2024 to 2025 Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy Report

Introduction to the 2024 to 2025 Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy Report

The 2022 to 2026 Federal Sustainable Development Strategy (FSDS) presents the Government of Canada’s sustainable development goals and targets, as required by the Federal Sustainable Development Act. This is the first FSDS to be framed using the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations 2030 Agenda and provides a balanced view of the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainable development.

In keeping with the purpose of the Act, to make decision-making related to sustainable development more transparent and accountable to Parliament, the Canadian Transportation Agency (Agency) supports the goals laid out in the FSDS through the activities described in the Agency’s 2023 to 2027 Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy (DSDS). This Report provides a report on progress related to the Agency’s DSDS in the fiscal year 2024 to 2025.

The Federal Sustainable Development Act also sets out 7 principles that must be considered in the development of the FSDS as well as DSDSs. These basic principles have been considered and incorporated in the Agency's DSDS and 2024 to 2025 DSDS Report.

To promote coordinated action on sustainable development across the Government of Canada, the Agency’s departmental strategy reports on Canada’s progress towards implementing the 2030 Agenda and advancing the SDGs, supported by the Global Indicator Framework (GIF) and Canadian Indicator Framework (CIF) targets and indicators. The Report also now captures progress on SDG initiatives that fall outside the scope of the FSDS.

Commitments for the Canadian Transportation Agency

Goal 10:
Advance reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples and take action on inequality

FSDS context:

Social, economic, and environmental inequalities persist in Canada. These inequalities disproportionately affect people with multiple intersecting identity factors such as gender identity and expression, race and ethnicity, faith community, Indigeneity, disability, sexual orientation, and low socioeconomic status.

Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples is essential to addressing social, economic and environmental inequalities and achieving substantive equality. Urgent action is needed to close the social, economic, health, environmental protection, and educational gaps between Indigenous Peoples and the rest of Canada to ensure that everyone in Canada can enjoy the same quality of life, regardless of who they are or where they were born.

Target theme: Advancing reconciliation with First Nations, Inuit, and the Métis communities

Target: Between 2023 and 2026, and every year on an ongoing basis, develop and table annual progress reports on implementing the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada)

Implementation strategy

• Implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.

Departmental action

• 1. When a potential Agency determination triggers the Crown’s duty to consult and, where appropriate, accommodate, the Agency ensures, before making any determination, that this duty has been fulfilled in a manner consistent with the honour of the Crown, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the objectives of reconciliation between Indigenous peoples and other Canadians.
• 2. Renewal and implementation of Agency approach to Indigenous consultation and engagement.
• Program: All Programs

Performance indicator — Starting point — Target

• Performance indicator: When an Agency activity could have an adverse impact on potential or established Indigenous or treaty rights, the percentage of these occurrences where the Agency has taken steps to successfully fulfill the Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate.
• Starting point: New
• Target: 100%

How the departmental action contributes to the FSDS goal and target and, where applicable, to Canada’s 2030 Agenda National Strategy and SDGs

• The Agency is a government entity whose authorizations under the Canada Transportation Act may trigger the Crown’s duty to consult and, where appropriate, accommodate. The Agency therefore has the responsibility to develop and implement tools, including policies and guidelines, to ensure that the duty to consult is fulfilled before issuing determinations that may be expected to adversely impact potential or established Indigenous or treaty rights.
• The Agency’s approach also reflects the Updated Guidelines for Federal Officials to Fulfill the Duty to Consult, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the Principles respecting the Government of Canada’s relationship with Indigenous Peoples.
• Relevant targets or ambitions: GIF Target: 10.3 Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including by eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices and promoting appropriate legislation, policies and action in this regard.

Results achieved

• Indicator result: New data will be available in 2025-2026.
• Notes: Currently, the Agency is addressing several applications under s.98 of the Canada Transportation Act (approvals of railway construction), for which it must ensure that the Crown’s duty to consult Indigenous groups has been fulfilled. This includes the: Baffinland-Steensby Rail project, Lac Mégantic bypass, and Vancouver Logistics Park project.
• The Agency is also consulting with Indigenous groups on its draft Indigenous consultation guide for railway companies. This guide is expected to be implemented alongside a revised s.98 guide and will provide greater clarity to railway companies on the Agency’s expectations for Indigenous consultations and engagement. The Agency is also developing a draft Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Indigenous consultations for s. 98 Applications.
• Additionally, the Agency is in the process of developing an e-learning module on Indigenous Peoples and railways. As part of this work, the Agency will be consulting Indigenous groups to ensure the content is accurate and reflects the feedback of those groups.
• Once the above activities have been completed, they will be included in the calculation of the indicator result.

Goal 12:
Reduce waste and transition to zero-emission vehicles

FSDS context:

By transitioning to a cleaner and more circular economy that prioritizes reducing consumption and waste generation, reusing the resources already extracted, and finding processes and technologies that take a holistic systems-based approach to minimizing waste throughout the economy, we can help reduce negative impacts on the environment. Doing this also improves resilience to resource shortages, rising or volatile prices, and supply chain interruptions.

