The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy is a

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

of the

government of British Columbia The Government of British Columbia (french: Gouvernement de la Colombie-Britannique) is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of British Columbia. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assumi ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The ministry is responsible for the effective protection, management and conservation of the province's

natural resource Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. O ...

s. It is currently overseen by

George Heyman George Heyman is a former social, environmental and labour activist and now a politician in British Columbia. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2013 British Columbia general election, 2013 provincial election ...

History

Department of Lands and Works (1871-1908)

The "Department of Lands and Works" was established under the Constitution Act in 1871 following the admission of the

Colony of British Columbia The Colony of British Columbia refers to one of two colonies of British North America, located on the Pacific coast of modern-day Canada: *Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866) *Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871) See also *History of Br ...

to the

Dominion of Canada While a variety of theories have been postulated for the name of Canada, its origin is now accepted as coming from the St. Lawrence Iroquoian word , meaning 'village' or 'settlement'. In 1535, indigenous inhabitants of the present-day Quebec C ...

. The department was responsible for the management of

Crown land Crown land (sometimes spelled crownland), also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it. ...

s, surveying and mapping of Crown lands, construction and maintenance of

public services A public service is any Service (economics), service intended to address specific needs pertaining to the aggregate members of a community. Public services are available to people within a government jurisdiction as provided directly through pub ...

, and encouragement of European settlement.

Department of Lands (1908-1945)

In 1908, the department was disestablished with an amendment to the Constitution Act and its functions were divided between the newly formed "Department of Lands" and "Department of Public Works", of which the former is the ancestor to the current ministry. The Department of Lands was responsible for the management of Crown lands, surveying and mapping of Crown lands, timber inspection, forest protection, and

water right Water right in water law refers to the right of a user to use water from a water source, e.g., a river, stream, pond or source of groundwater. In areas with plentiful water and few users, such systems are generally not complicated or contentious ...

s management with respect to mining operations. The Department of Lands was notable for overseeing the founding of British Columbia's first

provincial park Ischigualasto Provincial Park A provincial park (or territorial park) is a park administered by one of the provinces of a country, as opposed to a national park. They are similar to state parks in other countries. They are typically open to the ...

Strathcona Provincial Park Strathcona Provincial Park is the oldest provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, and the largest on Vancouver Island. Founded in 1911, the park was named for Donald Alexander Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal, a wealthy philanthropi ...

, in 1911.

Department of Lands, Forests, and Water Resources (1945-1974)

In 1945, the "Department of Lands" was re-established as the "Department of Lands and Forests". It was responsible for the management of all public lands, administration of water rights, and land settlement programs for returning soldiers. The department was renamed the "Department of Lands, Forests, and Water Resources" in 1962 following its reorganization into its three namesake branches: the B.C. Lands Service, B.C. Forest Service, and B.C. Water Resources Service. It retained the same responsibilities as its predecessor until the disestablishment of the department in 1975.

Ministry of Environment (1975-2017)

In 1975, the "Ministry of Environment" was established by an

order in council An Order-in-Council is a type of legislation in many countries, especially the Commonwealth realms. In the United Kingdom this legislation is formally made in the name of the monarch by and with the advice and consent of the Privy Council ('' Ki ...

under its first name: "Department of Environment". The original functions of the Department of Environment were transferred from the "Department of Lands, Forests and Water Resources", whose functions had been split between the "Ministry of Environment" and "Ministry of Forests". The department was responsible for the management and protection of land, air and water resources including Crown lands (except for matters under the jurisdiction of the Department of Forests), water rights, and pollution control. The department was divided into three branches: land and water management, environmental and engineering services, and environmental protection. Later in 1976, the Dept. of Environment was renamed the "Ministry of the Environment". In 1978, a major government reorganization transferred functions relating to lands and parks from the "Ministry of the Environment" to the newly established "Ministry of Lands, Parks and Housing". At the same time, the "Ministry of the Environment" gained functions relating to marine resources and wildlife (from the former Ministry of Recreation and Conservation), environmental health (from the Ministry of Health), and emergency programming (from the Ministry of Provincial Secretary and Travel Industry). The reorganized "Ministry of the Environment" was divided into four branches: Land and Water Management, Environmental and Engineering Services, Environmental Protection, and Environment and Land Use Secretariat. The name was revised as just the "Ministry of Environment" the following year. In 1986, the parks function from the "Ministry of Lands, Parks and Housing", was merged with the Ministry of Environment. As a result of this addition to its functions, the Ministry of Environment became known as the "Ministry of Environment and Parks". In 1988, the park function was removed and transferred to the newly established "Ministry of Parks". As a result, the name was reverted to the Ministry of Environment. In 1991, the Ministry of Environment was disestablished and its functions were merged with those of the "Ministry of Lands and Parks" to create a new ministry called the "Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks". The successor to this ministry was the "Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection", existing from 2001 to 2005. The successor to this was the "Ministry of Environment", existing from 2005 to 2016. Throughout all of these successive name changes and restructurings, the ministry had retained the same functional responsibilities since 1991.

Ministry of Environment & Climate Change Strategy (2017-Today)

Following the

2017 British Columbia general election The 2017 British Columbia general election was held on May 9, 2017, to elect 87 members (MLAs) to the Legislative Assembly to serve in the 41st Parliament of the Canadian province of British Columbia. In the 40th Parliament prior to this gene ...

