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More than 15 years have passed since Canada's Species at Risk Act was enacted. To evaluate scientific progress in support of the Act, we identified research accomplishments up to 2017 for imperilled aquatic species in the Great Lakes--St. Lawrence River basin based on recovery documents and an expert survey, spanning 1182 activities across 68 research topics for 45 fish and mussel species. Greatest progress was observed for population ecology (38% of activities with major progress) and habitat science (28%), with comparably less progress on threats (mechanisms and impacts; 19%) and recovery (threat mitigation and reintroduction; 21%). As a result of lagging progress, threat and reintroduction topics were prioritized for a Canadian Freshwater Species at Risk Research Network (SARNET; 2017-2020), which focused on addressing key knowledge gaps with novel applications. This special issue outlines the SARNET projects, which span novel field, laboratory, and analytical activities. Continued research investment into novel and existing approaches is necessary to advance scientific achievements for fishes and mussels in support of the Species at Risk Act in Canada. Plus de 15 annees se sont ecoulees depuis la promulgation de la Loi sur les especes en peril du Canada. Afin d'evaluer les avancees scientifiques a l'appui de la loi, nous avons recense les realisations en recherche jusqu'en 2017 touchant aux especes aquatiques menacees dans le bassin des Grands Lacs et du fleuve Saint-Laurent a la lumiere de documents concernant le retablissement et d'un sondage aupres de specialistes qui couvrent 1182 activites portant sur 68 sujets de recherche visant 45 especes de poissons et de moules. Les plus grandes avancees sont observees dans les domaines de l'ecologie des populations (38 % des activites presentant des avancees majeures) et de la science des habitats (28 %), relativement moins d'avancees etant observees dans les domaines des menaces (mecanismes et impacts, 19 %) et du retablissement (attenuation des menaces et reintroduction, 21 %). Au vu du retard au plan des avancees, les themes des menaces et de la reintroduction ont ete priorises pour un reseau canadien de recherche sur les especes d'eau douce en peril (SARNET, 2017-2020), dont les travaux ont mis l'accent sur d'importantes lacunes dans les connaissances offrant de nouvelles applications. Le present numero special offre un aperqu des projets du SARNET, qui portent sur un eventail d'activites analytiques, de terrain et de laboratoire originales. Un investissement soutenu en recherche sur des approches nouvelles et existantes est necessaire a la poursuite d'avancees scientifiques concernant les poissons et les moules, a l'appui de la Loi sur les especes en peril au Canada. [Traduit par la Redaction], Introduction The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was established in 1992 to recognize the profound value of protecting biodiversity. The global response to the CBD was substantial, with [...]

Abstract Based on archival sources, this article analyzes the Canadian contribution to the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment. It finds that continental imperatives were of pivotal importance in [...]

IN ITS QUEST to dominate the planet's agricultural biotechnology sector, Monsanto's business model has produced significant collateral damage. Generations of farming families in South America, India and other robustly developing [...]

DAVID SCHINDLER is one of Canada's most influential environmental scientists, both at home and abroad. Between 1968 and 1989, he directed the Experimental Lakes Area research facility in Ontario, leading [...]

'People who shut their eyes to reality simply invite their own destruction, and anyone who insists on remaining in a state of innocence long after that innocence is dead turns [...]

Canada and the European Union are among the 10 largest emitters of greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for two and 14 percent respectively of global carbon dioxide emissions. Both have large [...]

This paper examines shifts in the regulation and governance of environmental crime over the twenty-year period since the passage of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) in 1988, tracing its history, policies, and enforcement record from 1989-2008. Documents assessed include Environment Canada's enforcement data, Annual Reports, reports on its Plans and Priorities, the Senate and House of Commons five-year reviews of CEPA 1988 and CEPA 1999 and the government's response to these reviews. The purpose of the paper is to document the process and compromises that have shaped federal environmental protection, and explore the policy paralysis this has produced. Key Words: regulation; enforcement; environmental protection; policy; crime; federal responsibilities. Le present document examine les changements dans la reglementation et le gouvernement de la criminalite pour l'environnement au cours de la periode de 20 ans depuis le passage de la Loi canadienne sur la protection de l'environnement (LCPE) en 1988, tracant son histoire, ses politiques et son dossier d'application de 1989 a 2008. Les documents evalues comportent des donnees d'application d'Environnement Canada, ses rapports annuels, ses rapports sur les plans et priorites, les examens quinquennaux de LCPE 1988 et LCPE 1999 par le Senat et par la Chambre des Communes et aussi les reponses de gouvernement a ces examens. Le but de l'article est de documenter le processus et les compromis qui ont forme la protection de l'environnement federale et explorer la paralysie de politique que ceci a produit. Mots cles: reglement; application; protection de l'environnement; politique; crime; responsabilites federales., This century has brought an increasing awareness of global environmental destruction and its implications for the survival of all life on Earth. While nation-states in general have been slow at [...]

Research on climate change policy and politics has become increasingly focused on the actions and influence of subnational governments. In North America, this attention has been particularly focused on why subnational governments have taken action in the absence of national leadership, what effect action might have on future national climate policy, and whether the collective action of networks of municipal governments are reshaping and challenging the character of national and global climate governance. This paper examines Canadian municipal climate in light of the absence of a comprehensive and effective climate national strategy. The paper considers various reasons why local governments in Canada have not been central players in national plans, and why their actions have not been more influential nationally. The paper argues that the potential influence of Canadian municipalities on national climate policy is weak, given the loose nature of the network and the long-held structural view that municipalities are not significant units of political analysis in national political and policy debates. The paper concludes by considering the constraints and opportunities of subnational climate networks and municipal network analysis. KEY WORDS: climate change, comparative governance, urban studies, governance, Introduction According to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), in 2007, 5 percent of Canadians, or approximately 21 million people, lived in a municipality that had formally committed to reduce [...]

