Vol. 151, No. 25 — December 13, 2017

Registration
SI/2017-72 December 13, 2017

SPECIES AT RISK ACT

P.C. 2017-1434 November 23, 2017

Order Acknowledging Receipt of the Assessments Done Pursuant to Subsection 23(1) of the Act

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, acknowledges receipt, on the making of this Order, of the assessments done under subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act (see footnote a) by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada with respect to the status of the species set out in the annexed schedule.

SCHEDULE

Endangered Species

Mammals
Arthropods
Mosses

Threatened Species

Birds
Arthropods

Special Concern

Mammals
Amphibians
Arthropods

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

Order to acknowledge receipt of the assessments from the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) regarding the status of 13 wildlife species under paragraph 15(1)(a) and in accordance with subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act (SARA).

Objective

The objective of this Order is for the Governor in Council (GIC), on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, to acknowledge receipt of the assessments undertaken pursuant to subsection 23(1) of the Species at Risk Act by the COSEWIC with respect to the wildlife species set out in the annexed schedule of the Order.

Background

The purpose of SARA is to prevent wildlife species from being extirpated or becoming extinct; to provide for the recovery of wildlife species that are extirpated, endangered, or threatened as a result of human activity; and to manage species of special concern to prevent them from becoming endangered or threatened. COSEWIC was formed as an independent scientific body in 1977 with a mandate to provide a single, official, scientifically sound, national classification of wildlife species at risk in Canada. The Committee provides the Minister of the Environment with assessments of the status of Canadian wildlife species.

Of the 13 wildlife species included in this Order, 5 are assessed by COSEWIC as endangered, 3 as threatened and 5 as special concern. Seven species are new assessments, one species is a reclassification, four species are the result of two already listed species each being split into two new designatable units and one species is the result of two designatable units being merged into one.

Implications

Under subsection 27(1.1) of SARA, the GIC may, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, within nine months after receiving COSEWIC’s assessment of the status of a species, accept the assessment and add the species to the List of Wildlife Species at Risk (i.e. Schedule 1 of SARA), decide not to add the species to the List, or refer the matter back to COSEWIC for further information or consideration. Under subsection 27(1) of SARA, the GIC may also, on the recommendation of the Minister of the Environment, reclassify or remove a listed species.

In addition, under subsection 27(2) of SARA, before making a recommendation in respect of a wildlife species or a species at risk, the Minister of the Environment must take into account the assessment of COSEWIC in respect of the species; consult the competent minister or ministers; and, if a species is found in an area in respect of which a wildlife management board is authorized by a land claims agreement to perform functions in respect of a wildlife species, consult the wildlife management board.

Under subsection 27(3) of SARA, if the GIC has not taken a course of action under subsection 27(1.1) of SARA within nine months after receiving a COSEWIC assessment, the Minister of the Environment must, by order, amend the List in accordance with COSEWIC’s assessment. However, this nine-month timeline would not apply to the assessments recommending reclassification, as these species are already on the List.

Consultations

Initial consultations with Indigenous peoples and interested stakeholders took place: from December 2011 to February 2012 for three species; from December 2012 to March 2013 for one species; from January to April 2015 for three species; and from January to May 2016 for two species. No consultations were undertaken for the two species being split into two new populations, because the COSEWIC assessment recommended no changes to their status. These consultations will be summarized in the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement that will accompany the proposed Order to Amend Schedule 1 of the Species at Risk Act.

Departmental contact

Mary Jane Roberts
Director
SARA Management and Regulatory Affairs
Canadian Wildlife Service
Department of the Environment
Gatineau, Quebec
K1A 0H3
Telephone: 1-800-668-6767
Email: ec.LEPreglementations-SARAregulations.ec@canada.ca