Table 8: Details on Project Spending

*Effective Project Approval (EPA) implies Treasury Board's approval of, and expenditure authorization for, the objectives of the project implementation phase. Sponsoring departments and agencies are to submit for EPA only when the scope of the overall project has been defined and when the estimates have been refined to the substantive level.

Environment Canada's delegated authority is $2.5 million for general projects, $2 million for new technology (with a $5-million replacement limit) and $2.5 million for real property projects.

Table 9: Details on Transfer Payment Programs

Table 10: Foundations (Conditional Grants)

Table 11: Horizontal Initiatives

Over the next three years, Environment Canada will be involved in the following horizontal initiatives either as the lead or as a partner:

2007–2008

1. Canadian Biotechnology Strategy
2. Canadian Group on Earth Observation
3. Canadian Rural Partnership
4. Clean Air and Climate Change
5. Ecosystem Initiatives
6. Federal Contaminated Sites Action Plan
7. Implementation of the Species at Risk Act
8. Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Initiative
9. Toxic Substances
10. Youth Employment Strategy

For further information on the above-mentioned horizontal initiatives, see: http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/rma/eppi-ibdrp/hrdb-rhbd/profil-eng.asp.

Table 12: 2007–2009 Sustainable Development Strategy

Environment Canada's Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS) 2007–2009 highlights for Canadians key commitments that the Department will undertake over the next three years to strengthen the integration of sustainable development in the planning and delivery of our strategic outcomes. Commitments in the SDS focus on two key aspects of Environment Canada's approach to sustainable development: strengthening the Department's capacity to integrate social and economic considerations into our decision-making processes; and continuing to provide the environmental information, programs and services that enable Canadians to better integrate the true value of the environment into their decision-making. The SDS is aligned along four goals:

1. Canadians and their environment are protected from the effects of pollution and waste in support of a sustainable economy.
2. Weather and environmental predictions and services reduce risks and contribute to the well-being of Canadians.
3. Canada's natural capital is managed to protect and enhance its capacity to provide ecological goods and services that provide enduring social and economic benefits.
4. Strengthened integrated decision-making in the delivery of departmental strategic outcomes.

Each goal is supported by intermediate and shorter-term outcomes as outlined in the logic model that follows. In support of the SDS, Environment Canada is also developing a set of performance measures that will better enable the Department to assess how well the objectives of the SDS are being met.

The SDS 2007–2009 also highlights Environment Canada's commitment to the coordinated federal approach for the fourth round of departmental sustainable development strategies. This was a government-wide initiative, led by Environment Canada, to strengthen coherence and accountability across departmental sustainable development strategies.

This collaborative effort resulted in a document, Coordinating the Fourth Round of Departmental Sustainable Development Strategies, that included a set of six common federal sustainable development goals: clean and secure water for people, marine and freshwater ecosystems; clean air for people to breathe and ecosystems to function well; reduce greenhouse gas emissions; communities enjoy a prosperous economy, a vibrant and equitable society, and a healthy environment for current and future generations; sustainable development and use of natural resources; and strengthen federal governance and decision-making to support sustainable development.

Each commitment in Environment Canada's SDS is tagged to one or more federal sustainable development goals. Action to deliver on Environment Canada's SDS commitments over the three-year time period of the Strategy will concurrently advance departmental and federal goals. In addition, under the Department's responsibility to provide leadership, guidance and coordination of the federal SDS process, Environment Canada will explore options to promote greater government-wide coherence and effectiveness in achieving sustainable development.

Environment Canada's SDS 2007–2009 is available at http://www.ec.gc.ca/sd-dd_consult/SDS2007/index_e.cfm.

Table 13: Internal Audits and Evaluations

The Audit and Evaluation Plan for 2007–2008 to 2009–2010 is being developed for consideration by the Departmental Audit and Evaluation Committee (DAEC) in April 2007. Once approved by DAEC, the plan will be posted on Environment Canada's website at the following address: http://www.ec.gc.ca/ae-ve/.

The following table provides a list of all evaluation projects and internal audit engagements completed in 2006–2007, those currently in progress and expected to be completed in 2007–2008 and those already planned for 2007–2008 in last year's Audit and Evaluation Plan. Note that the list of projects planned for 2007–2008 may change in the context of the audit and evaluation planning process for 2007–2008.

* Interdepartmental Evaluation

Section IV: Other Items of Interest

Strategic Integration Activities

Description

Clear, consistent and integrated departmental policy advice, coordinated interactions with partners and stakeholders and effective communication are important tools to help Environment Canada deliver on its mandate and commitments.

