ParliamentWater resources in Canada are primarily the responsibility of the provinces. All provinces have laws to manage and protect lakes and rivers. However the federal government does have responsibility over:

• marine fish and anadromous fish (ocean-going fish that spawn in rivers) in marine and freshwater environments, and interprovincial waters;
• navigation of oceans and rivers;
• oceans;
• matters relating to First Nations and their land; and
• inter-provincial or international matters.

The federal legislation related to the protection of our lakes and rivers includes over 14 statutes, administered by several federal departments. The most recent federal legislative initiatives to strengthen environmental protection, including water, are the renewal of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act and amendments to the International Boundary Waters Treaty Act.

See below for summaries of key federal legislation relating to water management across Canada.

Water Quality

The Canada Water Act

The Canada Water Act, first passed in 1970, is aimed ensuring that water issues of national significance are conserved, developed and managed. Environment Canada administers the Act.
The primary role for the federal government, then, is working with the provinces to coordinate federal and provincial efforts on protecting water resources, and to step in where the province’s fail to protect water resources of national concern.

The Canada Water Act enables the federal government to collect data, conduct research, and undertake cooperative arrangements with the provinces with respect to the comprehensive planning of water resources. Activities conducted under the Act may include water quality matters.

The Canadian Environmental Protection Act

The Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) is the main federal law to protect the environment. With respect to water resources, CEPA empowers the federal government to create and enforce regulations regarding toxic substances, fuels, and nutrients from cleaning products. CEPA also enables the federal government to undertake environmental research, develop guidelines and codes of practice, and conclude agreements with provinces and territories. Environment Canada administers CEPA but assesses and manages the risk of toxic substances jointly with Health Canada.

National Drinking Water Quality Guidelines

Health Canada is the federal Department responsible for developing National Drinking Water Quality Guidelines. A process to establish a drinking water guideline is started when a contaminant is frequently observed in water, is suspected of causing adverse health effects, or is found in high enough concentrations to pose a concern. A health risk assessment establishes a maximum acceptable concentration of the contaminant, which then undergoes a process of review and approval. In some provinces these values have the force of law, but in most they are guidelines or objectives. Research and monitoring are done by the provinces, because drinking water is considered a natural resource under provincial jurisdiction.

Health Canada are also responsible for monitoring drinking water quality on First Nations reserves, and regulating the safety and quality of bottled water, prepackaged ice, and water used in food processing.

Recreational Water Quality

Health Canada also produces Guidelines for Canadian Recreational Water Quality. The Guidelines describe the current scientific knowledge regarding the health and safety hazards associated with recreational water use. Principally, these are the risk of infection from contact with pathogenic microorganisms, and illness or injury as a result of physical or chemical properties of the water. The Guidelines also discuss the limits for the pollution indicator bacteria used to monitor both fresh and marine water quality. Other topics include aesthetic issues and water sampling and analysis, and instructions are provided for conducting inspections and the posting of beaches.

For more information see Health Canada: Recreational Water

Also see Guidelines for Canadian Recreational Water Quality

Water Flow

The federal government, through Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada, encourages provincial and local governments to set up emergency plans. And under the National Flood Damage Reduction Program, the federal, provincial, and territorial governments cooperate to map and designate flood risk areas across Canada.

National Flood Damage Reduction Program

The aim of the Flood Damage Reduction Program is to discourage future flood vulnerable development. The federal government initiated this program in 1975 to reduce increasing disaster assistance payments in known flood risk areas, as well as the reliance on costly structural measures. The Program is carried out jointly with the provinces under cost sharing agreements.

Where flood damage reduction measures are proposed, all practicable structural and non-structural alternatives are considered, including the option of letting some flood damage occur. Effectiveness, cost, associated benefits and environmental impact are to be accounted for in the selection of alternatives. Preference is to be given to measures that prevent flood vulnerable development.

The two governments also agree to map and designate flood risk areas in communities listed in the Mapping Agreement and apply the following policies:

• They will not build, approve or finance flood prone development in the designated area.
• They will not provide flood disaster assistance for any development built after the area is designated (except for floodproofed development in the flood fringe); and
• They will encourage zoning authorities under their jurisdiction to zone on the basis of flood risk.

See Environment Canada's Flood Damage Reduction Program for more information.

Land Use

The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act

The Canadian Environmental Assessment Act establishes a process for conducting environmental assessments (EA) of projects involving decisions made by the federal government. Environmental assessment is a structured information-gathering process that:

• identifies the environmental effects of a proposed project,
• determines the need to mitigate or eliminate the effects,
• modifies the proposed project accordingly, or if necessary, recommend that a project not proceed.

Section 4 of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act sets out its purposes, which include:

to ensure that the environmental effects of projects receive careful consideration before responsible authorities take actions in connection with them;
to encourage responsible authorities to take actions that promote sustainable development and thereby achieve or maintain a healthy environment and a healthy economy; and
to ensure that there be an opportunity for public participation in the environmental assessment process.

Environmental Assessment Triggers

The Act sets out a number of different “triggers” – circumstances in which an assessment will be required:

• proposes a project;
• grants money or some other form of financial assistance for a project;
• grants an interest in land to enable a project to be carried out;
• exercises a regulatory duty in relation to a project, such as issuing a permit or license

There is an Exclusion List Regulation created under the Act that lists projects that will be excluded from this general framework. Projects related to national emergencies are also excluded.

