Resistance to Cuts at Environment Canada

On July 5, nearly 50 civil society organizations sent a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper decrying the cuts to Environment Canada and outlining serious concerns about the impacts of the cuts.

As reported in rabble.ca, the letter was endorsed by labour, environmental, social justice, women's and First Nations organizations, including the Council of Canadians, Canadian Union of Public Employees, Centre for Indigenous Environmental Resources, International Institute of Concern for Public Health, Keepers of the Athabasca Watershed Council, Métis Women's Circle, Mining Watch Canada, National Council of Women of Canada, National Network on Environments and Women's Health, Polaris Institute, Public Service Alliance of Canada, and Sierra Club Canada.
In the letter, statements were made by Maude Barlow (national chairperson of the Council of Canadians), Oliver M. Brandes (co-director of the University of Victoria's POLIS Project on Ecological Governance), David Suzuki (emeritus professor of zoology, University of British Columbia), Bob Sandford (chair of the Canadian Partnership Initiative in support of the United Nations Water for Life Decade), Ralph Pentland (acting chairman of the Canadian Water Issues Council) and Randy Christensen (lawyer with Ecojustice).

The largest amount of job cuts was in Climate Change and Clean Air. The number of full time equivalents (FTEs) were reduced by nearly half, a reduction of 422 FTEs for 2011-2012 with another 100 FTEs slated for elimination in 2012-2013. The goal of the program is to ensure that "threats to Canadians, their health and their environment from air pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions are minimized." The programming is "critical to protect the health of Canadians and the environment from the harmful effects of air pollutants and the impacts of greenhouse gas emissions." The program activity is responsible for regulating air pollutants and controlling greenhouse gas emissions.

Budget cuts are reducing services and this has dire implications for the issue of water. Conservation, protection and enforcement of Canada's water will suffer due to the Conservative budget. Conservatives are slashing budgets at a time when Canada needs a national water strategy to replace the badly outdated Federal Water Policy which is more than 30 years old.

According to Environment Canada's 2011-2012 Report on Plans and Priorities, 34 Full-time Equivalents (FTEs) will be cut from the program activity of Water Resources this year (2011-2012) and another 20 FTE positions will be eliminated next year (2012-2013). The program addresses the impacts that economic growth, climate change and other factors have on water sources. The program focuses on water sustainability and provides scientific information and advice to decision-makers. This area also supports the implementation of the Canada Water Act, the 1987 Federal Water Policy, Canadian Environmental Protect Act, Fisheries Act and International Boundary Waters Treaty Act.

Substance and waste management is another area of concern. A total of 279 FTEs will be reduced from Substance and Waste Management. The goal of the program is ensure that "threats to Canadians and impacts on the environment posed by harmful substances and waste are reduced." The program activity "assesses environmental threats posed by harmful substances and other substances of concern in terms of their fate and effects, and develops and implements prevention, reduction, elimination and management measures to deal with these substances." This area is linked to water quality and ecosystem/habitat conservation and protection.

A significant number of FTEs were eliminated from Weather and Environmental Services: 146 FTEs were cut from Weather and Environmental Services for Canadians and 56 FTEs were cut from Weather and Environmental Services for Targeted Users. These significant cuts were not noted in last year's Plans and Priorities.

The mission of the program activity Weather and Environmental Services for Canadians includes ensuring "Canadians, communities and policy-makers understand the potential health and safety risks from the changing climate and air quality conditions." Programming also manages short- and long-term risks including air quality or climate change.

The letter concludes by saying, "Overall these cuts present a significant threat to water protection and healthy ecosystems in Canada. We are calling on the federal government to cancel the cuts and invest in our country's freshwater heritage."

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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Conservatives Cut Budgets and Slash Jobs at Environment Canada

In addition to cuts at the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency and the NRC the Conservatives are also taking the axe to Environment Canada. Over $200 million is being cut from Environment Canada's budget which is resulting in the loss of services and jobs. Amongst the people being let go are those involved in climate change research and those responsible for contaminated sites. These cuts will result in the elimination of 1211 jobs (full-time equivalents) over the next three years. The 50 employees cut in June, include people working in the areas of water and atmospheric science.

Environment Canada is the leading organization related to the country's environmental agenda. They are charged with  a number of responsibilities including environmental protection and natural heritage conservation. They also provide meteorological information and science that informs the nation's regulations and legislation.

Environment Canada collaborates on initiatives that are intended to protect the health of Canadians and the well being of the planet. They work to collect and share knowledge, and to develop, implement and enforce policies to prevent future environmental issues.

Environment Canada's Reports on Plans and Priorities from 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 reveals some deep cuts amounting to a reduction of more than $222 million from last year's total planned spending.

Some of the biggest cuts were in the program activities of climate change, clean air, substance and waste management, weather, environmental services and water resource protections. The programs that were cut this year include, the Clean Air Agenda and the Air Quality Health Index. The programs that will be cut next year include Species at Risk. Over the next few years cuts are expected to Biodiversity and the Chemicals Management Plan.

