Recommendations to the NCC Mandate Review Panel
Action Chelsea for the Respect of the Environment
November 14, 2006
Governance
An important element that is missing from the governance of the NCC is a source of scientific expertise to support the agency's role in protecting the ecological values of the region. None of the current Commissioners has significant expertise or experience in nature conservation, nor is there an advisory body to the NCC as a whole that includes this expertise. And yet, a core part of the current responsibilities of the NCC is the management of green space, including a major federal protected natural area - Gatineau Park.
ACRE supports the recommendation that the NCC establish a science advisory committee that would include environmental and conservation science expertise to support the NCC in implementing its environmental conservation mandate. We understand that there have been repeated offers of help from the scientific community in the Ottawa region and beyond. It is difficult to understand why the NCC has not accepted these offers to increase its scientific capacity at no additional cost to taxpayers.
Linked to the above recommendation, ACRE also supports the calls for increased transparency and public engagement in NCC operations.
The NCC has a reputation for being difficult to engage as a partner, even when such partnerships would further the agency's own goals, and when considerable resources are being offered at no cost. ACRE is aware of several serious and specific partnership proposals, assistance offers from universities and assistance offers from government agencies which were never welcomed or followed up. Regrettably, the NCC attitude has been defensive and isolationist.
One example involves ACRE directly. ACRE is a partner with the University of Ottawa and the Municipality of Chelsea in a community-based monitoring program called H20 Chelsea. This program has been a huge success and has won awards at the local, provincial and national levels, including most recently from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. The program is supported by more than 100 volunteers in Chelsea, who are involved in a range of activities, including regular scientific monitoring of water quality in Meech and Kingsmere Lakes, and Chelsea and Meech Creeks within Gatineau Park. ACRE, a local non-profit organization, has provided over $200K to support this project. The University of Ottawa has provided significant scientific capacity as well as financial and in kind support. The Municipality has provided financial and in kind support. The National Capital Commission has only provided permission to sample within its boundaries, but no financial or in kind support in spite of repeated efforts to engage them in the sampling process.
This lack of willingness or capacity to work with others has resulted in a huge loss of potential benefit to the NCC, which is a great shame, and a source of frustration to those of us working to enhance the natural values of our community, which includes Gatineau Park. A cultural shift is required to move from a defensive approach to management to a more proactive, engaged way of operating as a part of the greater community. We believe that a clearer, more focused mandate and a stronger capacity to perform the Commission's environmental protection functions will help to support this shift in organizational culture.
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