Environmental Initiatives in the 2009 Alberta Budget

We have blogged today about the how the Alberta Government has budgeted for Climate Change in its newly released 2009 Budget.

We thought that it might be useful to outline some of the other goals Alberta Environment will be pursuing as set forth in AENV's Business Plan.

There are six strategic priorities and five core goals set forth in the Business Plan. Goal. The strategic priorities are as follows:

1. Cumulative Effects Management - The Ministry will lead Alberta's transition to an outcomes focused environmental cumulative eff ects management system that is implemented within Alberta's Land-use Framework and addresses the impacts of development on land, air, water and biodiversity, at a regional level.

2. Oil Sands - The Ministry of Environment will work with other Government of Alberta ministries to ensure all Alberta's energy resources, including the oil sands, are developed in an environmentally sustainable way. The Ministry will lead regional environmental planning in the oil sands including working with stakeholders to set desired and required environmental outcomes

3. Climate Change - The Ministry of Environment will implement the provincial Climate Change Strategy, including regulatory, conservation, and adaptation initiatives

4. Engagement and Awareness - The Ministry of Environment will provide Albertans, stakeholders and industry with the information needed to understand what government is doing to ensure environmental excellence and sustainable development, and the tools they need to reduce their environmental footprint

5. Water for Life - The Ministry of Environment will implement the renewed Water for Life strategy. $16 million has been budgeted for the Water for Life strategy.

6. Organization - The Ministry of Environment will embed organizational learning into our behaviours and practices and support our employees in being engaged, enabled and empowered in service of the Ministry's Vision, Mission and Valued Behaviours

There are five goals outlined in the Business Plan, each of which includes a number of strategies designed to achieve success. Below is a list of the goals together with some of the strategies.

Goal 1 - The cumulative effects of development on land, air, water, and climate are managed to achieve Government of Alberta desired environmental outcomes. Strategies include: Work with Treasury Board's Oil Sands Sustainable Development secretariat to implement the Responsible Actions - a plan for Alberta's Oil Sands; Continue to implement the Climate Change Strategy; Continue to implement and resource a renewed Water for Life: Alberta's Strategy for Sustainability; Complete work with the Clean Air Strategic Alliance (CASA) to update Alberta's Clean Air Strategy

Goal 2 - The Ministry has effective risk management, preparation and responses to emerging and complex environmental issues. Strategies include: Identify, understand and improve awareness of existing and emerging issues that could lead to significant environmental issues; Review and assess Alberta's wastewater facilities to identify and respond to present and future demands

Goal 3 - People are aware of and understand existing and emerging environmental threats and opportunities. Strategies include: Enhance Albertans' awareness and understanding of environmental stewardship through public outreach and programs to enable Albertans to take action; Develop and implement an integrated monitoring and reporting strategy for environmental conditions, trends and performance across the province;

Goal 4 - Albertans, communities, governments and industry are good stewards of the environment. Strategies include: Strengthen stewardship through community and stewardship organization development in areas such as watershed management, airshed management, cumulative eff ects management, monitoring and reporting and resource conservation and recovery; Enhance the One Simple Act program and the Alberta Conservation Team; Support Alberta's environmental priorities on a national and international level through the Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment

Goal 5 - Environmental infrastructure is developed and sustained to meet the Government of Alberta desired outcomes. Strategies include: Update the regulatory and non-regulatory tools such as operational policies and procedures for air, land and water management; Implement the air and water management framework for the Industrial Heartland; Develop and maintain air, land and water monitoring, knowledge and environmental performance systems to support Government of Alberta; Work with the Ministries of Sustainable Resource Development and Energy and the Energy Resources Conservation Board to address upstream oil and gas sector policy gaps, overlaps, and inconsistencies, and to complete detailed design and undertake implementation of an integrated regulatory delivery system for the upstream oil and gas sector.

For a full description of the goals and strategies, see the Budget 2009 website.