(Ottawa) The Trudeau government fears that certain provinces will take advantage of its program aimed at planting 2 billion trees in a decade to increase the cutting rights of the forestry industry in their respective territories.
Posted at 5:00 a.m.
At a time when this $3.16 billion program is just beginning to take off, the federal Department of Natural Resources is trying to secure firm commitments from the provinces to resist the temptation to increase stumpage fees, learned The Press.
Talks in this direction were launched at the beginning of the year in the hope of obtaining such guarantees, the office of the Minister of Natural Resources, Jonathan Wilkinson, confirmed.
Documents obtained by The Press under the Access to Information Act highlight for the first time the fear, even mistrust, that the federal government has of the provinces in this matter.
Because an increase in stumpage fees granted by the provinces would have the effect of canceling the environmental benefits that Ottawa is aiming for by financing an ambitious tree planting program.
The ten-page briefing note obtained by The Press and dated January 25, 2022 presented options to Minister Wilkinson for obtaining commitments from the provinces. But the document is almost entirely redacted, except for the very first paragraph which underlines the “concern” of the Ministry.
“Environmental Benefits”
In the 2019 federal election, Justin Trudeau’s Liberals promised to plant 2 billion trees over the next decade as part of his climate change plan. But the slowness to implement this promise has been sharply criticized by opposition parties and environmental groups. In unison, they accused the Trudeau government of making empty promises on environmental protection.
“The agreements between the Government of Canada and the provinces and territories will demonstrate a shared commitment to the multiple objectives of the 2 Billion Tree Planting Program which are focused on sustainable environmental benefits such as biodiversity and GHG reduction,” said said Keean Nembhard, Minister Wilkinson’s press secretary, in an email to The Press.
“The program is not intended to support projects that regenerate forests as part of normal commercial forestry activities. Instead, all funded projects must be additional to tree planting activities currently required by law. The Government of Canada was concerned that this was not clearly understood by all stakeholders and the public,” added Mr. Nembhard.
Minister Wilkinson’s office said the agreements will be posted on the ministry’s website as they are finalized.
“The agreements in principle with the provinces and territories will clearly recognize the goals and objectives of the program. They will establish the desired results on both sides,” also underlined the Minister’s press attaché.
Small share of the total
In June, Mr. Wilkinson announced that only 30 million trees had been planted in the program’s first year, 2021, or 1.5% of the total number targeted, but that the goal was to plant more 250 to 350 million trees per year from 2026.
He said more than 150 species of trees had been planted in more than 500 locations across the country. “These projects will restore nature, foster biodiversity, create forest ecosystems on fire-damaged lands, intensify carbon sequestration, and create parks and green spaces in and around our cities.” , he also pointed out.
Shane Moffatt, head of the nature and food campaign at Greenpeace, remains convinced that this promise was made in order to make people forget the purchase of the Trans Mountain pipeline a few months earlier.
Justin Trudeau first made this pledge in 2019 in an effort to green a big, dirty pipeline. So from the start it seemed to be more of a political exercise than a serious environmental commitment.
Shane Moffatt, Nature and Food Campaigner at Greenpeace
“And at the end of the day, we are now seeing a political mess because the government jumped before it looked at what was in front of it. It was very predictable,” Moffatt said.
However, he said he was encouraged to see that “some people in government are realizing that planting trees that will simply be cut down by the logging industry is not a solution to the climate or biodiversity crises. It would only be a gift to the industry”.
With the collaboration of William Leclerc, The Press