HomeEnvironmental Stewardship is a central theme of land management in Canada’s Capital Region. The NCC looks after a wide variety of lands, including urban, rural and natural. Our goal is to protect, use or develop them so that they will be preserved for future generations of Canadians. We use the Environmental Management Framework as a tool to direct our actions.
Environmental Management Framework
The NCC has played an active role in protecting the environment for over 100 years. In 1899, its predecessor, the Ottawa Improvement Commission, began to manage a network of parks in the region, starting with Rockcliffe Park. Since then, several initiatives have been implemented to protect the natural environment, including the creation of Gatineau Park and the Greenbelt.
At the turn of the millennium, the NCC recognized the need to write down, in the form of a vision and guiding principles, the philosophy and actions that have inspired and guided it for several years. The vision and principles are intended to be tools to direct the actions of the Crown corporation and its employees.
Vision
Taking into account the diversity of lands and the stresses placed on the environment in the National Capital Region, and recognizing the fact that the NCC and its partners will respect the principles of sustainable development:
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The National Capital Commission, through its environmental management activities, will contribute to the development of a National Capital Region where the quality of the natural or biophysical environment is sustained and enhanced for the benefit of present and future generations. |
Guiding Principles
The NCC will:
- exercise its role as manager of the biophysical environment in an exemplary fashion;
- ensure that environmental considerations are an integral part of its overall planning of the Capital region;
- coordinate the development of federal lands in the National Capital Region in such a way as to protect essential ecosystems and to support sustainable development;
- foster awareness of environmental values for the general public and for its employees;
- ensure that the National Capital Region is a symbol of the aspirations Canadians have towards the biophysical environment; and
- manage its activities and lands in order to maintain and improve the health of the environment and the quality of life in the region.
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