A provincial task force’s recommendations on protecting at-risk species fall short of what is needed in B.C., environmental groups say.
Among the 16 recommendations delivered to the B.C. government, the task force calls for “an ecosystem-based approach to species at risk” and action to “strengthen existing legislation”.

The task force’s report, released today (July 4) by the Ministry of Environment, also calls for engagement with private landowners and First Nations.

But Ecojustice, Sierra Club B.C., and the Wilderness Committee say more needs to be done to address the threats to endangered animals and their habitats.

The three organizations have jointly called for the B.C. government to introduce an endangered-species law.

Devon Page, executive director of Ecojustice, said B.C. and Alberta are the only provinces in Canada without such laws.

“What it [the proposed law] would essentially do is it would identify species and their habitats and bring in protections that would allow the species to recover,” Page told the Straight by phone.

George Heyman, executive director of Sierra Club B.C., criticized the task force report, saying the recommendations simply call for “more study and tinkering with existing laws”.

“While it’s welcome that the task force recognizes that there’s a threat and a problem, we think they fell short of the mark by not calling for stand-alone species-at-risk and habit-at-risk legislation,” Heyman told the Straight by phone.

Struck in June 2010, the 10-member task force was assigned to provide the B.C. government with recommendations on protecting species at risk in B.C.

The 16 recommendations from the task force were delivered to a cabinet committee on the environment on May 17.

Among other recommendations, the task force calls for the implementation of the Wildlife Amendment Act and updates to the 2005 Canada-British Columbia Agreement on Species at Risk.

“Our report is aimed at making early gains on both public and private land while proposing direction for the long term that will help to address the continuing pressures of development and climate change," task force chair Bruce Fraser says in a statement.

Environment Minister Terry Lake says the province is reviewing the task force recommendations, according to the statement.

According to the three environmental groups, there are more than 1,900 species at risk in B.C. including orcas, grizzly bears, and spotted owls. Heyman highlighted climate change and industrial development as key threats.

Eighty-seven percent of those at-risk species are not protected under provincial or federal law, the groups say.

The Ministry of Environment is accepting public feedback on the task force report until August 31.