Meeting with the Hon. John Baird, Minister of the Environment
Saturday, January 27, 2007

Posted:February 5th, 2007

By: Dr. Art Olson,
CFBS Executive Director

I had the opportunity on Saturday, January 27, 2007, to meet with the Hon. John Baird, Minister of the Environment. The meeting came about as a result of our sending our brief "SUSTAINING A RENEWABLE RESOURCE" (http://www.cfbs.org/ReportsBriefsSustRen.html) and offering to meet with him at his convenience. In summary, the brief outlines the need to move forward on the science policy framework, for highly qualified manpower, to sustain the investment (and to avoid the brain drain that many of us saw some 30 years ago) and to maximize the return from research investment.

We had a very pleasant discussion. Given his breadth of experience, he obviously has a strong understanding of the both the nature and challenges of Government.

With regards to his new role as Minister of the Environment, I noted that CFBS members included the Society of Toxicology of Canada and the Canadian Society of Zoologists as well as outlining the nature of our membership as including university, private sector and government scientists.

While the Minister is very much focused on moving forward Bill C-30 (An Act to amend the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999, the Energy Efficiency Act and the Motor Vehicle Fuel Consumption Standards Act (Canada's Clean Air Act), he was interested in comments relating to setting priorities and our thoughts on the current development of a science policy framework although he did note that his colleague, Mr. Bernier, (Industry Canada) has been examining the role of the private sector and the granting councils as part of establishing the framework. During my presentation, Mr. Baird raised the need to ensure that our government laboratories have the strong scientific skills and physical capabilities in place.

I came away from the meeting with a sense that Mr. Baird understands the need for science, the realities of change as well as the benefits of continuity. As well, while the legislation currently is his top priority, I expect he will be looking closely at what needs to be done as his experience and time with his portfolio grows.