The Chemicals Management Program is managed jointly between Environment Canada and Health Canada. It ensures "timely action on key threats to health and the environment" and is responsible for "risk assessment, risk management, monitoring and surveillance, as well as research on chemicals which may be harmful to human health or the environment." The Chemicals Management Plan was intended to proactively reduce future costs associated with water treatment, clean-up of contaminated sites, and treating illnesses like cancer that are related to chemical exposure.

Funding was also reduced for the Action Plan on Clean Water and the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan. Last March, former Environment Minister Jim Prentice said the Action Plan on Clean Water was a priority. However, the government is going back on its word to provide clean water, just as it reneged on its commitment to improve environmental assessment.

Cuts to the Action Plan on Clean Water includes facets of the Oceans Action Plan, the Plan of Action for Drinking Water in First Nations Communities, clean-up funding for water bodies, wastewater regulations and water science. These cuts undermine Canada's ability to fulfill their legal obligation on the right to water.

Without consulting the public the federal government has cut programs that will have critical impacts on current as well as future generations.

With cuts to Environment Canada, the NRC, and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, it is clear that Harper's Conservatives want to emasculate all the instruments of power that could undermine their bid to disregard the environment and make Canada a dirty energy superpower.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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Canadian Conservatives Slash Environmental Assessment

Recently, in the speech from the throne, the Canadian Conservative government affirmed its commitment to improving environmental assessment, now it is gutting those institutions responsible for environmental oversight.

The Conservative government of Canada is cutting jobs and funding to the environmental agency that evaluates policies and projects. These cutbacks ensure that Canadians will have less information about proposed resource projects.


Conservatives are getting rid of a third of the full-time staff at the 17-year-old Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. The Agency provides Canadians with high-quality environmental assessments that contributes to informed decision making, in support of sustainable development. They play a leadership role in the review of major projects assessed as comprehensive studies and those referred to review panels. They also coordinate the Government of Canada's Aboriginal consultation activities during the environmental assessment process.

As reported in a Canada.com article, by Amy Minsky, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency is looking at a cutback of almost half of their budget. According to the agency's planning documents, 43.1 percent of their budget has been cut, resulting in budgetary reductions of $13 million dollars ($30 million in 2011-12 reduced to $17.1 million in 2012-13). This is in addition to cuts In 2010-2011, when the agency had its budget cut by 6.9 per cent, or $2.2-million.

With an increasing number of large-scale mining projects coming down the pipe — including Stornoway Diamond Corp.'s foray into Quebec's first diamond mine, Taseko Mines Ltd.'s gold-copper mine in British Columbia, and the Enbridge oil pipeline — now is not the time to start taking risks, said Stephen Hazell, an environmental lawyer based in Ottawa.

Hazell indicated that the proper environmental assessments could have averted the three month long BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. "BP didn't get it sorted out, and the engineers at Fukushima didn't get it figured out. Sometimes it happens. Bad things happen," he said.

One of the programs that were cut specifically aims to improve the regulatory framework for major projects.

Hazell indicated that the Conservatives have been slowly withdrawing from the assessment act which already contained loopholes. "Perhaps these cuts they're planning are just another way of reducing federal environmental assessment and getting government off the backs of industry," Hazell said.

Cuts to the Environmental Assessment Agency, Environment Canada and the NRC paint a clear picture. With its ever expanding anti-environment agenda, it is no wonder that the federal Conservatives want to weaken government organizations with opposing views.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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Canadian Conservatives Slash NRC Budget

The Canadian Conservatives have cut almost $200 million from the budget of the National Research Council of Canada. The Harper governments cuts eliminate more than 20 percent of the NRC's budget.

The National Research Council promotes leading-edge technological research and is the Government of Canada's premier organization for research and development. For almost 100 years the NRC has been contributing to more informed decision making. This year, the NRC named sustainable energy as one of its three national priority areas.
As reported in the Ottawa Citiz
en, The NRC's total budget was $881,137,581 in the last fiscal year; in 2011-12, it has been reduced to $690,836,000. These cuts will result in the elimination of 25 science jobs across the country.

"The loss of institutional knowledge will be huge," said Gary Corbett, president of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPPS), the scientists' union. "You can't just drain knowledge from the public sector. It will be devastating to Canada in future years, but the government doesn't seem to care."

Although the numbers of people cut is devastating, the loss of expertise is debilitating. "If you have a rocket scientist going out the door, you can't replace that person with an insect scientist," Corbett said.

While some departments are being gutted other are getting budget increases. Corrections Canada is getting an increase even though crime is at a 40 year low. Government departments associated with the environments are being singled out for cuts. With a combined total of almost half a billion dollars being cut at the NRC, Environment Canada and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, it is clear that this is not just about across the board cost cutting.

Why are the federal Conservatives cutting spending in departments associated with the environment? Perhaps it is because these cuts serve to weaken the institutions that may contradict a Conservative energy agenda that is mired in the tar sands.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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