Thank you.

Hello, everyone. Thank you for inviting me to appear before you today.

To begin, let me say very clearly that I am unequivocally in favour of updating, adequately reforming and strengthening the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, or CEPA. After more than 20 years, it was due, as they say.

I am a family doctor in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, a part of Montreal known for being quite poor. Historically, this part of the city has been exposed to higher levels of atmospheric pollution than other parts, and that has been the case for decades. To this day, the health of people in this part of town, including my patients, is threatened by industrial projects, a lack of green space, and heat islands caused by poor urban planning.

I am telling you this because I believe that the modernization of the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, along with a stronger legislative framework to assess and monitor toxic substances, including greenhouse gases, would help me protect my patients' health on a daily basis, and also help protect the health of people in other parts of Canada. In the interest of equity, the CEPA must include an environmental justice strategy, and we have a few proposals to that effect.

In view of climate change, which is recognized as the greatest threat to human health of the 21st century, the loss of biodiversity, which is associated with the growing risk of pandemics, and increased pollution levels, the right to a healthy environment must be seen as a true collective priority. There is no room for partisanship on this issue.

Moreover, COP27 just ended, in Egypt, where Canada was represented by the Minister of the Environment, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault. In the final document, the Sharm El‑Sheikh implementation plan, the minister, along with all member countries of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, recognized the importance of the right to a healthy environment.

If we are ready to take this step internationally, it is also time to do so here, in Canada. We must therefore strengthen the implementation framework for the right to a healthy environment in Bill S‑5, and we have a few amendments to propose in that regard.

In recent years, there have been advances in scientific knowledge about the various forms of pollution. In Canada alone, we now know that it leads to more than 15,000 premature deaths and costs us $120 billion every year. Atmospheric pollution is toxic for nearly every organ in the body, and at all stages of life. It affects the heart, the brain, the lungs, the kidneys and so on. We can put an end to that.

A modernized CEPA must not only recognize the right to a healthy environment, but also include the highest air quality standards. That requires strong language in Bill S‑5 for protection and prevention.

Let me be clear: by supporting the amendments we propose in our brief to strengthen Bill S‑5, and thereby adequately reforming the CEPA, you have the opportunity to considerably improve the life of millions of people in Canada. That is a tremendous privilege, but it is also a responsibility.

We made the mistake of waiting for more than two decades to review this act. We cannot afford to wait any longer.

Thank you.

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