[Sust-mar] NDP Legislation Calls For Appointment Of Environment Commissioner

[Graham Steele]

NDP Legislation Calls For Appointment Of Environment Commissioner
December 4, 2007


Halifax - NDP Environment Critic, Graham Steele, will introduce
legislation today that would appoint a “Commissioner for the Environment
and Sustainable Prosperity,” similar to the one in place at the federal
level.
“The Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act that the
legislature passed earlier this year is important, but it’s only a set
of targets,” says Steele. “The real environmental challenge is to
develop a plan to meet those targets, and then to hit them. Having an
Environment Commissioner to monitor and report on compliance is a
critical element of any meaningful environmental action plan.”
Steele says attaching the position to the Office of the Auditor General
would ensure the Environment Commission is professional, well resourced
and well respected. Most importantly, the Environment Commissioner would
be independent of government, just like the Auditor General.
“We supported the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act,
but the government left out any meaningful accountability mechanism,”
says Steele. “It was a huge hole in the legislation not to have any
independent verification of the government’s claims. Having an
Environment Commissioner fills that gap.”
Under the NDP Bill, the Commissioner’s principal responsibility would
be auditing and reporting on the government’s compliance with
environmental laws, particularly the Environmental Goals and Sustainable
Prosperity Act.
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