, the ministry was renamed the "Ministry of Environment & Climate Change Strategy" with an emphasis on directly addressing the issue of

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

in the province.

Operating units

Southern Boundary Signs for Wrinkly Face Provincial Park

The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy manages several secondary agencies: *

BC Parks BC Parks is an agency of the British Columbia Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy that manages all of the, as of 2020, 1,035 provincial parks and other conservation and historical properties of various title designations within t ...

: designates and manages

protected areas Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

throughout the province. *

BC Wildfire Service BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) is the wildfire suppression service of the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is an element of the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development. Operations For suppression purp ...

: coordinates

wildfire suppression Wildfire suppression is a range of firefighting tactics used to suppress wildfires. Firefighting efforts in wild land areas require different techniques, equipment, and training from the more familiar structure fire fighting found in populated ...

efforts throughout the province. *Climate Action Secretariat: monitors environmental impact of provincial activities and coordinates the planning and implementation of adaptive measures in response to climate change * Conservation Officer Service: enforces the environmental protection policies of British Columbia and Canada within the province. *

Environmental Assessment Office The Environmental Assessment Office is a Crown Agency of the provincial government of British Columbia, Canada. Its mandate is to coordinate assessments of major development proposals in British Columbia. It reports to the provincial Minister of En ...

: coordinates and assesses the

environmental impact Environmental issues are effects of human activity on the biophysical environment, most often of which are harmful effects that cause environmental degradation. Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment on t ...

of major development proposals in the province. *

TransLink Translink (or TransLink) may refer to: * TransLink (British Columbia), the public transport operator in Vancouver, Canada * Translink (Northern Ireland) Translink is the brand name of the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (NITHCo), a ...

: operates the regional transportation network of

Metro Vancouver The Metro Vancouver Regional District (MVRD), or simply Metro Vancouver, is a Canadian political subdivision and corporate entity representing the metropolitan area of Greater Vancouver, designated by provincial legislation as one of the 28 ...

, including the SkyTrain and

West Coast Express The West Coast Express is a commuter railway serving the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Opened in 1995, it provides a link between Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley Regional District and is the only commuter railway in ...

commuter railway.

Legislation

CleanBC

In December 2018, Premier

John Horgan John Joseph Horgan (born August 7, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 36th premier of British Columbia from 2017 to 2022, and also as the leader of the British Columbia New Democratic Party from 2014 to 2022. Horgan has been the ...

's NDP party and

Andrew Weaver Andrew John Weaver is a Canadian scientist and politician who represented the riding of Oak Bay-Gordon Head from 2013 to 2020 in the British Columbia Legislative Assembly. Weaver was the leader of the Green Party of British Columbia from 2015 ...

's Green party jointly announced CleanBC, a plan that would reach 75% of the province's greenhouse gas

emissions target A climate target, climate goal or climate pledge is a measurable commitment for climate policy and energy policy with the aim of limiting the climate change. Researchers within, among others, the UN climate panel have identified probable co ...

. The plan is designed to reduce emissions 40% by the year 2030, compared to 2007 levels. Most of the plan's funding is projected to come from BC's

carbon tax A carbon tax is a tax levied on the carbon emissions required to produce goods and services. Carbon taxes are intended to make visible the "hidden" social costs of carbon emissions, which are otherwise felt only in indirect ways like more sev ...

. For buildings, the BC Building Code was amended to make all buildings “

net zero Carbon neutrality is a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. This can be achieved by balancing emissions of carbon dioxide with its removal (often through carbon offsetting) or by eliminating emissions from society (the transition to the " ...

energy ready” by 2032, the natural gas grid must contain 15% RNG and the province will assist in funding efficiency upgrades. For industry, the government agreed to help fund clean energy firms while improving the efficiency of existing manufacturing and fossil fuel operations. For transportation, all new cars sold from 2040 onward must be a

zero-emissions vehicle A zero-emission vehicle, or ZEV, is a vehicle that does not emit exhaust gas or other pollutants from the onboard source of power. The California definition also adds that this includes under any and all possible operational modes and conditions ...

, with other vehicle types being subject to stricter emissions regulation. For waste, the goals outlined in the plan are to divert 95% of

biodegradable waste Biodegradable waste includes any organic matter in waste which can be broken down into carbon dioxide, water, methane or simple organic molecules by micro-organisms and other living things by composting, aerobic digestion, anaerobic digestion ...

from landfills and capture 75% of landfill emissions.

Water Sustainability Act

Recycling Regulation

In 2011, the British Columbia announced plans to transfer the cost of recycling for packaging and printed paper from municipal governments to product manufactures. The non-for-profit Recycle BC began operations on May 11, 2014, to fulfill the collection and recycling of these goods on behalf of these companies. As of December 2018, British Columbia had 17

extended producer responsibility In the field of waste management, extended producer responsibility (EPR) is a strategy to add all of the environmental costs associated with a product throughout the product life cycle to the market price of that product. Extended producer respo ...

categories.

Fish farming

References

{{reflist British Columbia government departments and agencies Environment ministries Environmental protection agencies

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...