Canada's Species At Risk Act

Canada’s Species At Risk Act (SARA) was designed to protect Canadian plants and wildlife. In order for the SARA to work properly, government must use the powers of the act.

There are three main tools of the SARA:
1.  Official recognition: a plant or animal cannot be protected unless it is "listed".
2.  Habitat protection: begins with identifying habitat needed for survival and recovery.
3.  The 'safety net': federal government can step in if a province fails to protect 
        a species and its habitat.

But this piece of federal legislation contains some fundamental weaknesses.

Flaws in the listing process
Under the SARA, the federal government receives recommendations from an independent science advisory body – the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) –on whether a species is at risk of extinction.

The bad news is that the Federal Cabinet often does not follow these scientific recommendations.

If listing an animal is deemed to have economic or social impacts, it can be denied listing, referred for further consultations, or sent back to the scientific body for further study. In other words, there are many avenues to delay protecting species, leaving them vulnerable to continued decline.

Recommended for Protection--But Denied
For example, government scientists have recommended that polar bears are added to the list of endangered species several times, but the federal government has repeatedly postponed adding the bear for protection. This has left the polar bear without any plan for protection through most of Canada.

The porbeagle shark was denied protection by the SARA because it might have impacted the fishing industry--despite a 90 per cent decline in its population.

Putting politics and economics ahead of species protection and the services provided by these wildlife  seriously weakens the Act's effectiveness. Oddly enough, it’s usually economic considerations that put these species in harm’s way in the first place.

The result? Only 345 of 487 species identified as “at risk” by COSEWIC have been given legal protection.

A Closer Look At Species Listing
The David Suzuki Foundation report "Left off the List" profiles eight of the dozens of species that have been scientifically recommended for protection under the Species at Risk Act, but have been excluded from the Act designed to protect them.

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SARA covers little territory
The SARA currently applies only to federal lands--like post offices, national parks, airports and RCMP detachments. Most public, or Crown, lands in Canada are under provincial jurisdiction. This leaves only a tiny fraction of the country under direct protection of the SARA.

Holes in the safety net
The SARA does contain a special “safety net” provision that can protect areas normally under provincial jurisdiction, but only if the federal Minister of Environment approves. The "safety net" has never been employed, despite the dire circumstances of species like the Northern Spotted Owl.

Flaws in habitat protection
When a species is listed, the SARA requires development of a recovery strategy that identifies habitat crucial for its survival. Yet the majority of recovery strategies do not identify critical habitat. This despite requirements within the SARA (Section 41) to do so.

The Bottom Line
Weak legislation, loopholes, lack of funding, poor habitat protection, political interference and poor enforcement leaves Canada's rich wildlife with poor protection.

The SARA will complete its five-year review period in 2008. By monitoring enforcement failures of the Act and working to deliver habitat protection, the David Suzuki Foundation is committed to ensuring that the habitat that species need to survive and recover is protected, maintained and restored.