Species at risk in Canada will receive increased protection if Parliament passes recent legislation. (Image source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.) |
April 2000
Ottawa, Canada
In recent months, Canadian environmentalists have been pushing Parliament to pass endangered species legislation. To date, Canada has lacked federal laws protecting endangered species and their habitat. In early April, Environment Minister David Anderson introduced the Species at Risk Act (SARA), which would provide standard, nation-wide species protection as well as defining rules for species listing and recovery plans. Listing, management, and recovery plans have previously been handled under agreements between provinces and territories. The proposed legislation includes fines of up to $1 million Canadian for corporations (or $250,00 for individuals) whose activities threaten endangered species or their habitat.
Canada has about 340 species classified as "at risk," including the whooping crane, which nests in northern Canada. Other species at risk include Beluga and Bowhead whales, the Northern Red-legged frog, and the Spring salamander. Polls indicate that 90% of Canadians support legislation that protects habitat. For the past 22 years, the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) has had the responsibility of identifying species at risk. COSEWIC species lists will be adopted by the new SARA legislation, but the cabinet will make the final decisions on which species actually need protection. This provision worries many wildlife proponents, who would prefer that a scientific committee have final say on which species receive protection.
The act allows for protection of habitat as well as listed species on federal, provincial, territorial, and private lands. Critics point out that protection on private and provincial lands is not automatic, but is subject to cabinet rulings. Many environmentalists are happy to see Parliament moving toward legal, enforceable protection for species at risk, but others are concerned about the degree of autonomy the new bill grants to provinces, landowners, and extractive corporations.
To learn more, see these related websites:
List of species at risk in Canada
To read more, see:
Environmental Science, A Global Concern, Cunningham and Saigo, 6th ed.
U.S. Endangered Species Act, pp. 295-98
Critical habitat, pp. 297-98
Recovery plans for endangered species, pp. 297-98
Habitat protection for endangered species, pp. 299-300
Environmental Science, A Study of Interrelationships, Enger and Smith, 7th ed.
Managing ecosystems for wildlife, pp. 202-5
U.S. Endangered Species Act, pp. 210-12
Habitat preservation for wildlife, pp. 297-98
Wildlife conservation legislation, p. 397
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