It takes more than talk...

It takes more than merely talk and legislation to maintain Canada's ecological biodiversity in good health. It also takes action, and action requires both human and financial resources. This might explain why - yet again - Canada's commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development committee has found problem's with the federal government's environmental record. As this recent CBC News report points out, interim commissioner Neil Maxwell has published a study highlighting a number of areas where Canadian environmental policies amount to empty promises because of insufficient resources:

From the International Convention on Biological Diversity, to the state of Canada’s National Parks, to plans to save Canada’s 518 species at risk, Maxwell noted a “pattern of unfulfilled commitments and responsibilities” that appear to be the result of departments with too many demands and too few resources.

The example highlights the relationship between austerity and ecological degradation. A successful approach to environmental management requires a complementary regulatory and political economic structure.

The full report is available here: http://www.oag-bvg.gc.ca/internet/English/parl_cesd_201311_e_38658.html