Protecting the environment is of course a global concern but as a company based in Toronto we were keen to read today’s release of the 2009/10 annual report from the Environmental Commissioner of the province of Ontario. To mark the event the office of the environmental commission broadcasted a webcast that features key points and have also released a comprehensive annual report can be downloaded to a PDF file via their official website. As with many matters that become political their appears to be some arm wrestling between the office at the provincial level and national policy in terms of seeing through the commitments that have been made. This repeats itself in many other countries as budgets and initiatives sometimes fall into inertia. Gord Miller the Environmental Commissioner for Ontario added:

“The government rightly prides itself on the progress it has made in passing legislation to protect the environment, the actions on the ground often undermine it”

Within the report are contained a number of cases which he feels emphasize his case that bureaucratic and political inaction have ended up causing environmental issues or in fact undermined the overall governmental policy for the environment policy for the environment. Amongst the examples that he cites are these:

• A running and current inventory of closed landfills has not been maintained correctly by the Ministry of the Environment may lead to continued pollution of nearby groundwater

• Rapid expansion of population in southern Ontario has not been factored into rules that oversee wastewater discharges thereby leading to added pollution into the Great Lakes

• Ontario’s air quality standards need to be reviewed as the current legislature allows various sectors of industry to circumvent provincial standards which are tougher than the national ones

• Ontario needs to plants 1 billion trees by 2020 to aid biodiversity and lessen the challenges of climate change. The government proposal was the target of just 50 million trees in the province in the same time period

While these points and others demonstrate the gap between provincial national policy the overall report does make for more positive reading about the accomplishments, goals and projections for the province in its quest to better manage environmental affairs. The entire report runs at 232 pages and delves into green citizenry and the ‘Eco Bill of Rights’ that apply to all Ontarians. Whole chapters are dedicated to green energy and the green economy while focusing on projects that stimulate renewable energy expansion. The economic aspects of the report provide a better understanding of just how the province can achieve what it has planned for the years ahead.

Biodiversity issues also receive intense study as the impact on wildlife and our natural environment are reviewed along with solutions underpinned by improvement. Sections on water, mining and treatment of waste are also expansive and informative.

More than anything else the report looks to provide answers and incorporate solutions and ideas that will lead the entire province into a more harmonious next few decades where it concerns the environment. The entire report can be downloaded via the Environmental Commission’s website link here.