Federal Government

The basic Parliamentary structure of the Federal Government does differ from that of the provinces in at least one important respect: the Senate.  The province’s have one “house” in their Legislatures, but the federal Parliament has two: an elected House of Commons and an appointed Senate. 

The Senators are appointed by the Governor General on the recommendation of the Cabinet.  A senator must be at least 30 years (on the basis of the theory that with age comes experience), and once appointed, however, they can sit until they are 75 years of age.  All new legislation has to pass both Houses before it can become law. 

Federal Jurisdiction

As noted in the discussion of the Canadian Legal System, the Constitution Act, 1867 split responsibilities and powers between the federal and provincial governments.  The main federal power that relates to aquatic habitat is the power over "seacoast and inland fisheries," which includes constitutional authority for the protection of fish habitat.

A variety of other powers, including powers to deal with inter-provincial or international conflicts, powers over navigation, and powers over First Nations peoples and lands, can have a significant impact on watersheds as well.  As well, while the Constitution Act, 1867 does not clearly define responsibility for environmental protection, the Courts have held that the federal government does have a role.

Nonetheless, the federal government was given very few explicit powers over land resources.  Power to regulate what goes on around the fish habitat is limited to controlling actions that directly impact on fish habitat (or one of the other federal “heads of power”). 

Although the federal government powers over fisheries clearly include inland fisheries (fish populations not in the sea), the Provincial Governments have generally argued that inland fisheries is about “property” – a provincial responsibility.  In addition, the province’s have powers that cover land-based activities which are likely to impact upon fish habitat.  Consequently the provinces and the federal government have shared responsibility for fisheries through a series of provincial-federal agreements.  Generally the federal government has taken responsibility for marine fish and adronomous fish (fish that live at least part of their lives in the oceans). 

The federal government exercises its power over fish and fish habitat through departments called:

·                      Fisheries and Oceans Canada is the body primarily responsible for fish and fish habitat;

·                      Environment Canada is responsible for the protection of natural environment generally, including administering some aspects of Fisheries legislation related to aquatic habitat;

·                      Agriculture and Agri-food Canada is responsible for regulating agricultural activities which have a potentially negative impact on aquatic habitat; and

·                      Health Canada has various responsibilities related to ensuring that toxins and poor water do not affect human health, which has an incidental effect on fish habitat. 

Each of these Departments is headed by a “Minister” – the Cabinet member who is politically responsible for overseeing government initiatives falling within the mandate of that Department. 

The primary pieces of federal legislation aimed at regulating fish or protecting aquatic habitat are the Fisheries Act, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, the Canada Water Act, the Species At Risk Act and the Oceans Act.

For more information about the federal government:

·                      Government of Canada website.

·                      Parliament of Canada website.

·                      Government’s “Structure of the Government of Canada” page.

·                      Canadian Government’s “How Government Works – A Primer”.

·                      University of Alberta’s Legal FAQs on the Constitution.