The Commissioner's Perspective—2006

Act quickly and decisively on climate change commitments, says Environment Commissioner to government

The Commissioner's Perspective—2006, 2006 Report of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development

Ottawa, 28 September 2006—The federal government has done too little and acted too slowly on Canada's commitments to address the challenge of climate change, says the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Johanne Gélinas, in her Report tabled today in the House of Commons. She welcomes the government's agreement to act on the recommendations in her Report.

"Climate change is upon us and no matter how you look at it, the stakes for Canada are high," said Ms. Gélinas. "With its resources and powers, the federal government can make a big difference. But our findings show that it has not been up to the task so far."

It is increasingly clear that Canada will not meet its international commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The Report outlines reasons why. It says the federal government is not organized to manage its climate change initiatives effectively. Missing are mechanisms to coordinate activities across departments and to track spending and results for reporting to Canadians. It notes, too, that few federal efforts are underway to deal with the booming growth in the oil and gas sector.

Looking to the future, the Commissioner urges the government to come up with a credible, realistic and clear plan with short- and long-term goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. A prominent part of the government's plan should address the long-neglected need to help Canadians cope with the consequences of climate change.

"There is a foundation to build on, with motivated and talented public servants and good programs that have made some headway in reducing emissions," said Ms. Gélinas. "What we need now is a commitment to specific actions with timeframes for completing them."

The Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development and her audit team are part of the Office of the Auditor General of Canada. Her mandate is to audit and report to Parliament and Canadians how well federal departments and agencies implement government policies on environmental and sustainable development issues.

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The chapter "The Commissioner's Perspective—2006" is available on the Office of the Auditor General of Canada Web site.

Information:

Communications
Tel.: (613) 952-0213, ext. 6292
E-mail: communications@oag-bvg.gc.ca