Sustainable Development

Sustainable Development Strategy, 1997-2001
Safeguarding our Assets, Securing our Future

NRCan's Contribution to Sustainable Development

Natural Resources Canada provides leading-edge science, knowledge
and expertise to position Canada as a world leader in the sustainable development of its
land, energy, forest and mineral resources, and a quality producer of resource-related
products, technologies, services and research.

Our Business

In Canada, the Constitution gives the provinces jurisdiction over much of the land and
resources. As a result of the 1996 Speech from the Throne, the government has withdrawn
from areas of forestry and mining that are more appropriately the responsibility of
others. The federal role in promoting the sustainable development of natural resources
complements the work of the provinces, industry and the public (Table 2).

NRCan provides a national and international perspective, along with scientific and
policy expertise, to foster a resource sector which is environmentally responsible,
economically viable and globally competitive (See Appendix D:
NRCan Departmental Profile). The federal government's national and international
responsibilities related to natural resources include: international and inter-provincial
trade; science and technology; federal regulatory duties; Aboriginal issues; federal Crown
lands and offshore; environment; and, national statistics.

The Department and Crown agencies also work to protect public health and safety in
areas including nuclear energy and explosives, and with respect to natural hazards such as
earthquakes. Crown agencies are not, however, included as part of the action plans in this
strategy.

NRCan provides services to Canadians in four principal areas by:

1. Conducting leading-edge science to generate and transfer the ideas, knowledge and
   technologies Canada needs to use its resources wisely and efficiently, reduce costs,
   protect the environment and help Canadians create new products and services.
2. Ensuring that federal policies and regulations - in areas such as the
   environment, trade, the economy, science and technology, Aboriginal matters and Canada
   lands - enhance the contribution of natural resources to Canada's economy, while
   protecting the environment and the health and safety of Canadians.
3. Building a national knowledge infrastructure on Canada's land and resources,
   providing Canadians with easy access to the latest economic, environmental and scientific
   information from a variety of sources.
4. Promoting Canada's international interests in cooperation with international
   agencies and other nations to meet our global commitments, and to maintain access to world
   markets for Canadian products, technologies and services.

A Commitment to Partnerships

The challenge of sustainable development requires action not just by governments, but
by industry, communities and individuals.

The Whitehorse Mining Initiative, for instance, is the result of joint efforts of the
mining industry, unions, Aboriginal peoples, the environmental and academic communities as
well as federal, provincial and territorial governments. The Initiative used a
non-adversarial approach to develop a strategic vision to address issues surrounding the
sustainable development of Canada's mineral resources.

Consensus has been the cornerstone of the Model Forests Network which includes 11 sites
covering more than 6 million hectares. This initiative involves over 250 organizations in
a national experiment to design and test new forestry practices and tools, all of which
are being developed through multi-stakeholder approaches to decision-making.

Meeting Canada's climate change goals depends on productive partnerships. More than 600
companies have joined the Energy Innovators program to promote greater energy efficiency
in the commercial and industrial sectors.

NRCan is strengthening partnerships within government as well. For example, four
federal departments - Agriculture and Agri-food, Environment, Fisheries and Oceans and
NRCan - have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Sustainable Development. The
departments are coordinating their science and technology efforts to ensure their programs
are better coordinated, more efficient and cost effective. The Intergovernmental
Geoscience Accord, between the Geological Survey of Canada and the provinces/territories,
ensures the best possible understanding of the nation's geology through a coordinated
effort.

During consultations on this strategy, two concerns were expressed strongly and
repeatedly (Appendix C).

The first emphasized the need for greater cooperation among federal departments, as
well as with provincial agencies, on sustainable development issues. The second concern
was the need for NRCan
to build better and more open partnerships with environmental and Aboriginal groups.

As part of its sustainable development strategy, NRCan
is committed to further expanding its stakeholder base beyond government and business interests. For example,
NRCan is broadening the membership of its Ministerial
advisory bodies to include environmental organizations.

Another message put forward during the consultations was that, given NRCan's
non-operational role in the management of natural resources and its strong scientific
knowledge, the Department should act as an honest broker in providing balanced
information and in facilitating consensus among the different views that Canadians hold
about the future for their natural resources. To achieve this, it was suggested that NRCan
should take more action to make its information available to Canadians, and to develop
more open consultative processes.