In addition to the above, the Act authorizes the Minister to subject a proposed project to an EA where the Minister believes that the project has the potential for significant environmental effects or raises public concerns, or where the project may cause significant adverse transboundary environmental effects and no other federal act or regulation applies.

Wildlife and Habitat

Canada was one of the first industrialized nations to sign the Convention on Biological Diversity at the Earth Summit, held in Brazil in 1992. In doing so, Canada confirmed its commitment to conserve biodiversity and species at risk. Biodiversity, or biological diversity, refers to the great variety of living organisms present on the Earth.

The Fisheries Act and the Fish Habitat Management Program

The Fisheries Act protects fish populations and fish habitat from pollution, prohibiting the deposition of harmful substances into fish-bearing waters or watercourses that may eventually enter fish-bearing waters. Harmful substances include suspended solids, fertilizer, manure, fuel, and pesticides. The Fisheries Act also prohibits "harmful alteration, disruption or destruction" of fish habitat, defined to include "spawning grounds and nurseries, rearing, food supply and migration areas on which fish depend to carry out their life processes." Work carried out near a fish-bearing watercourse must have the approval of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Failure to comply with the Act may result in heavy fines or imprisonment.

The Fish Habitat Management Program plays a pivotal role in the conservation and protection of fish habitat in Canada. With staff in over 65 offices across Canada, staff are involved in reviews of works and undertakings in or near water; monitoring compliance and enforcing the habitat protection provisions of the Fisheries Act; watershed and coastal zone planning; habitat enhancement; and public education and stewardship. The Program works closely with provinces, territories, industry, and conservation and aboriginal groups on protecting and conserving fish habitat. The Program has a responsibility to report to Parliament annually on the administration and enforcement of the habitat protection and pollution prevention provisions of the Fisheries Act.

One of the key objectives of the policy is to "increase the natural productive capacity of habitats for the nation's fisheries resources" otherwise known as "Net Gain", through conservation, restoration, and development of fish habitat.

The Fisheries Act and the Fish Habitat Management Program provide the federal government with a significant role in the conservation and protection of Canadian waters.

For more information see the Fisheries Act - What does the law require?

Click here to see the text of the Fisheries Act

The Oceans Act

Under the Oceans Act, administered by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, estuarine, coastal, and marine ecosystems are protected from the negative effects of land- and marine-based activities, including agriculture. This Act allows for guidelines for marine environmental quality to be developed, including those pertinent to water quality. It also emphasizes integrated management, providing for the development of management plans to protect ecological resources and ecosystem integrity and productivity in cooperation with other responsible federal authorities, such as Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, as well as stakeholders.

Click here to see the text of the Oceans Act

The Migratory Birds Convention Act

The Migratory Birds Convention Act is the law by which Canada carries out an agreement with the United States to protect migratory birds and their habitat. Under the Migratory Birds Convention Act it is prohibited to release any substance, including pesticides, that is harmful to migratory birds in an area they frequent.

For more about the Migratory Convention Act see Environment Canada's Questions and Answers

Click here to see the text of the Migratory Birds Convention Act

The Species at Risk Act (SARA)

In 2002, the Canadian government passed the Species at Risk Act (SARA). It protects species at risk and the natural habitats essential to their survival. It also requires federal organizations to draw up recovery strategies for listed species within tight timelines.

SARA encourages the various governments in Canada to cooperate to protect wildlife species in this country. Consultation and cooperation with Aboriginal peoples are essential to the successful implementation of SARA. All Canadians are invited to participate in local community stewardship programs or express an opinion through the SARA Public Registry.

The Habitat Stewardship Program supports the public's habitat protection and species at risk recovery initiatives.

See the Environment Canada Species at Risk page for more information

Click here to see the text of the Species at Risk Act

The Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRIITA)

In 1996, the WAPPRIITA came into force. This act protects Canadian and foreign species from illegal trade activity. It also helps protect Canada’s ecosystems by prohibiting the introduction of certain invasive species.

Click here for more information on the WAPPRIITA

Climate Change

Canada's Responsibilities under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

As an Annex I and II Party to the Convention, CanadaBlimp promised to undertake a number of actions, including:

• implementing policies and measures to mitigate climate change,
• adopting policies and measures to facilitate adaptation,
• developing and implementing public education and awareness programs,
• undertaking climate research and observation,
• submitting regular "national communications" describing the policies and measures adopted, and
• submitting annual inventories of greenhouse gas emissions by source and removals by sinks.

In addition, Annex II Parties must help developing countries to adapt, promote, and finance their access to environmentally sound technologies.

The Kyoto Protocol

The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty to which more than 160 countries, including Canada, are signatories. The aim of the Kyoto Protocol is to mitigate climate change - slowing down the rate of global warming - by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and by increasing sinks of greenhouse gases.

By signing the treaty, Canada has agreed to reduce its emissions of greenhouse gases by 6 percent compared to 1990 by the period between 2008 and 2012. This is a daunting challenge as by the end of 2005, Canada’s rate of emission of greenhouse gases was actually 24 percent higher than the 1990 level.

The Federal government monitors and reports on greenhouse gas emissions in Canada. It is also responsible for negotiating Canada’s commitments under the Kyoto Protocol.

The Federal government is in the process of releasing new climate change policies; including incentives for renewable energy development and use, and encouraging energy efficiency in homes.

See here for the latest Federal government action on climate change

More information on climate change and the Federal government

Information on recent work on climate change at the international level