The circular economy is founded on 3 principles: design pollution and waste out of the economy, keep products and materials in use (through sharing, reuse, repair, refurbishment, remanufacturing, repurposing and recycling), and work with nature to regenerate and enhance ecosystems. Using these principles, we can sustainably manage our economy for the benefit of current and future generations.

Developing the circular economy provides opportunities for innovation in the way that material resources are able to be reclaimed and reused throughout supply chains as well as changing the norm of throwing out old or broken products. As Canada aims to reduce the amount of waste produced, it will be important to look at circularity sector by sector to overcome unique barriers and take advantage of existing and emerging opportunities.

Target theme: Federal Leadership on Responsible Consumption

Target: The Government of Canada’s procurement of goods and services will be net-zero emissions by 2050, to aid the transition to a net-zero, circular economy (All Ministers)

Implementation strategy

• Strengthen green procurement criteria

Departmental action

• The Agency adheres to the principles of the Federal Sustainable Development Strategy (FSDS) by complying with the Policy on Green Procurement.
• Program: All Programs

Performance indicator — Starting point — Target

• Performance Indicator: Percentage of procurement and materiel management specialists trained in green procurement within one year of being identified.
• Starting point: New
• Target: 100%

How the departmental action contributes to the FSDS goal and target and, where applicable, to Canada’s 2030 Agenda National Strategy and SDGs

• Green procurement incorporates environmental considerations into purchasing decisions and is expected to motivate suppliers to reduce the environmental impact of the goods and services they deliver, and their supply chains.
• Relevant targets or ambitions:
  CIF Ambition: Canadians consume in a sustainable manner
• CIF Indicator: 12.2.1 Proportion of businesses that adopted selected environmental protection activities and management practices
• GIF Target: 12.7 Promote public procurement practices that are sustainable, in accordance with national policies and priorities

Results achieved

• Indicator result: 100% in 2024-2025.
• Notes: The Agency's two procurement officers have completed green procurement training.

Goal 13:
Take action on climate change and its impacts

FSDS context:

The effects of human-caused climate change are being felt across our country. Canadians are seeing more extreme temperatures and precipitation as well as more frequent and severe wildfires, heatwaves, droughts and flooding. Canada is warming at two times the global rate, and this rate is even greater in the Canadian Arctic. Meanwhile, rising sea levels, along with less visible effects such as increased acidity and reduced levels of oxygen in the oceans, are damaging ecosystems and industries such as fisheries.

Climate change is one of the top drivers of global biodiversity loss, which further threatens ecosystems and the beneficial services they provide to society. It affects the health of Canadians, especially the most at-risk populations such as youth, seniors, Indigenous populations, those with chronic health conditions, and marginalized low-income, and racialized communities. It also puts increased strain on the country’s health systems during extreme weather events. Climate change has also been linked to the increased spread of invasive species and intensity of zoonotic (animal-borne) and vector-borne (mosquitos, tick or flea-borne) diseases.

Target theme: Federal Leadership on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions and Climate Resilience

Target: The Government of Canada will transition to climate resilient operations by 2050 (All Ministers)

Implementation strategy

• Implement the Greening Government Strategy through measures that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve climate resilience, and green the government’s overall operations

Departmental action

• Ensure all relevant employees are trained on assessing climate change impacts, undertaking climate change risk assessments, and developing adaptation actions within one year of being identified.
• Program: Internal Services Branch (ISB)

Performance indicator — Starting point — Target

• Performance indicator: Percentage of relevant employees trained on assessing climate change impacts, undertaking climate change risk assessments, and developing adaptation actions.
• Starting point: 0% in 2022-2023 trained
• Target: 100% trained by 2026-2027

How the departmental action contributes to the FSDS goal and target and, where applicable, to Canada’s 2030 Agenda National Strategy and SDGs

• Trained staff can identify risk to critical program delivery, and develop responses to increase the resilience of operations to impacts of climate change.
• Relevant targets or ambitions: 
• GIF Targets: 13.1 Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries.
• 13.3 Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning.

Results achieved

• Indicator result: 33% of staff completed the training in 2024-25.
• Notes: Six staff have been identified, and a targeted training plan has been integrated into their individual learning plans. Training has commenced, focusing on assessing climate change impacts, conducting risk assessments, and developing adaptation strategies. Two out of the six staff have completed the required training, while the others are still pursuing it.
• As a result, trained employees have begun identifying risks to critical program delivery and formulating appropriate responses to enhance the resilience of operations. This proactive approach ensures that climate considerations are embedded in decision-making processes and operational planning.

Integrating Sustainable Development

The Agency will continue to ensure that its decision-making process includes consideration of FSDS goals and targets through its Strategic Environmental and Economic Assessment (SEEA) process. A SEEA for a policy, program or regulatory proposal includes an analysis of the climate, nature, environmental and economic effects of the given proposal.

Public statements on the results of the Agency’s assessments are issued when an initiative that was the subject of a detailed Strategic Environmental and Economic Assessment is implemented or announced. The purpose of the public statement is to demonstrate that the environmental and economic effects, including contributions to the FSDS goals and targets, of an initiative have been considered during proposal development and decision making.

The Agency did not have any proposals subject to a detailed SEEA that were announced or implemented in 2024-2025.