach is working. Canada is halfway there in its national effort to meet its Copenhagen target to reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions by 17% from 2005 levels by 2020. The combined efforts to date of federal, provincial and territorial governments, of consumers, and of businesses will generate half the GHG reduction required to meet Canada’s GHG target for 2020.

This is the result of teamwork: the measures that the federal and provincial governments have put in place, and more importantly, how consumers and businesses have responded to these measures and risen to the challenge.

All our hard work to reduce our domestic greenhouse gas emissions has been driven by the 2020 target that Canada took under the Copenhagen Accord. Canada’s 2020 target is very ambitious—a 17 percent reduction in emissions from 2005 levels by 2020. This target tracks the greenhouse gas emission reduction target set by the United States, which is important since our economies are integrated much like the European economy. This target is also comparable in its level of ambition to that taken by the European Union.

For this reason, we are aligned closely with the United States in order to maximize greenhouse gas emissions reductions and maintain economic competitiveness at the same time.

For example, our successful alignment with the United States on transportation sector standards means that the average greenhouse gas emissions from the 2016 model year passenger automobiles and light trucks will be about 25 per cent less than the vehicles that were sold in Canada in 2008. This week, I announced proposed regulations for model years 2017 and beyond that build on the existing 2011-2016 regulations. We expect that this will generate tremendous benefits—for the environment, for consumers and for the economy.

Given my emphasis on collaboration and common purpose, I’d be remiss if I didn't mention the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties that began this week.  Next week, I will be participating in the High-Level Segment of this Conference in Doha, Qatar.

Last year in Durban, Canada demonstrated our commitment to playing an influential international role in developing a new climate change platform that brings us closer to seeing all major emitters agree to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

At COP 18 in Doha, we’re looking forward to the opportunity to build upon the success at Durban where a process was set, which commits all major emitters to a new international agreement. This was a long standing Canadian objective. 

Canada also continues to work closely with key players through the G8, G20, the Major Economies Forum and others to develop practical initiatives to address greenhouse gases and climate change.

We recognize the importance of working with our partners on the international scene. In February, we joined a new, multilateral Climate and Clean Air Coalition to Reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants. I had the honor of representing Canada in Rio last June where we collectively renewed the global support for sustainable development. The best practices shared during the Conference highlight that there is no one size fits all solution to enhancing sustainability.

Of course, we continue to complement these efforts with cooperative engagement a little closer to home, working alongside the United States and Mexico, developing North American solutions to strengthen our environment under the framework of the Commission for Environmental Cooperation. I was also pleased to sign the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement this past September with my American colleagues to ensure that this and future generations will continue to be able to work, play and live alongside these great waters. 

Canada’s environmental success flows from real and pragmatic action. We have a practical, effective approach that takes into account the environmental and economic realities that we face. This will ensure that our efforts are balanced and truly sustainable for Canadians. And it will continue to produce results.

Whether it is greenhouse gas emission reductions… or world-class monitoring in the oil sands… we have made progress in a consistent, systematic, science‑based manner.

This is progress that we must all take pride in. I know I do.

Thank you.