Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy: Departmental Website Component of the 2012-2013 Report on Plans and Priorities

The Species at Risk Act (SARA) was proclaimed in June 2003 and came into force in stages during 2003 and 2004. The purposes of the Act are to prevent wildlife species from being extirpated or becoming extinct, to provide for the recovery of wildlife species that are extirpated or threatened as a result of human activity, and to manage species of special concern to prevent them from becoming endangered or threatened.

The Committee on the Status of Endangered Species in Canada (COSEWIC) uses the best biological information on a species deemed to be in some danger of disappearing from Canada to assess the risk status of that species. COSEWIC assesses the species as extinct, extirpated, endangered, threatened, special concern, data deficient, or not at risk.

COSEWIC sends its assessment and supporting evidence for species classified as at risk (extirpated, endangered, threatened, special concern) to the Minister of the Environment and the Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council (CESCC) once per year. The Minister of the Environment forwards COSEWIC's assessments to the Governor in Council (GIC) and also publishes Response Statement on the SAR registry. These statements indicate how the Minister intends to respond to each COSEWIC assessment and, to the extent possible, provide timelines for action.

The GIC may, on the recommendation of the Minister, by order:

1. accept the assessment and add the species to the list of species at risk under SARA;
2. decide not to add the species to the list; or
3. refer the matter back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration.

If the GIC does not make a decision within nine months of receiving the COSEWIC assessment, the Minister shall by order amend the list according to COSEWIC's assessment.

The 2010–2011 response statements can be found at the following website.

Performance expectations:

• Percentage of listed wildlife species for which Environment Canada is responsible with a recovery strategy or management plan that is posted as proposed or final on the Species at Risk public registry. Target will be set once a baseline value is measured.
• Percentage of threatened and endangered species at risk for which Environment Canada is responsible whose critical habitat occurs wholly or in part within federal protected areas with that critical habitat described in the Canada Gazette. Target will be set once a baseline value is measured.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) aims to ensure international trade in wildlife is sustainable such that this trade does not pose a risk to species. For further information please visit Environment Canada’s website.

As a signatory to the Convention, Canada can use this tool to ensure species at risk in Canada are not further threatened by trade. In this manner, for those species in trade and regulated by the Convention, the CITES program contributes to Targets 5.1 and 5.2 under Goal 5 of the Strategy. CITES is implemented in Canada via domestic legislation, notably the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRIITA).

Performance expectations:

• Prepare for 16th Conference of the Parties to CITES in 2013.
• Continue to issue CITES permits.

Environment Canada leads the maintenance of the SAR Public Registry with the collaboration of Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Parks Canada Agency.

The Registry was developed as a key tool to support public participation in decision making related to SARA.

Performance expectations:

• Documents required by SARA are available from the SAR Public Registry within statutory deadlines.
• Request for content updates are sent out quarterly.
• Maintenance of the web site is performed regularly.

The species assessment process is conducted by the COSEWIC which operates at arm’s-length from the core departments. COSEWIC uses available biological information on species deemed to be in some danger of disappearing from Canada to assess the risk status. It reviews information on population and habitat status, trends and threats from commissioned status reports and from unsolicited status reports received with an application from the public, uses community and Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge and applies assessment criteria based on international standards.

Environment Canada provides a Secretariat which supports the activities of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. The Department ensures the Committee has the resources necessary to undertake species status assessments, including the preparation of species status reports, the inclusion of Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge and support to twice annual Wildlife Species Assessment Meetings.

Performance expectations:

• Proportion of listed species that have been reassessed by COSEWIC at the same or a lower risk category. Target will be set once a baseline value is measured.

Recovery of Nationally Endangered Wildlife (RENEW), the national recovery program for species at risk, was launched in 1988. The program now involves three federal departments (Environment Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and Parks Canada Agency), provincial and territorial government agencies, wildlife management boards authorized by a land claim agreement, aboriginal organizations other organizations and interested individuals.

RENEW has new Terms of Reference, and now functions as a formal Working Group under the federal-provincial-territorial Canadian Wildlife Directors Committee (CWDC). This has significantly clarified the governance of RENEW.

Performance expectations:

• Environment Canada will coordinate all RENEW activities.
• RENEW will continue to exchange information among the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Species at Risk (SAR) Recovery programs.

The Minister of the Environment is responsible for the overall coordination of the federal species at risk strategy, including the implementation of federal activities in support of the Accord for the Protection of Species at Risk in Canada (the Accord), the administration of the Habitat Stewardship Program for species at risk, the administration of the Aboriginal Fund for species at risk and the Interdepartmental Recovery Fund.

The Minister of the Environment is also responsible for the protection and recovery of migratory birds and species at risk on federal lands other than those under the responsibility of the Minister of the Fisheries and Oceans or those individuals under the responsibility of Parks Canada Agency. Under the Accord, it is understood that the provinces and territories will undertake actions and enforce prohibitions for the conservation of species at risk under their jurisdictions.

In addition, the Minister of the Environment is responsible for the initiation and facilitation of multi-jurisdictional recovery teams, and for coordinating the development of recovery strategies for species requiring the involvement of more than one jurisdiction. The Minister of the Environment will attempt to enter into agreements with provinces and territories for them to develop recovery strategies for species under their management responsibility.

Performance expectations:

• Total land area that has been improved or restored to benefit wildlife (with a focus on species at risk). Targets are 30,000 hectares of land and 300 kilometres of shoreline by 2014.
• Performance expectations in 5.1.1 also support this implementation strategy.