Creating a Biodiversity Framework for Ontario - 2003
There are many different environmental issues in Ontario, ranging in scale from the protection of a small wetland in southern Ontario to mitigating the impacts of commercial forestry across entire landscapes. In response, provincial ministries develop policies and programs that address these specific issues, which often vary in their goals and direction. The ECO is concerned that while ministries may be working away at fragments of issues, they often fail to grasp a wider perspective.
This failure to see the bigger picture has very practical consequences, since it can result in policies and programs that are inadequate, misdirected, or even counterproductive.
Recognizing the core issues and developing a coordinated plan to address them is a more effective way of dealing with environmental problems. It also allows for an efficient use of government resources. Many of what appear to be separate issues are highly interrelated. If they were approached from the perspective of a comprehensive strategy, they would be seen to be facets of the same problem. At the root of many of these environmental issues is the conservation of biological diversity — biodiversity — which encompasses and unites many of the most serious environmental issues in the province.
Biological diversity can be understood as the variety of native species, the genetic variability within each species, and the variety of different ecosystems and landscapes they form. It is the result of billions of years of evolution, creating ecological systems so complex that humans are only now beginning to understand their dynamics. Ontario’s extensive range of landforms and climates has created habitat for more than 2,900 species of vascular plants, 160 species of fish, 80 species of amphibians and reptiles, 400 species of birds and 85 species of mammals. There are also thousands of insect species and other smaller forms of life too numerous to be counted accurately. This collection of life, including the lands and waters on which it depends, forms the basis of Ontario’s biodiversity.
The loss of biodiversity is a global problem. Like other jurisdictions in North America, Ontario is experiencing a rapid decline in the abundance of species and in natural areas. The cumulative impacts of expanding urban areas, industry, forestry, pollution, fishing, farming, and the introduction of invasive species are among the most significant threats to Ontario’s biodiversity.
The Government of Canada is a signatory to the international Convention on Biological Diversity, formally ratifying it in 1993. Two years later, the federal government released the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy, which outlined a series of principles and strategic directions that were to serve as a guide for the provinces and territories to uphold Canada’s commitment to conserve biodiversity.
In 1996, all the provinces and territories agreed, in a National Statement of Commitment, to implement the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy. Since that time, several provinces have developed their own biodiversity strategies to assist in this task. Ontario has still not developed its own strategy.
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A Framework to Conserve Biodiversity
The ECO believes that the Ministry of Natural Resources should develop a series of integrated, province-wide strategies to address key biodiversity issues. These strategies should target specific areas in which action is required to conserve biodiversity, such as conserving protected areas and natural heritage features and functions, protecting species at risk, and addressing the threat of invasive species.
Biodiversity Strategy
In our 2001/2002 annual report, the ECO recommended that MNR develop a provincial biodiversity strategy in consultation with affected ministries, municipalities and stakeholders. MNR has taken no action since then to develop this strategy. But a comprehensive, coherent framework is needed for ministry programs and policies, including the following sub-strategies aimed at specific biodiversity issues.
Protected Areas Sub-strategy
The loss of natural areas is one of the greatest threats to biodiversity worldwide, including within Ontario. A network of protected areas plays a fundamental role in conserving biodiversity, particularly at the landscape level. Although MNR has undertaken some useful large-scale initiatives, such as Ontario’s Living Legacy, they do not cover the entire province. In our 2001/2002 annual report, the ECO recommended that MNR create a new legislative framework for provincial parks and protected areas, including conservation reserves, with the mandate of conserving biodiversity. The ministry stated that it accepted this recommendation, but that no review has been scheduled.
Natural Heritage Sub-strategy
The conservation of natural heritage features, such as wetlands and forests, is essential to safe-guarding biodiversity at the ecosystem level. MNR does administer many policies and programs that address natural heritage issues (see the Ecological Land Acquisition Program, pages 96-97). However, the ministry has not developed a province-wide strategy that would effectively coordinate and deliver these policies and programs. (See also Natural Heritage Strategy for MNR’s Southcentral Region, pages 98-100.)
Species at Risk Sub-strategy
The protection and recovery of species at risk, such as the loggerhead shrike and the prickly pear cactus, are urgent areas of concern in the conservation of biodiversity (see Wolf Conservation Strategy, pages 139-143). The large number of species at risk is an indicator of the state of Ontario’s biodiversity. MNR has committed itself to developing a Provincial Species at Risk Strategy by sometime in 2003, saying that the ministry intends to contact key stakeholders during the consultation process and to place the strategy on the Environmental Registry for public comment. (See Species at Risk, pages 139-143.) MNR has also identified internally the need to revise the Endangered Species Act to harmonize it with the federal Species at Risk Act.
Invasive Species Sub-strategy
Non-native species, such as the zebra mussel and the round goby, are important threats to Ontario’s native biodiversity. More than 160 types of invasive or exotic species are currently found in Ontario. In some cases, the presence of non-native species facilitates the establishment of other exotic species, causing what has been called the “invasional meltdown” of the Great Lakes. Although a handful of programs do exist to address specific invasive species, no province-wide strategy exists to guide action on this significant environmental issue. (See Exotic Species: Invading the Great Lakes Basin, page 76.)
ECO Comment
The loss of Ontario’s biodiversity — its plants, animals and natural spaces — will continue unless the province takes concerted action. Although MNR’s Statement of Environmental Values does make reference to biodiversity, the ECO believes that the ministry should formally recognize that one of its core functions is to maintain, restore, and protect Ontario’s biodiversity.
MNR should develop a comprehensive biodiversity strategy to guide the sub-strategies targeted at specific biodiversity issues. As part of this overall framework, MNR should undertake a comprehensive assessment of its current policies, regulations and Acts, and enact appropriate changes to conserve the province’s biodiversity. Ontario committed to such an assessment in its endorsement of the Canadian Biodiversity Strategy. Over the long term, a biodiversity strategy will need to guide and influence the regulatory structures overseeing the consumptive uses of natural resources, including forestry, fishing, farming, mining and tourism.
The ECO believes that each of the integrated sub-strategies should contain a clearly identified vision, objectives, detailed courses of action, measurable targets and public reporting requirements. MNR should solicit public comment on the Environmental Registry in the development of each strategy. The ministry should also promote inter-ministerial cooperation in the development and implementation of the strategies to address these issues effectively.
The integrity of the province’s natural environment is of great importance to the citizens of Ontario. The province has a responsibility to recognize the seriousness of this issue and develop an immediate course of action.
| This is an article from the 2002/03 Annual Report to the Legislature from the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. |
Citing This Article
Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. 2003. "Creating a Biodiversity Framework for Ontario." Thinking Beyond the Near and Now, ECO Annual Report, 2002-03. Toronto, ON : Environmental Commissioner of Ontario. 49-53.
