The federal government has missed its plan target of planting 2 billion trees in the third afforestation season.
Ottawa missed its annual tree planting and spending targets for the 2023-24 growing season, according to figures provided by Natural Resources Canada.
Ottawa and its partners were scheduled to plant 60 million trees last season, but only 46.6 million seedlings were put in the ground.
Despite the slow rollout of the program, a spokesperson for Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson’s office insisted the 2030-31 target would still be met.
“We remain on track to plant 2 billion trees, a key part of our efforts to fight climate change, support biodiversity and create jobs,” said minister spokesperson Cindy Catulao. “I’m here,” he said.
Caturao said the program is complex and takes a lot of time to collect seeds, set up a nursery operation and prepare the site. Since the program began in 2021, the first few years have focused on “jump start” efforts to source and plant seeds to produce seedlings, she said.
As part of a special episode of CBC Radio’s The House, Kelly McRaven, CEO of the Forest Genetics Conservation Society of Ontario, discusses the challenges of increasing seed production and what it means for the federal government’s 2 Billion Trees Program. We talk to host Katherine Cullen about influences.
Catulao said that eventually tree planting would accelerate, but added that external issues were holding back plans.
“Of course, the economic, travel and supply chain constraints associated with the pandemic are impacting our partners as well as the bushfire situation, highlighting the need to combat climate change and protect nature.” she said.
The federal government says 157.6 million trees have been put into the ground since planting began in 2021. This exceeds the 150 million trees the government was supposed to have planted by this time, but also includes the 54 million trees planted through other programs such as the Environmental Protection Program. Included and Canada Climate Change Low Carbon Economy Fund.
Federal Environment and Sustainable Development Commissioner Jerry DeMarco called the addition of trees planted under another program “creative accounting.”
the house49:02The real stain on the Liberal Party’s promise of 2 billion trees
The federal government has pledged to plant 2 billion trees by 2031 as part of the fight against climate change. However, the plan is not going well. This special edition of The House delves into the real-world challenges of planting so many trees and whether the promise lives up to the hype. Host Katherine Cullen visited the seed farm and spoke with Forest Genetic Conservation Society CEO Kelly McRaven about how much seed is needed and why it’s so difficult to obtain. The House then visited Somerville Nursery, where manager Brent Forbes showed off the large-scale efforts and Rob Keene of the Canadian Tree Nursery Association emphasized the need for a long-term approach to tree planting. Additionally, Doug Hebner of the Nottawasaga Valley Conservancy explains the challenges of finding land, and Susan Antler discusses why she converted some of her farmland to forest. Keld Deer shows how one Indigenous community is using funding from the 2 Billion Trees program to expand its business and apply Indigenous knowledge to its operations. Nature Canada’s Akaash Maharaj and Christian Messier, a forestry expert at the University of Quebec in Montreal, are taking a critical look at whether the program is working as intended. Finally, we ask Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson whether planting 2 billion trees is just a slogan or a real effort to save climate change.
There are currently only seven growing seasons left for the government to plant more than 1.8 billion trees.
the government said earlier this month Agreements were signed or under negotiation to plant an additional 716 million trees.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a tree-planting plan during the 2019 election cycle. Funding of $3.2 billion over 10 years has been pledged.
For the second year in a row, NRCAN spent less money on the program than was allocated for the 2023-24 tree planting season, $117.5 million instead of the budgeted $285 million.
The Canadian government is only planting some trees. Ottawa relies on First Nations communities, provinces, territories, businesses and non-profit organizations for the majority of tree planting. The federal government has signed tree-planting agreements with nine states and territories.
The federal government will provide half of the funding needed for tree planting through a cost-sharing agreement.
December 2021, Natural Resources Agency of Canada (NRCAN) outlined its goals for the program.
