Spring 2024 Reports from Canada’s Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development

June 21, 2024, 2:00-3:00 PM ET

Presentation slides (EN)

Diapositives de présentation (FR)

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Sustainability Network welcomes back Canada’s Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (CESD) to discuss reports tabled in Parliament on April 30, 2024. Commissioner Jerry V. DeMarco and Principals from the Office of the Auditor General of Canada discuss the issues covered by these recent CESD reports:

Report 1— Contaminated Sites in the North. This audit focused on whether Crown‑Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada and Transport Canada, working with Environment and Climate Change Canada and the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, effectively managed federal contaminated sites in the North by reducing risks to the environment and human health and the associated financial liability for current and future generations. The programs examined included the Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan and the Northern Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program.

Report 2— Greening of Building Materials in Public Infrastructure. This audit focused on whether Public Services and Procurement Canada, the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, Natural Resources Canada, and Infrastructure Canada used the Government of Canada’s purchasing power effectively to support and prioritize the use of low embodied carbon construction materials—including steel, aluminum, and concrete—in public infrastructure projects to contribute to environmental protection and sustainable development. It also focused on determining whether Infrastructure Canada made effective use of its funding programs in pursuit of that same goal.

Report 3— Zero Plastic Waste. This audit focused on whether Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Crown‑Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, and Statistics Canada led by Environment and Climate Change Canada were on track to achieve their intended contributions to the Canada‑wide goal of reaching zero plastic waste by 2030 to reduce the impact of plastic pollution on the environment.

Report 4— Strategic Innovation Fund’s Net Zero Accelerator Initiative—Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. This audit focused on whether Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada managed the Strategic Innovation Fund’s Net Zero Accelerator to decarbonize the manufacturing industries in accordance with Canada’s climate goals and with due regard to value for money for Canadians.

Report 5— Agriculture and Climate Change Mitigation—Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. This audit focused on whether Agriculture and Agri‑Food Canada designed and implemented an approach for how the agriculture sector will contribute to Canada’s 2030 and 2050 greenhouse gas mitigation and sequestration goals, commitments, and targets. This audit also examined whether the department delivered its climate change mitigation programs and activities to ensure that results are being achieved with respect to commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon.

The webinar highlights learnings from these CESD reports and provides an opportunity for questions.

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