2023 Reports 1 to 5 of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development to the Parliament of CanadaNatural Resources Canada unlikely to plant 2 billion trees by 2031 unless the program sees significant changes
Ottawa, 20 April 2023—A report released today by Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development Jerry V. DeMarco found that given the number of trees planted to date and the issues with establishing tree planting partnerships, Natural Resources Canada is unlikely to reach its 2 billion tree planting objective or achieve expected emission reductions unless significant changes are made. The audit recommended that Natural Resources Canada make improvements to the 2 Billion Trees Program to get it on track.
The audit found that Natural Resources Canada nearly met its planting goal in 2021, but the department fell well short of its 2022 goal. Even if all the signed planting agreements with partners had been implemented, only 2.3% of the 2 billion tree goal would be reached in the program’s first 2 years. Delays in signing agreements not only have significantly challenged Natural Resources Canada’s ability to plant the number of trees that it had estimated for 2022 but also will affect subsequent years, which have much more ambitious planting estimates. The audit also found that even if 2 billion trees are planted by 2031, the expected emission reductions associated with them are unlikely to occur until much later.
The audit found that Natural Resources Canada, working with Environment and Climate Change Canada, did not provide a clear and complete picture of the role of forests in Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions, such as logging. The audit also found that forest emission estimates varied significantly in reports over the years because of recalculations triggered by data updates. This changed whether forests were reported as a net source of emissions rather than capturing emissions, making it extremely difficult to make informed decisions.
“I must stress how important it is that we do not give up and that we, instead, change course to successfully implement solutions such as the 2 Billion Trees Program and also work to get a full picture of how our forests affect greenhouse gas emissions,” said Mr. DeMarco.
- 30 -
The 2023 Reports of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Report 1—Forests and Climate Change, is available on the Office of the Auditor General of Canada website.
Please visit our Media Room for more information.