SUMMARY

The purposes of this enactment are to prevent Canadian indigenous species, subspecies and distinct populations of wildlife from becoming extirpated or extinct, to provide for the recovery of endangered or threatened species, to encourage the management of other species to prevent them from becoming at risk.

This enactment establishes the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) as an independent body of experts responsible for assessing and identifying species at risk. It provides that COSEWIC’s assessments are to be reported to the Minister of the Environment and to the Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council and it authorizes the Governor in Council to establish by regulation the official list of species at risk based on that process.

It requires that the best available knowledge be used to define long- and short-term objectives in a recovery strategy for endangered and threatened species and it provides for action plans to identify specific actions.

It creates prohibitions to protect listed threatened and endangered species and their critical habitat.

It recognizes that compensation may be needed to ensure fairness following the imposition of the critical habitat prohibitions.

It creates a public registry to assist in making documents under the Act more accessible to the public.

It is consistent with Aboriginal and treaty rights and respects the authority of other federal ministers and provincial governments.

Preamble

Canada’s natural heritage is an integral part of our national identity and history,

wildlife, in all its forms, has value in and of itself and is valued by Canadians for aesthetic, cultural, spiritual, recreational, educational, historical, economic, medical, ecological and scientific reasons,

Canadian wildlife species and ecosystems are also part of the world’s heritage and the Government of Canada has ratified the United Nations Convention on the Conservation of Biological Diversity,

providing legal protection for species at risk will complement existing legislation and will, in part, meet Canada’s commitments under that Convention,

the Government of Canada is committed to conserving biological diversity and to the principle that, if there are threats of serious or irreversible damage to a wildlife species, cost-effective measures to prevent the reduction or loss of the species should not be postponed for a lack of full scientific certainty,

responsibility for the conservation of wildlife in Canada is shared among the governments in this country and that it is important for them to work cooperatively to pursue the establishment of complementary legislation and programs for the protection and recovery of species at risk in Canada,

it is important that there be cooperation between the governments in this country to maintain and strengthen national standards of environmental conservation and that the Government of Canada is committed to the principles set out in intergovernmental agreements respecting environmental conservation,

the Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council is to provide national leadership for the protection of species at risk, including the provision of general direction to the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada in respect of that Committee’s activities and general directions in respect of the development, coordination and implementation of recovery efforts,

the roles of the aboriginal peoples of Canada and of wildlife management boards established under land claims agreements in the conservation of wildlife in this country are essential,

all Canadians have a role to play in the conservation of wildlife in this country, including the prevention of wildlife species from becoming extirpated or extinct,

there will be circumstances under which the cost of conserving species at risk should be shared,

the conservation efforts of individual Canadians and communities should be encouraged and supported,

stewardship activities contributing to the conservation of wildlife species and their habitat should be supported to prevent species from becoming at risk,

community knowledge and interests, including socio-economic interests, should be considered in developing and implementing recovery measures,

the traditional knowledge of the aboriginal peoples of Canada should be considered in the assessment of which species may be at risk and in developing and implementing recovery measures,

knowledge of wildlife species and ecosystems is critical to their conservation,

the habitat of species at risk is key to their conservation, and

Canada’s protected areas, especially national parks, are vital to the protection and recovery of species at risk,

NOW, THEREFORE, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

SHORT TITLE

Marginal note: Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Species at Risk Act .

INTERPRETATION

Marginal note: Definitions