Re: Budget 2018 Support for a historic investment in protecting Canada s land, freshwater, and ocean

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1 The Honourable Bill Morneau Minister of Finance House of Commons Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A 0A6 January 8, 2018 Re: Budget 2018 Support for a historic investment in protecting Canada s land, freshwater, and ocean Dear Minister Morneau, As parliamentarians, and as Canadians, we the undersigned support a historic expansion and strengthening of Canada s protected areas system. Canada s natural environment sustains us all, and is at the heart of our identity and our conservation economy. Now is the time for the federal government, through Budget 2018, to leverage all available public and private funds for Canada s conservation objectives. In 2010, Canada committed under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity to protecting at least 17% of Canada s land and freshwater and 10% of our ocean by 2020, and to improving the quality of our protected area system. The Prime Minister has affirmed this commitment and promised to substantially exceed this target in the coming years. Federal, provincial and territorial governments are now working together on a plan to deliver on the target. To deliver on this commitment, significant new federal investments are needed in Budget Not only is this investment critically important to safeguard our environment, it would also be popular with Canadians. A poll released in November 2017 shows that almost all (87%) Canadians across all regions, age groups and among supporters of all political parties, support increasing the proportion of lands protected from development from 10% to 17% by Four out of five said they would support increased federal funding for the creation of new parks and protected areas. This investment is necessary to implement the findings of the March 2017 unanimous report of the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development, Taking Action Today: Establishing Protected Areas for Canada s Future. It is also consistent with the number one priority recommendation of the Green Budget Coalition (GBC), which includes 19 of Canada s national environmental and conservation organizations, which calls for $1.4B over three years and $470M per year thereafter for protected areas in Budget The GBC proposes a cost-shared funding model, where the federal government would provide enhanced funding for areas of federal responsibility and for Indigenous protected areas, while also stepping up with cost-shared funds to incent and support action by provincial, territorial, municipal and non-governmental partners where they contribute to meeting Canada s targets under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. This federal investment would leverage significant public and private funds to advance conservation across the country. At a recent event hosted by the Speaker of the House, philanthropic foundations highlighted their significant past support ($1 billion over the past decade) for conservation in Canada, and signalled their readiness to go above and beyond these levels to help deliver on the 2020 targets.

2 An investment in protected areas is an investment in our natural environment and our economy. Protected areas are a significant economic driver in Canada, particularly in rural and remote communities. For every dollar spent by federal, provincial, and territorial parks agencies, six dollars are returned to Canada s GDP. Parks support over 64,000 full time equivalent jobs across the country and 44% of spending on parks is returned to governments through taxes. 1 Parks and protected areas are at the heart of Canada s tourism industry, and expanding our system would boost rural economies and support new nature, indigenous and culture-based tourism offerings. Protected areas also contribute to many other important priorities including climate resilience and GHG reductions, providing clean water to Canadians, and improving health and well-being. This investment would build on last year s investments in climate change action and the Indigenous Guardians program. Specifically, we encourage you to ensure that Budget 2018 includes: A federal investment of at least $1.4 billion over the next three years (2018 to 2020) including for: o establishment and management of new National Parks, National Wildlife Areas, National Marine Conservation Areas, and Marine Protected Areas, and to improve management of existing areas; o planning, establishing, and managing Indigenous protected areas; o reviewing and upgrading federal legislation and policy for both terrestrial and marine protection; o cost-shared funds to support provincial, territorial, municipal and privately protected area planning, establishment, and management, land and seascape-scale conservation planning, and citizen engagement; and $470 million per year to support on-going efforts after We understand that there is a ground-breaking budget proposal on the table to support expanding and strengthening Canada s protected areas system. We encourage you to make a historic investment in protected areas in Budget We, the undersigned Members of Parliament and Senators, urge you to help secure our collective conservation legacy. Sincerely William Amos (MP, Pontiac) Deborah Schulte (MP, King Vaughan) John Aldag (MP, Cloverdale Langley City) Mike Bossio (MP, Hastings Lennox and Addington) Darren Fisher (MP, Dartmouth Cole Harbour) Mark Gerretsen (MP, Kingston and the Islands) Wayne Stetski (MP, Kootenay Columbia) Leona Alleslev (MP, Aurora Oak Ridges Richmond Hill) Gary Anandasangaree (MP, Scarborough Rouge Park) 1 Data source: The Outspan Group Inc The economic Impact of Canada s national, Provincial, and Territorial Parks in Available at 2 See the Green Budget Coalition s Recommendations for Budget 2018 at

