Archived: Departmental Results Report 2016 to 2017, supplementary tables, Department of Environment, chapter 5
Response to Parliamentary Committees and External Audits
Response to parliamentary committees
There were no parliamentary committee reports requiring a response in 2016–17.
Response to the Auditor General (including to the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development)
2016 Spring Reports of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development
Report 1 – Federal Support for Sustainable Municipal Infrastructure:
The objective of the audit was to determine whether Infrastructure Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities managed two key programs related to the Gas Tax Fund and the Green Municipal Fund and designed to support sustainable communities to achieve their objectives, and whether Infrastructure Canada adequately coordinated the set of programs.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) was included in this audit because of its participation in the Green Municipal Fund Council. Specifically, the audit notably assessed whether the objectives of the Gas Tax Fund and the Green Municipal Fund were being achieved.
One recommendation was made to ECCC in this audit, which also includes Natural Resources Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
The audit and the Department’s response may be found on the Office of the Auditor General of Canada's website.
Report 2 – Mitigating the Impacts of Severe Weather:
The objectives of the audit were to assess whether:
- Information, research, and tools from selected federal organizations supported decision makers’ long-term mitigation of severe weather events;
- Federal mitigation funding led to increased infrastructure resilience against the effects of severe weather events.
The audit focused on the federal government’s actions to support Canada’s long-term mitigation efforts. It examined key federal organizations’ data, information, tools, and funding that could help decision makers mitigate the effects of severe weather. It also examined whether the federal government was meeting its responsibilities to make Canada’s infrastructure more resilient against severe weather events. Public Safety Canada, National Research Council Canada, Natural Resources Canada, and Infrastructure Canada also participated in the audit.
One recommendation in the audit was addressed to ECCC.
The audit and the Department’s response may be found on the Office of the Auditor General of Canada's website.
2016 Fall Reports of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development
Report 4 – Review of the 2015 Progress Report of the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy:
The Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development's (CESD) objectives for this review were to
- Assess the fairness of information in the 2015 Progress Report of the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy; and
- Determine whether the 2015 Progress Report reflected the recommendations from the CESD’s 2013 Fall Report, Chapter 8 – Federal and Departmental Sustainable Development Strategies, which included a review of the 2012 Progress Report of the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy.
ECCC was the key focus for this review because of its Minister’s obligation to report to Parliament at least once every three years on the federal government’s progress in implementing the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy (FSDS). This review assessed the fairness of the information on the federal government’s progress in implementing the FSDS. As well, it followed-up on previous CESD reported recommendations in this area.
The review’s four recommendations were addressed to ECCC.
The review and the Department’s responses may be found on the Office of the Auditor General of Canada's website.
Response to external audits conducted by the Public Service Commission of Canada or the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages
There were no audits in 2016–17 requiring a response.