Environment Canada is leading the development of federal strategies to integrate environmental sustainability into government-wide policy priorities in a concrete manner. As part of this work, the Department is advancing a policy framework that recognizes the inextricable linkages between the environment, our economic competitiveness and the health of Canadians.

Environmental Canada's work to develop a unified departmental policy approach is organized into two program areas:

• Integrated policy advice, communications and information strategies enable effective decision-making.
• Relations with other governments and partners are effectively managed in support of environmental priorities.

Plans and Priorities

Over the next three years, Environment Canada plans to focus on:

• Achieving departmental coherence in delivering and communicating environmental policy and program outcomes. Work will include developing an international environment framework; developing a natural capital framework and a health framework; communicating environmental policy and program goals and outcomes to target audiences; conducting policy research and leading the development of a federal sustainable development strategy; working interdepartmentally toward better-integrated federal science and technology; and building on the fundamental direction of the competitiveness and environmental sustainability framework to articulate the environmental policy component of the Government of Canada's Advantage Canada sustainable growth framework.
• Improving how Environment Canada engages provincial and territorial governments, stakeholders and citizens in policy development and sustainable actions. The Department plans to advance the development of a national approach through collaboration with provinces and territories to achieve results; develop a strategy and tools to systematically and consistently engage key stakeholders in policy development and environmental education; develop a sector table strategy; and effectively communicate the strategic environmental framework to Canadians.
• Advancing a Canadian environmental sustainability indicators initiative as a first component of a broader state-of-the-environment indicator and information strategy. The Department also plans to move forward on national environmental objectives as core policy tools to guide long-term departmental priority-setting and specific policy deliverables.
• Delivering analytical and evidentiary support to demonstrate explicit linkages between the environment and the economy, to allow for informed decision-making on environmental issues and the building of a policy-research-communications strategy to proactively communicate important environmental information to Canadians.

Planning Context

Integrated policy advice, communications and information strategies enable effective decision-making

A key priority is to improve the coordination of the existing but dispersed policy capacity of the Department in order to work more effectively and bring department-wide perspectives and scientific evidence to bear on all major policy work. Increased focus will be placed on policy research and economic analysis, and on strengthening the linkages between science and policy.

Improving the coordination and strategic direction of Environment Canada's education and engagement activities is also an important priority. Emphasis will be placed on particular target groups (such as consumers, small- and medium-sized enterprises, youth, educators and communities) where greater return can be expected by understanding their needs and challenges, and working to address them. Key partners will be identified and approached, in particular those that are better positioned than Environment Canada to deliver education and engagement activities because they have a deeper and broader reach.

Environment Canada's indicator-related work is being repositioned to provide better management of environmental and environment-related data within the Department; enhanced comparability of the available data and the mechanisms by which these data are made available; and data and information that are more relevant to departmental priorities as well as indicators that can be used to communicate environmental implications to citizens, policy makers and decision-makers. The Department will continue to develop the partnerships, principles and technologies required to integrate disparate environmental data and information in a consistent, credible and timely manner.

Over the next three years, Environment Canada will work towards the implementation of its Sustainable Development Strategy 2007–2009, as well as the refining of associated action plans and performance measures. More broadly, Environment Canada will continue to fulfill its role to provide leadership, guidance and coordination of the departmental sustainable development strategy process. Environment Canada will build on the collaboration established during the development of the fourth round of strategies resulting from an Environment Canada-led initiative to identify the six federal sustainable development goals that guided departments in selecting their strategy commitments. Environment Canada will be exploring options and learning from other jurisdictions, to promote greater government-wide coherence and effectiveness in achieving sustainable development.

Integrated Science

As one of the largest science-based departments in the federal government, Environment Canada has a critical interest in federal science and technology (S&T) policy. A new federal science and technology strategy is being developed, and there are several other interdepartmental S&T policy initiatives under way. Environment Canada is working to ensure that the new federal strategy and other S&T policy initiatives address the need for a strong and integrated environmental S&T capacity in Canada that is focused on national priorities. Environment Canada is also working to promote alignment between the federal S&T strategy and its own science and technology.

Ensuring that science and technology inform the development of policy is key to maintaining public confidence in Environment Canada's work. The Department will examine ways of better understanding the policy needs for S&T and of ensuring effective dialogue between S&T experts, policy developers, regulators and decision-makers. Public interest in environmental issues is extremely high. Increasing access to Environment Canada's S&T knowledge and expertise is key to strengthening its impact on policy development, regulations and decision-making.

Environment Canada recently completed departmental S&T plans that provide new opportunities for the strategic management of the Department's S&T. Environment Canada will be working to integrate the science and technology plans, facilitate their implementation and develop a performance measurement framework for the integrated plan.

Relations with other governments and partners are effectively managed in support of environmental priorities

Environment Canada does not achieve environmental outcomes on its own. Advancing departmental priorities such as clean air, climate change and chemicals management will require close cooperation with external players in the economy and society. This program area focuses on managing partnerships and working relationships with provincial and territorial governments, protecting and promoting Canada's environmental interests internationally, and engaging stakeholders in Canada's environmental agenda.

Many planned activities are new for Environment Canada, and stem directly from the Department's vision of helping Canada to build a globally competitive and sustainable economy. Realizing this vision means integrating environmental decision-making into all aspects of our economy, which will require all players to be more engaged in sustainable development policy creation and implementation. This includes improving the Department's decision-making structures and giving stakeholders a more coherent strategy around which to engage, thus reducing conflicting policy signals and burdensome demands on stakeholders' time and resources.

Environment Canada's partnerships and consultations work advances constructive consultations and participation in departmental priorities, and strengthens our relationships with key partners and stakeholders, including industry, NGOs, Aboriginal governments and organizations, market influencers and thought leaders. A strong policy framework for consultations and Aboriginal involvement was developed over the past year to guide the Department, and this year's activities will focus on implementing these policies by providing the tools and services needed to inform Environment Canada's consultations and ensure effective engagement with Aboriginal peoples.

Environment Canada's work under federal-provincial/territorial relations is being repositioned to focus on the most important departmental priorities, and to provide a more consistent departmental approach to intergovernmental affairs. Because provinces and territories share responsibility for environmental management with the federal government, their active engagement is essential to ensure the successful implementation of policy across Canada. The oversight and coordination of federal-provincial/territorial relations is, therefore, key to supporting the implementation of Environment Canada's agenda both on a national basis and on a regional or bilateral basis within a national context.

Environment Canada's education and engagement activities focus on working with partners to contribute to ecological literacy and engaging Canadians on key issues where their actions can make a difference.

Corporate Services and Corporate Management Activities

Description

Integrated and effective corporate services help Environment Canada to carry out its mandate. The Department continues to transform its way of doing business in order to be better positioned to play the central role it was given by Parliament to coordinate the policies and programs of the Government of Canada with respect to the preservation and enhancement of the quality of the natural environment. Environment Canada's internal transformation agenda helps the Department deliver on its goal to protect the health of Canadians, preserve our natural environment and strengthen Canada's long-term competitiveness.

Environment Canada is putting significant effort into repositioning its enabling programs and services in order to better support results-based management and internal governance in a way that allows the Department to successfully address the environmental priorities of Canadians. This work is organized into two program areas:

• High quality corporate services and advice enable the Department to meet its strategic objectives.
• Strategic management support enables the Department to meet its objectives.

Plans and Priorities

Over the next three years, Environment Canada plans to:

1. Establish a viable foundation for its enabling programs and services, with a focus on high-risk areas in human resources, finance, administration, and information management / information technology (IM/IT). Environment Canada continues to build management and staff capacity in human resources, finance, administration and IM/IT so that corporate functions can appropriately assist the Department in delivering results. This work is expected to include implementing strategies to address critical departmental risks—specifically, better recruitment and retention plans, training for enabling staff and departmental managers, and implementation of a one-department approach for the provision of core services.
2. Ensure the delivery of essential financial, administrative, human resources, corporate management, and information management and information technology services to address mission critical, operational and key governance needs across Environment Canada. Work to support the greening of federal government operations and the implementation of a new Human Resources Management System (HRMS), People Soft V8.9, in the context of the government-wide Corporate Administrative Shared Services (CASS) initiative are also priorities. A performance measurement and monitoring framework will be developed and implemented to support results-based objectives for human resources management.

Planning Context

The Department is completing the transformation process that will enable it to fully plan, manage and report by results. The transformation has involved the re-definition of the results structure (Program Activity Architecture), the establishment of new management structures and processes, and the re-structuring of the organization.

These changes promote integrated management and decision-making in the context of a clearer view of results and strategic direction. Financial and human resources are clearly linked to results through a planning process that connects capacity to work. Performance information will support informed departmental decisions and transparent and balanced public reporting.

Results in this area are aimed at transforming Environment Canada's management framework in order to strengthen control and accountability, provide high-quality service, support and systems related to governance and program delivery, and support key departmental and government-wide management initiatives. The Department's corporate services activities are organized as follows:

• Corporate management and planning support departmental progress on results.
• Human resources are managed effectively and strategically in support of departmental objectives.
• Financial management frameworks are established and high quality financial services are provided.
• Administration and assets management enable effective, efficient, accountable and environmentally responsible departmental activities.
• Information and technology are managed as critical enabling assets.

Department-wide Services

Planning

Environment Canada has significantly revised and improved its overall approach to planning. The former decentralized approach has given way to a centralized "one-department" approach that aligns planning, priority-setting and resource allocation functions to the new Program Activity Architecture. The revised approach significantly enhances the overall transparency of proposed plans and priorities, enabling senior executive direction, engagement and strategic decision-making.

The planning process integrates corporate planning and decision-making and ensures that internal decision-making on priorities is aligned to annual reporting to Parliament through the Report on Plans and Priorities. Senior managers undertake business planning through results-based committees and teams. Managers at all levels from across the Department are engaged in the process to ensure consistent application of planning and reporting requirements. National management meetings are held to provide opportunities for managers to work through significant planning tasks on a collaborative basis.

Information Management and Information Technology (IM-IT)

As part of Environment Canada's internal transformation, most of the Department's Information Management and Information Technology (IM/IT) staff have been transferred to a single branch under the direction of a Chief Information Officer (CIO). A small number of IM/IT staff with highly specialized program area knowledge and skills remains "embedded" in program areas.

The objective of consolidating IM/IT capacities is to provide more effective, efficient and equitable levels of IM/IT services to all areas of program delivery across the Department. Another objective of consolidation is to further develop the capacity to provide the coherent, authoritative and trusted information systems needed to achieve government and departmental objectives.

Management efforts in the IM/IT domain are directed towards re-alignment of our IM/IT resources to ensure the best outcomes from existing and evolving technological capacities. They are also focused on ensuring that Environment Canada's data and information holdings can be and are treated as critical departmental assets. This involves providing leadership in Information Management through the development of an integrated IM plan for the Department, by developing and promoting policies and best practices for the management of information, and implementing and maintaining technologies to support the function.

Another key focus will be ensuring that the informatics systems used in support of our mission-critical and other service support requirements continue to operate without interruption. This is particularly true for the systems used on a 24/7 basis in support of weather prediction and environmental emergency response, for example, given their direct link to the safety and well-being of Canadians. A prime example of such a system is the departmental supercomputer and related infrastructure used in the production of weather warnings and forecasts. This equipment was recently upgraded to allow it to process more sophisticated weather and climate forecast models.

Information management and information technology are key enablers of program delivery in all strategic outcome areas through the provision of hardware infrastructure(6) and general-use software applications (e.g. email, office application suites, corporate finance and human resource applications). Within each strategic outcome area, IM/IT is also a key enabler of specific program activities through the development and implementation of specialized application software for the collection, storage, analysis and dissemination of environmental data and products as well as the implementation and maintenance of any specialized hardware infrastructure required by these activities.

Ongoing investment will be required to support the existing infrastructure as well as to respond to new work requirements and evolving technologies being introduced in the workplace. The ongoing development of a comprehensive IM/IT architecture will help to guide these efforts by fostering the adoption and use of consistent policies, standards and technologies that comply with those in use in the Government of Canada. The architecture will be supplemented by other efforts to ensure the efficient and effective application of IM/IT in the Department. These efforts include software management boards along with new "greening" policies to promote the effective use and life cycle management of IT while reducing the potential negative environmental impacts associated with that use. Through these policies, we hope to establish Environment Canada as a leader in this area.

Environment Canada has indicated its intention to be one of the first departments to participate in the Government of Canada's Corporate and Administrative Shared Services (CASS) initiative(7). Shared services are viewed as a way of producing more effective, efficient and economical delivery of common services within and across government departments.

As part of that initiative, participating departments will migrate their human resource management systems to the PeopleSoft suite of applications.

Legal Services

The Department of Justice Canada is responsible for the legal affairs of the government as a whole and for providing legal services to individual departments and agencies. Services provided by the Department of Justice Canada include providing legal advice, preparing legal documents, drafting legislation, regulating or conducting litigation, and overseeing the legal mechanisms used to achieve the overall objectives of the government.