3 Charlie Angus (MP, Timmins James Bay) Robert Aubin (MP, Trois-Rivières) Vance Badawey (MP, Niagara Centre) Hon. Larry Bagnell (MP, Yukon) Frank Baylis (MP, Pierrefonds Dollard) Terry Beech (MP, Burnaby North Seymour) Sheri Benson (MP, Saskatoon West) Daniel Blaikie (MP, Elmwood Transcona) Randy Boissonnault (MP, Edmonton Centre) Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet (MP, Hochelaga) Senator Patricia E. Bovey (Manitoba) Bob Bratina (MP, Hamilton East Stoney Creek) Pierre Breton (MP, Shefford) Ruth Ellen Brosseau (MP, Berthier Maskinongé) Richard Cannings (MP, South Okanagan West Kootenay) Bill Casey (MP, Cumberland Colchester) Sean Casey (MP, Charlottetown) Shaun Chen (MP, Scarborough North) François Choquette (MP, Drummond) David Christopherson (MP, Hamilton Centre) Serge Cormier (MP, Acadie Bathurst) Nathan Cullen (MP, Skeena Bulkley Valley) Rodger Cuzner (MP, Cape Breton Canso) Senator Percy Downe (Prince Edward Island) Sukh Dhaliwal (MP, Surrey Newton) Fin Donnelly (MP, Port Moody Coquitilam) Hon. Jean-Yves Duclos (MP, Quebec) Hon. Kirsty Duncan (MP, Etobicoke North) Linda Duncan (MP, Edmonton Strathcona) Pierre-Luc Dusseault (MP, Sherbrooke) Scott Duvall (MP, Hamilton Mountain) Julie Dzerowicz (MP, Davenport) Fayçeal El-Khoury (MP, Laval Les Iles) Nathaniel Erskine-Smith (MP, Beaches East York) Andy Fillmore (MP, Halifax) Pat Finnigan (MP, Miramichi Grand Lake) Peter Fonseca (MP, Mississauga East Cooksville) Senator Eric Forest (Quebec) Peter Fragiskatos (MP, London North Centre) Sean Fraser (MP, Central Nova) Hon Hedy Fry (MP, Vancouver Centre) Senator Rosa Galvez (Quebec) Senator Marc Gold (Quebec) Pamela Goldsmith-Jones (MP, West Vancouver Sunshine Coast Sea to Sky Country)

4 Senator Diane F. Griffin (Prince Edward Island) Cheryl Hardcastle (MP, Windsor Tecumseh) Senator Nancy J. Hartling (New Brunswick) Anthony Housefather (MP, Mount Royal) Carol Hughes (MP, Algoma Manitoulin Kapuskasing) Gudie Hutchings (MP, Long Range Mountains) Angelo Iacono (MP, Alfred-Pellan) Gord Johns (MP, Courtenay Alberni) Peter Julian (MP, New Westminster Burnaby) Jenny Kwan (MP, Vancouver East) Emmanuella Lambropoulos (MP, Saint-Laurent) David Lametti (MP, LaSalle Émard Verdun) Linda Lapointe (MP, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles) Wayne Long (MP, Saint John Rothesay) Alistair MacGregor (MP, Cowichan Malahat Langford) Steven MacKinnon (MP, Gatineau) Sheila Malcolmson (MP, Nanaimo Ladysmith) Brian Masse (MP, Windsor West) Irene Mathyssen (MP, London Fanshawe) Elizabeth May (MP, Saanich Gulf Islands) Senator Elaine McCoy (Alberta) Ken McDonald (MP, Avalon) Senator Paul E. McIntyre (New Brunswick) Hon. John McKay (MP, Scarborough Guildwood) Ron McKinnon (MP, Coquitlam Port Coquitlam) Senator Marilou McPhedran (Manitoba) Alexandra Mendès (MP, Brossard Saint-Lambert) Anne Minh-Thu Quach (MP, Salaberry Suroît) Senator Lucie Moncion (Ontario) Robert Morrissey (MP, Egmont) Joyce Murray (MP, Vancouver Quadra) Pierre Nantel (MP, Longueuil Saint-Hubert) Eva Nassif (MP, Vimy) Robert Oliphant (MP, Don Valley West) John Oliver (MP, Oakville) Hon. Denis Paradis (MP, Brome Missisquoi) Monique Pauzé (MP, Repentigny) Joe Peschisolido (MP, Steveston Richmond East) Kyle Peterson (MP, Newmarket Aurora) Michel Picard (MP, Montarville) Jean-Claude Poissant (MP, La Prairie) Murray Rankin (MP, Victoria) Jean Rioux (MP, Saint-Jean) Yves Robillard (MP, Marc Aurele Fortin)

5 Dan Ruimy (MP, Pitt Meadows Maple Ridge) Romeo Saganash (MP, Abitibi Baie-James Nunavik Eeyou) Darrell Samson (MP, Sackville Preston Chezzetcook) Brigitte Sansoucy (MP, Saint-Hyacinthe Bagot) Randeep Sarai (MP, Surrey Centre) Francis Scarpeleggia (MP, Lac-Saint-Louis) Peter Schiefke (MP, Vaudreuil Soulanges) Hon. Judy A Sgro (MP, Humber River Black Creek) Brenda Shanahan (MP, Châteauguay Lacolle) Terry Sheehan (MP, Sault Ste. Marie) Sven Spengemann (MP, Mississauga Lakeshore) Gabriel Ste. Marie (MP, Joliette) Kennedy Stewart (MP, Burnaby South) Filomena Tassi (MP, Hamilton West Ancaster Dundas) Karine Trudel (MP, Jonquière) Arif Virani (MP, Parkdale High Park) Erin Weir (MP, Regina Lewvan) Nick Whalen (MP, St John s East) Kate Young (MP, London West) CC: Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister Honourable Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans