BILL C-300 - First Reading

	PUBLIC ACCESS
Public registry	10. The Minister must establish a public registry for the purpose of facilitating access to documents relating to matters under this Act.
Form and manner of public registry	11. The Minister may determine the form of the public registry, how it is to be kept and how access to it is to be provided.
Protection from proceedings	12. Despite any other Act of Parliament, no civil or criminal proceedings may be brought against any of the following persons for the full or partial disclosure in good faith of any notice or other document through the public registry or any consequences of its disclosure:
	(a) Her Majesty in right of Canada; and
	(b) the Minister or any person acting on behalf of or under the direction of the Minister.
	CANADIAN ENDANGERED SPECIES CONSERVATION COUNCIL
Establish- ment	13. (1) The Canadian Endangered Species Conservation Council is established, to be composed of the responsible ministers and any provincial ministers who agree to attend the meetings of the Council.
Co-chairperso ns	(2) The Council is to be chaired jointly by the Minister and a provincial minister chosen by a majority of the provincial ministers who are members of the Council.
Responsibi- lities	(3) The Council is responsible for
	(a) providing general direction on the activities of COSEWIC and on the development and implementation of recovery plans; and
	(b) co-ordinating the activities of the various levels of government relating to the protection of wildlife species at risk.
	WILDLIFE SPECIES LISTING PROCESS
	Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada
Establish- ment	14. (1) The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) is established to carry out its functions under this Act solely on the basis of the best available information on the biological status of species at risk.
Composition	(2) COSEWIC is to be composed of not more than nine members appointed by the Minister after consulting the Council. The Minister may also consult the Royal Society of Canada and other expert bodies, including those possessing traditional or community knowledge, that, in the opinion of the Minister, have relevant expertise.
Functions	(3) In addition to designating species at risk, COSEWIC has the following functions:
	(a) developing and periodically reviewing scientific criteria for assessing the status of wildlife species and for classifying them and recommending the criteria to the Minister;
	(b) ranking the urgency of assessing the status of particular wildlife species and classifying them; and
	(c) providing advice to the Minister and any other functions that the Minister, in consultation with the Council, may assign.
Financial and administra- tive support	(4) The Minister must provide COSEWIC with the necessary financial and administrative support to carry out its functions.
Qualifica- tions of members	15. (1) The members of COSEWIC must have expertise drawn from a discipline such as conservation biology, population dynamics, taxonomy, systematics, genetics or from traditional or community knowledge of the protection of species at risk.
Represen- tative nature	(2) In appointing the members, the Minister must consider the importance of maintaining a membership that is broadly representative of all regions of Canada. However, the Minister's primary consideration in appointing new members must be their expertise relating to the conservation of species at risk.
Restrictions on appointments to COSEWIC	(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2), the members are not to be appointed by the Minister as representatives of particular regions, and the Minister must ensure that no more than one half of the members appointed are employees of the federal or a provincial government.
For greater certainty	(4) For greater certainty, an employee of a university or college is not an ``employee'' for the purposes of subsection (3).
Term of appointment	(5) The members are to be appointed to hold office during pleasure for a renewable term of not more than three years.
Not part of the public service of Canada	(6) Appointment as a member of COSEWIC is not an appointment to the public service of Canada.
Exercise of discretion to be independent	(7) Every member of COSEWIC must exercise his or her discretion independently.
Remunera- tion and expenses	(8) The members are to be paid remuneration and expenses in amounts that the Minister may set.
Meetings	16. COSEWIC must meet at least once every six months.
Subcommit- tees	17. COSEWIC must establish specialist subcommittees to assist in the preparation and review of status reports on wildlife species considered to be at risk, and may establish other subcommittees to advise it or to exercise or perform any of its powers or functions. If a species is found on lands governed by aboriginal land claims legislation, subcommittees must, to the greatest extent possible, endeavour to incorporate traditional knowledge into their work.
Rules	18. COSEWIC may make rules respecting the holding of meetings and the general conduct of its activities, including
	(a) the selection of persons to chair its meetings; and
	(b) the meetings and activities of its subcommittees.
	Designation of Species at Risk
Designation	19. (1) COSEWIC must designate wildlife species that it determines to be at risk and classify them as
	(a) extinct;
	(b) extirpated;
	(c) endangered;
	(d) threatened; or
	(e) vulnerable.
Basis of determina- tion	(2) COSEWIC, in determining whether to designate a wildlife species to be at risk, must make that determination based on, among other things, scientific and traditional knowledge that indicates the species is at risk and needs to be protected.
Cross- boundary species	(3) If the wildlife species migrates across an international boundary of Canada or has a range extending across such a boundary, the designation must so indicate.
Applications	20. (1) Any person may apply to COSEWIC for the designation or reclassification of a wildlife species or the revocation of its designation.
Information to be included	(2) The application must include relevant information about the biological status of the species and, if possible, a status report.
Examination of applications	(3) Within ninety days after receiving the application, COSEWIC must examine it and inform the applicant in writing of what it has decided to do about the application and the reasons for its decision.
Status reports	21. (1) Each decision of COSEWIC about the designation or classification of a wildlife species must be based on a status report on the species that COSEWIC either has had prepared or has received with an application.
Form and content of status reports	(2) The Minister may, on the recommendation of COSEWIC, make regulations establishing the form and content of the status reports, but the reports must indicate whether the wildlife species concerned migrates across an international boundary of Canada or has a range extending across such a boundary and must
	(a) include an assessment of the past and present distribution and population of the species;
	(b) identify the habitat that is important or critical to the species; and
	(c) identify existing and potential threats to the species and its critical habitat and evaluate how serious they are.
Decision with reasons	22. (1) COSEWIC must make a decision about the designation or classification of a wildlife species within six months after it receives a status report on the species and the decision must be supported by reasons.
Notification of applicant	(2) If the decision results from an application, COSEWIC must notify the applicant of the decision and the reasons.
Decision not to designate	(3) COSEWIC must include the wildlife species on a list, to be called the ``List of Non-designated Species'', if it decides that the species should not be designated, either because it is not at risk or because there is not enough information to determine whether it is at risk.
Public registry	(4) The List of Non-designated Species must be included in the public registry.
	Emergency Designations and Reclassifications
Emergency designation or reclassifica- tion	23. COSEWIC may, on an emergency basis, designate or reclassify a wildlife species as threatened or endangered before receiving a status report if it has information indicating that there is an imminent threat to the survival of the species.
Application for emergency designation or reclassifica- tion	24. (1) Any person may apply to COSEWIC for an emergency designation or reclassification of a wildlife species as threatened or endangered. The application must include relevant information indicating that there is an imminent threat to the survival of the species.
Examination of application	(2) Within thirty days after receiving the application, COSEWIC must examine it and inform the applicant in writing of what it has decided to do about the application and the reasons for its decision.
Decision and reasons	25. If COSEWIC decides to designate or reclassify the wildlife species, it must give reasons for its decision and identify the imminent threat to the survival of the species. If loss of habitat is an imminent threat, COSEWIC must also identify the habitat that is critical to the survival of the species.
Status report and final decision	26. Within eighteen months after making an emergency designation or reclassification, COSEWIC must have a status report on the species prepared and make a final decision on whether it should be designated or reclassified.
	Publication
Documents in public registry	27. The following documents must be included in the public registry:
	(a) COSEWIC's criteria for the designation and classification of wildlife species;
	(b) the status reports on wildlife species; and
	(c) COSEWIC's decisions about the designation and classification of wildlife species and the reasons for the decisions.
Restriction	28. The Minister, on the advice of COSEWIC, may restrict the release of any information in a status report required to be included in the public registry if that information relates to the location of a species or its habitat, and restricting its release would be in the best interests of the species.
	Reviews and Reports
Review of designations and classifications	29. COSEWIC must review the designation and classification of each species at risk at least once every ten years, or more frequently if it has reason to believe that the status of the species has changed significantly.
Reports to Council	30. When COSEWIC makes a decision about the designation or classification of a wildlife species, COSEWIC must report the decision to the members of the Council.
Annual reports	31. As soon as practicable after the end of each year, COSEWIC must report to the Council on its activities during that year.
	List of Wildlife Species at Risk
Notice of response to designation, etc.	32. (1) Where COSEWIC designates a wildlife species, changes its classification or revokes a designation, the Minister shall, within sixty days thereof, amend the List of Wildlife Species at Risk accordingly and give notice of the amendment in the public registry.
Listing at request of a provincial minister	(2) The Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister, may include a wildlife species on the List if a provincial minister designates it as a species at risk, asks that it be listed and agrees to participate in the preparation of a recovery plan for the species.
Public registry	(3) The List must be included in the public registry.