Archived: Up-front multi-year funding

General information on up-front multi-year funding to the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust

Recipient information

Clayoquot Biosphere Trust (CBT)

For more information, please visit the CBT site at www.clayoquotbiosphere.org

Start date

February 2000

End date

In perpetuity

Link to departmental results

Canadians have clean water

Link to Program Inventory

Water Quality and Ecosystems Partnerships and Community Eco-Action

Purpose and objectives of the transfer payment program

Creation of an endowment fund for the CBT, which is the cornerstone of the Clayoquot Sound United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Biosphere Reserve. The CBT will use the income from the endowment fund to support local research, education and training in the Biosphere Reserve region.

Total funding approved

$12 million

Total funding received

$12 million (in 2000)

Planned funding in 2020−21

$0.0

Planned funding in 2021−22

$0.0

Planned funding in 2022−23

$0.0

Summary of annual plans of recipient

During 2020-21, the CBT will focus on the following objectives and deliverables:

• Deliver a range of grants for regional initiatives in the areas of:  research and environment; arts and culture; community development; and youth and education. A sixth Biosphere Research Award will be offered for research that advances understanding of conservation challenges in the marine and/or terrestrial ecosystems and prioritizes conservation actions.
• Host a series of Vital Conversations to discuss the data presented within the 2018 Vital Signs report. The report aligns local data and stories with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals as a means of tracking progress towards national and global goals.
• Proceed with the development of the Biosphere Centre by following protocols, initiating the re-zoning process, and raising funds to support the development of 301 Olsen Road.
• Deliver a range of events to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere designation.
• Prepare for the 2021 UNESCO Periodic Review by compiling data and stories that showcase the evolution and impact of the UNESCO Biosphere designation and the CBT from 2010 - 2020.
• Explore the development of a publication on the natural history of the Biosphere region in partnership with other interested authors and organizations.

General Information – Up Front Multi Year - Green Municipal Fund

Name of recipient

Green Municipal Fund (GMF)

For more information, please visit the GMF site at www.fcm.ca/home/programs/green-municipal-fund.htm

Start date

February 2000

End date

No end date

Link to Program Inventory

Clean Growth and Climate Change Mitigation

Description

Between 2000 and 2018, the Government of Canada endowed the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) with $50 million for grants and $625 million for endowment funding to administer a revolving fund for grants, loans and loan guarantees to encourage investment in municipal environmental projects. As per Budget 2019, the Government of Canada transferred an additional $950 million to the FCM for the GMF. Since its inception, the total amount transferred from the Government of Canada for the GMF amounts to $1.625 billion.

The GMF was established to have a positive impact on the health and the quality of life of Canadians by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, improving local air, water and soil quality, and promoting renewable energy by supporting environmental studies and projects within the municipal sector. Eligible projects may fall into one or more of the following categories: energy, water, waste, sustainable transportation, brownfields, or integrated community projects.

The amount of GMF financing available to municipalities is directly related to the environmental benefits and/or innovation of the projects undertaken, with grant/loan combinations of up to 80% of eligible costs available for capital projects with exceptional environmental benefits.

As stipulated in the GMF Funding Agreement between the FCM and the Government of Canada, the FCM has created two advisory bodies: the Green Municipal Fund Council (GMF Council) and the Peer Review Committee. The GMF Council’s role is to assist the FCM Board of Directors—the GMF decision-making body—in approving projects proposed by municipalities. The 15-member GMF Council includes five federal members: two from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), two from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) and one from Infrastructure Canada (INFC). All ECCC federal members are appointed by the FCM Board of Directors based on recommendations from the Minister of Environment and Climate Change.

Environment and Climate Change Canada peer reviewers provide the GMF and federal Council Members with expert environmental science and technology advice and evaluate funding proposals.

Total funding approved

$337,500,000

Total funding received

$337,500,000

Funding in 2020−21

$0

Planned funding in 2021−22

$0

Planned funding in 2022−23

$0

Summary of annual plans of recipient

GMF’s 2020-2021 Annual Statement of Plans and Objectives (ASPO) is expected to be available in February 2020 The GMF’s 2019-2020 ASPO states the following:

Grants for sustainable community plans, feasibility studies and field tests: After March 31, 2009, the FCM must aim to commit $6 to $8 million in grants for sustainable community plans, feasibility studies and field tests. In fulfillment of this requirement, the FCM is aiming to approve a total of $6 million for plans, feasibility studies and field tests in 2019-2020.

Loans and grants for capital projects: The 2019-2020 ASPO indicates that the FCM is aiming to approve $54 million in loans for capital projects in all sectors, and $8.1million in grants for capital projects in the energy, transportation, waste and water sectors.

Performance measures:

To measure and demonstrate the qualitative, quantitative, short-term and long-term success of the GMF, the planned activities for 2019-20 include the following:

• Empower innovation: focus on addressing the risks that municipalities and private-sector partners face when they try to adopt new and innovative solutions.
• Accelerate the replication of proven sustainable solutions: enhance the replication rate and mobilization of promising new solutions emerging from GMF.
• Create a roadmap of the municipal sector’s challenges and solution pathways: develop roadmaps to show municipalities how to achieve their overall sustainability objectives in each GMF focus subsector (i.e. energy, transportation, water, waste and land use and planning).
• Establish the business case for and economic benefits of sustainable solutions: deliver appropriate analysis and knowledge tools to support municipalities in their decision-making and due diligence around sustainable solutions.
• Be responsive to clients’ needs: establish a central advisory service system to optimize the benefits of GMF’s funding offers and the related processes, and help it respond to its clients’ needs.
• Leverage and mobilize GMF’s knowledge, decision tools and capacity-building support for planning and executing sustainable projects: outline a holistic approach to capacity building that enables GMF to address gaps.
• Collect and develop data to help direct the efforts of the municipal sector and its partners: FCM will collect data and make it available so that municipalities, GMF and its partners have the information they need to identify sustainability areas that easily address and have significant environmental and economic impact.
• Attract capital and investments to the municipal sustainability sector (lever investments) and help municipalities access funds and identify new revenue streams: better position the municipal sector to receive additional investments and stretch their budgets further.
• Ensure GMF’s sustainability and maximize its influence: ensure the endowment’s sound management in the long term while ensuring that it has the financial resources required to fulfill its mandate.
• Inspire municipalities and their partners by defining, recognizing and communicating the successes, lessons learned and triple bottom line benefits of sustainable solutions: better position GMF to communicate the key ingredients in successes as well as lessons learned.
• Maintain excellence in governance, due diligence, project funding and oversight while balancing risks with returns: development of a performance measurement system that will articulate GMF’s sector contributions and the progress it makes toward delivering on its mandate and ensuring optimal results from its operations.