FOPO Committee Report
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Background
The Bloc Québécois opposed passage of the Oceans Act in 1995, considering it inconsistent and difficult to apply. At that time, we raised the problem of overlapping responsibilities among various federal and provincial departments. In Quebec, the Oceans Act is seen as an encroachment on Quebec's prerogatives, in particular with respect to protection of the environment. This being so, the Bloc Québécois has difficulty agreeing that the Oceans Act is "fundamentally sound" as claimed in the introduction to the report by the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans.
Recommendations
The review process by the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans is designed to improve the Oceans Act. The Bloc Québécois played an active part in the process, supporting in particular the following four measures:
The Bloc Québécois considers that it was imperative for the Committee to recommend a continued freeze on marine services fees and icebreaking fees until such time as the Canadian government has completed its study of the Coast Guard’s costs and services structure.
The Bloc Québécois is satisfied with the Committee's position on recognition of special status for ferries, which should be considered as government ships since they provide an essential public service. This provision would allow ferries to be exempt from marine services fees and icebreaking fees.
The Bloc Québécois is pleased that the Committee has recognized the need for an assessment of the environmental impact of potential oil and gas exploration in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
The Bloc Québécois is especially in favour of amending the Oceans Act to require the Minister to include fishermen and fishermen’s organizations in any consultation process from now on.
Points in dispute
The problem of multiple types of protected marine areas
There will soon be at least three types of marine areas under federal administration. In addition to Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Marine Protected Areas, the Department of Canadian Heritage will shortly have "national marine conservation areas", while Environment Canada is proposing to establish "marine wildlife areas".
To coordinate the activities of these three departments, and prevent any derogation of the Minister’s authority, the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans is proposing that an interdepartmental committee be struck to ensure that "the stewardship and sustainable management of marine areas" be done under the authority of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.
The Bloc Québécois considers this recommendation a step in the right direction. But advantage should be taken of the fact that Bill C-10, An Act respecting the national marine conservation areas of Canada, is still before the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, to ensure that the government avoids duplication and encroachment on Quebec's jurisdiction and provides for a responsibility-sharing mechanism.
In this regard, there is a precedent that has produced good results: the Saguenay-St. Lawrence Marine Park Act, which was passed in 1997 in identical form by both parliaments, Canada and Quebec. This ensures respect for the jurisdictions attributed to each of the two governments.
In addition, Bill C-10 should be amended to include the explicit provision that no national marine conservation area can be set up where the local community rejects the idea.
Recognition of Quebec’s prerogatives
The Oceans Act officially deprived Quebec and the other provinces of their power to manage the marine environment and handed it over to the federal government. By invoking the need to protect the marine environment from degradation, the federal government will always have the option of interfering as it chooses in areas that are rightfully under the jurisdiction of Quebec and the other provinces.
In addition, the Committee's report does not tackle the problem of federal-provincial overlaps; nor does it attempt to impede the proposal by the Department of Canadian Heritage to create national marine conservation areas (Bill C-10).
The Oceans Act and Bill C-10 are thus in our opinion two examples of the federal government's centralizing agenda. They threaten Quebec's jurisdiction in environmental matters.
In this dissenting opinion, the Bloc Québécois is speaking for all those who want to see a clarification of the roles of each department, and want the Department of Canadian Heritage to stay out of management of the marine environment.
Suzanne Tremblay,
MP for Rimouski-Neigette-et-La Mitis
Bloc Québécois Fisheries and Oceans Critic
Jean-Yves Roy
MP for Matapédia―Matane
Bloc Québécois Deputy Fisheries and Oceans Critic