Diesel fuel released into the environment can contaminate ground water, degrade potable water supplies and cause the collapse of fisheries. They are toxic to both animals and humans and can affect the liver, lungs, kidneys, and nervous system leading to cancer as well as immunological and reproductive effects. The objectives of this study were to review current Canadian regulations pertaining to diesel fuel and to evaluate the current remediation methods using five criteria: efficiency, applicability, cost, time and cleanliness. PAHs are deemed toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act but no standards have been set for PAHs in diesel. The Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment (CCME) has developed Canada-Wide Standards for Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Soil (CWS PHCS) while the Atlantic PIRI has implemented a Risk Based Corrective Action (RBCA) for the Atlantic region. The remediation methods included soil washing, landfilling, incineration, thermal desorption, radio frequency heating, chemical addition, landfarming, biopiling, composting, bioventing, liquid delivery and bioreactors. The bioreactors studied included: static bed, continuous mix, horizontal drum, fungal compost, slurry-phase, DITS, biofilters and packed bed bioreactors. The results showed that the biological methods were more effective than nonbiological ones and the bioreactors scored the highest among the biological methods. Eight criteria were then used for the evaluation of bioreactors: efficiency, time, cost, maintenance, simplicity, release of VOCs to the atmosphere, containment of contaminants and control of operating parameters The results showed that the continuous mix bioreactor was the most effective system. Key words: Diesel fuel, remediation, regulation, ecosystem, physical, chemical, biological, evaluation, INTRODUCTION Diesel Fuel is intended for use in compression engines such as those found in trucks, trains and subtrains (1). It is composed of a variety of organic compounds as [...]

Salmon know no borders or boundaries. The representatives from both countries recognized this fact, and had the wisdom to fashion an agreement to work for the good of the resource [...]

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES are once again the stuff of headlines. According to the pollsters, Canadians now rank the environment at the top of their political concerns. In large part, this is […]

Abstract A major challenge in environmental policymaking in Canada is managing conflicts between the federal and provincial governments arising from overlapping jurisdiction under the Constitution Act. This paper evaluates the [...]

Evaluation of Ontario's Environmental Farm Plan (EFP) scheme, launched in 1993, provides an opportunity for comparisons with agri-environmental measures instituted in the European Union and other parts of North America. The EFP has a strong 'bottom-up' dimension in that it is farmers' organizations that have been central both to the scheme's instigation and to its ongoing management. This has affected the nature of the actions taken by individual farmers participating in the scheme. These actions are reviewed, especially in terms of the participants' attitudes towards stewardship of the land, environmental outcomes, cross-compliance measures, barriers to participation and the role of statutory regulation. Some contrasts are drawn with the greater 'top-down' controls exerted in several EU agri-environment schemes, with the latter's promotion of extensification and the changing role of farmers as 'producers of countryside' in a multi-functional agricultural system. The diffusion of EFP schemes throughout Canada is noted and is cited as confirming the maintenance of fundamentally different attitudes to the development of farm-based environmental actions compared with those adopted in the EU. KEY WORDS: Ontario, agri-environment schemes, Environmental Farm Plan, environmental impacts, stewardship, post-productivism

Environmental concerns often figure prominently in opinion polls. But do election outcomes actually affect the environment? I test the influence of the party in power on urban air pollution in 13 Canadian cities. The government's political stripe is not reliably associated with positive or negative effects on air pollution. Provincial parties on both the right and the left are associated with elevated levels of some air contaminants. Federal effects also go in contrasting directions. Overall it appears a change in government is unlikely to be a reliable predictor of changes in air pollution.

Issue redefinition and venue shopping have been identified as key strategies for enacting agenda and policy change, but much work remains to be done in elaborating these processes. I argue that an important aspect of issue redefinition involves shifting not only the image of an issue but also the bases for considering those issues--what I call policy principles. Policy principles are the core values, beliefs, or guidelines attached to policies that help direct decision making. The emergence and acceptance of new principles by the public and policymakers can be a vital source of policy change, at times having far greater consequences for policy than redefining an issue. Venue shopping is also a multifaceted undertaking involving efforts by policy entrepreneurs and advocacy groups to keep issues out of venues they would rather not participate in as well as move decision making to new arenas. Moreover, while the literature suggests that shifting venues is usually a sensible strategy, sometimes venue shopping can backfire. A case study of the municipal movement to restrict the nonessential use of lawn and garden pesticides in Canada illustrates these theoretical points and shows the applicability of agenda setting models to contexts outside the United States. KEY WORDS: agenda setting, policy change, environmental policy, pesticides, On June 28, 2001, the Supreme Court of Canada upheld the right of Hudson, Quebec to restrict the use of lawn and garden pesticides (1) on public and private property. [...]

Sommaire : Cet article examine en profondeur les elements strategiques essentiels de la responsabilite elargie des producteurs (REP) d'emballage, et presente une orientation a propos de deux elements strategiques cles [...]

WITH KYOTO'S DEADLINES looming, Canada faces the likelihood that we will not reach our targets of reducing emissions to six percent below 1990 levels between 2008 and 2012. And Canada […]

Abstract: Patterns in the geographic distribution of seven species groups were used to identify important areas for conservation in British Columbia, Canada. Potential priority sites for conservation were determined using [...]

Abstract In this article it is asserted that saving seed is a political practice. This understanding stands in contrast to dominant constructions of seed saving as anachronistic and/or private and [...]