QUESTION PERIOD — Infrastructure
Infrastructure Projects
May 10, 2022
Honourable senators, my question is for the Government Representative in the Senate.
Senator Gold, Infrastructure Canada introduced a Climate Lens tool in 2018 that set clear reporting requirements and enabled the estimation of expected reductions in greenhouse gas emissions for federally funded infrastructure projects.
However, the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development in the Office of the Auditor General found in their recent report that Infrastructure Canada had “. . . let go of too much.” They had weakened those reporting requirements when they updated the Climate Lens tool in March 2021. This means there is no longer accurate and reliable information on which to assess and report on those government-funded infrastructure projects, neither in terms of climate resilience nor greenhouse gas emissions.
Senator Gold, could you tell us how the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities plans to address this serious gap in reporting requirements, and how the government will ensure that federally funded infrastructure projects align with Canada’s net-zero targets and its newly released Emissions Reduction Plan? Thank you.
I thank the senator for the question. The government is committed to investing in infrastructure that will help us get to net zero, and is committed to working with the provinces, territories and Indigenous communities to ensure that clean energy can circulate and be used in Canada rapidly and efficiently.
Regarding the specifics of your question, colleague, I will make inquiries with the government and report back to the chamber in a timely manner.
Senator Gold, we know that the requirements of the newer program, the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings program, are an improvement over the relaxed climate lens that I referred to earlier, which is known as “Climate Lens 2,” but the weakened climate lens 2 still applies to the three older infrastructure programs that remain active.
Senator Gold, the Auditor General’s office indicates that it is not too late to fix the weakened climate lens. Could you tell us when that adjustment will be made? Thank you.
Thank you for your question. I will certainly add this to my inquiries to which I referred, but I take this opportunity — and thank you for providing it to me — to remind the chamber that the report of the Auditor General was unique in the sense that it was promulgated and published during the process through which the government is working on its plan and its implementation. That has given the government the ability to make the course adjustments as necessary to take into account the very valuable input of the Auditor General.
Thank you for your question. I will get back to the chamber with an answer as soon as I can.
