ENV250Y5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Ecojustice Canada, Environmental Policy, Cites
Ch 3
Policy making in Canada is a complicated process with a variety of actors entering
and exiting the process at various times.
A straightforward, simplistic description is that environmental law is made by our
elected officials and implemented by our bureaucracy.
But, as should be clear, the process is rarely straightforward, and, even when it is,
numerous outside influences affect policy, including media, interest groups, and
citizens.
Policy can be regulatory, voluntary, or economic, and it can impact behavior
directly or affect the overall process of how a rule is carried out.
Each level of government- the national government, the provincial governments,
and, to a lesser extent, the territorial governments- has the power to create
environmental policy.
The next chapter provides an overview of the history of the enviroenmntal
movement in Canada.
This chapter sets the context for understanding how enviroenmtnal problems
developed and why wildlife, pollution, and climate change continue to be pressing
issues across the country.
Ch 5
Federalism poses many challenges to managing biodiversity in Canada, especially
when it comes to protecting species at risk.
The federal government has the constitutional authority to enter into international
treaties.
To preserve biodiversity, the federal government has exercised this authority
through the migratory birds convention act, the international agreement on
conservation of polar bears, CITES, and the UNCBD (to name a few).
The federal government is also responsible for the protection of aquatic species, and
Ottawa safeguards wildlife and species at risk on federal land, including on
aboriginal reserve lands.
Federalism means that the provinces carry the bulk of the regulatory power for
wildlife and habitats, as they control natural resources and private property as well
as mange provincial lands.
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Document Summary
Policy making in canada is a complicated process with a variety of actors entering and exiting the process at various times. A straightforward, simplistic description is that environmental law is made by our elected officials and implemented by our bureaucracy. But, as should be clear, the process is rarely straightforward, and, even when it is, numerous outside influences affect policy, including media, interest groups, and citizens. Policy can be regulatory, voluntary, or economic, and it can impact behavior directly or affect the overall process of how a rule is carried out. Each level of government- the national government, the provincial governments, and, to a lesser extent, the territorial governments- has the power to create environmental policy. The next chapter provides an overview of the history of the enviroenmntal movement in canada. This chapter sets the context for understanding how enviroenmtnal problems developed and why wildlife, pollution, and climate change continue to be pressing issues across the country.