The Department of Justice Canada provides legal services to Environment Canada primarily through Environment Canada's Legal Services unit. The Department of Justice Canada also provides services through its Environmental Drafting Services Section, the Federal Prosecution Service and other units located at Justice headquarters and in the regions.

High-quality legal advice enables Environment Canada to take decisions that are based on a thorough understanding of its legal authorities and relevant legal risks. Legal Services is committed to deliver results by ensuring that Environment Canada has access to appropriate levels of legal expertise; by identifying primary legal risks to the Department; and by making legal training available to Environment Canada officials where needs arise.

Like Environment Canada's other corporate functions, Environment Canada Legal Services is moving towards a "one-department" model with the aim of providing effective and efficient legal support of departmental priorities and objectives.

Audit and Evaluation

Audits and evaluations are used to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of departmental policies, programs and management. The November 2004 Report of the Auditor General to the House of Commons outlined the need to improve the quality of the internal audit function across government and a new government-wide Policy on Internal Audit came into effect on April 1, 2006. The audit and evaluation functions are carried out under the authority of the Federal Accountability Act (December 2006), the Treasury Board Policy on Internal Audit (April 2006) and the Treasury Board Evaluation Policy (coming into force in April 2007). The new Federal Accountability Act underscores the importance of the audit and evaluation functions in providing the necessary support to the Deputy Minister in his role as accounting officer. The proposed Treasury Board Evaluation Policy requires departments to evaluate programs, policies and initiatives, to use a risk-based planning approach in identifying projects, to use structured and disciplined approaches in carrying out evaluations, and to ensure the four key evaluation issues are addressed (i.e. relevance, success, cost effectiveness, and design and delivery).

Audits and evaluations are particularly important in the context of the implementation of the new governance framework. To reflect a stronger commitment to the audit and evaluation functions across the federal government, the internal audit and evaluation functions have been bolstered to ensure a comprehensive audit and evaluation program based on sound risk analysis of all departmental activities. To accomplish this, the Department is renewing and strengthening the capacity of the audit and evaluation function to ensure that it is well positioned to provide assurance and advice to senior management.

To enhance results-oriented and accountable management, the Audit and Evaluation Branch provides the Deputy Minister and senior management with objective, independent and evidence-based information, assurance and advice on management practices, controls and information, and on the performance of programs, policies and initiatives.

Integrated Departmental Enforcement

Environment Canada has identified as its overarching goal the attainment of the highest level of environmental quality as a means to enhancing the well-being of Canadians, preserving our natural environment and advancing long-term competitiveness. It is the responsibility of Environment Canada's enforcement program to enforce the laws administered by the Department in a fair, predictable and consistent manner to both manage risks and support Canadian competitiveness by providing a level playing field for regulatees. Canadians have a right to expect the government to not only regulate where necessary, but also to ensure those regulations are adhered to once put in place.

Each year, Annual National Inspection Plans identifying priority areas of compliance verification for the coming year are developed in consultation with Environment Canada program areas and enforcement partners. The National Inspection Plan is the cornerstone of planning and reporting for the Enforcement Branch, feeding both internal plans and reports as well as annual reports to Parliament.

An integral component of the Enforcement Program is the assurance that its enforcement personnel are properly trained. Field work presents unique challenges and hazards that require continued review, renewal and updates of learning to ensure the safety of our officers. Several initiatives currently under way include: the development of a core learning program for Wildlife Enforcement Officers; designation and designation renewal for Enforcement Officers; implementation of the Career Progression Program; and a learning management strategy that will continue to ensure effective and efficient enforcement operations through national enforcement learning programs and products.

With respect to contributing to the government's environmental agenda, many benefits are derived from enforcement involvement in the regulatory development and amendment process. In the development of regulatory instruments for government initiatives such as the Clean Air Agenda and the Chemicals Management Plan, the Enforcement Branch will provide valuable input into the regulatory drafting process, contribute to a speedy and efficient review of regulatory text, and provide guidance to secure the enforceability of the proposed regulations and other enforceable instruments. By continuing to work with programs to develop regulatory frameworks and instruments, the Enforcement Branch will contribute to the attainment of the Department's over-arching goals.

6. Hardware infrastructure includes computer equipment, network infrastructure and any other required hardware (routers, switches etc.).

7. http://www.psmod-modfp.gc.ca/initiatives/cass-smap-eng.asp