Canada's 2 Billion Trees Program: Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Report 1 (April 2023)
Short record: the main facts, with sources. A full case file has not been prepared.
- The record does not name which of my species, waters, soils or forests were harmed.
In Report 1 of 2023, "Forests and Climate Change", the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development reported that it was unlikely the 2 Billion Trees Program would meet its objectives unless significant changes were made, and that in the best-case scenario it would reach 2.3% of the 2 billion tree goal after two years. The program was not expected to achieve its originally anticipated emission reductions.
Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, Report 1, "Forests and Climate Change", tabled 20 April 2023.
Status As of August 2023 (the latest source): the Commissioner's April 2023 findings are on record and Natural Resources Canada's counting of trees from partner programs is disputed; no later audit is in the sources reviewed.
What happened
In Report 1 of 2023, "Forests and Climate Change", tabled on 20 April 2023, the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (CESD) audited the 2 Billion Trees Program of Natural Resources Canada. The report states that over 10 years, from 2021 to 2031, the government plans to invest up to $3.2 billion on tree planting, mainly through cost-shared partnerships. Given the early planting results, the Commissioner stated that "it is unlikely that the 2 Billion Trees Program will meet its objectives unless significant changes are made".
The report records that Natural Resources Canada planted 28.9 million trees in 2021 against an estimate of 30 million, and that in 2022 it had estimated 60 million trees while the forecast, if all agreements signed by the end of the audit period were implemented, was 16.5 million. The CESD stated that in the best-case scenario the program would reach 2.3% of the 2 billion tree goal after two years. It found that the department did not have long-term agreements with provinces and territories and had not determined how it would monitor planted trees over the long term, so it would not know whether the trees had survived. It reported that the department's projections showed it did not expect to achieve its annual or long-term emission-reduction targets (up to 2 Mt CO2 eq annually by 2030 and up to 11 to 12 Mt CO2 eq annually by 2050): the program was projected to be a net greenhouse gas source until 2031 and to capture 4.3 Mt CO2 eq in 2050.
On 15 August 2023 CBC News reported that Natural Resources Canada had revised its 2021 figure from 29 million to 83 million trees by adding trees planted through partner programs such as Environment and Climate Change Canada's Low Carbon Economy Fund. CBC quoted Jerry DeMarco, the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, calling this "creative accounting". The Minister of Natural Resources, Jonathan Wilkinson, told CBC the government had confirmed when it announced the initiative that it would rely on other programs.
- 2021Natural Resources Canada received funding to establish the 2 Billion Trees Program (February) and planted 28.9 million trees in the first year.
- 2022Year to which the best-case 2.3% of the 2 billion tree goal relates.
- 202320 April: the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development tabled Report 1, "Forests and Climate Change".
- 202315 August: CBC News reported that Natural Resources Canada had revised its 2021 tree count by adding trees planted under another department's program.
What was said
“It's creative accounting”
“I am not sure Canadians care if some of the trees come from Low Carbon Economy or some come from other programs”
“it is unlikely that the 2 Billion Trees Program will meet its objectives unless significant changes are made”
Where accounts differ
Each party's account, side by side, with its source. The record does not settle these points; it shows them.
Called the counting "creative accounting" and said that, to achieve the benefits for climate, biodiversity and human health, adding trees is needed, not finding trees in other programs that have already been planted.
CBC NewsSaid it revised its 2021 figure by adding trees planted through partner programs; the Minister said the government had confirmed when it announced the initiative that it would rely on other programs.
CBC NewsIts reforestation policy and campaign manager said that if the government is counting existing trees that were already planted, it cannot claim the program offers any additional value.
CBC NewsHow it looked
Shown
- Natural Resources Canada said it had revised its 2021 figure by adding millions of trees planted through partner programs like Environment and Climate Change Canada's Low Carbon Economy Fund; it initially said it had planted 29 million trees in 2021 and now said 83 million, and that approximately 110 million trees had been planted to date.Natural Resources Canada, as reported by CBC · CBC News
Recorded
- The Commissioner stated that in the best-case scenario, after 2 years, the program would reach only 2.3% of the overall 2 billion tree goal.
- The Commissioner found that the department had not determined how it would monitor planted trees over the long term, which means it would not know whether the trees had survived or were benefitting Canadians as intended.
- The Commissioner reported that the program was not expected to achieve its originally anticipated emission reductions, even if fully implemented, and that biodiversity benefits could be better realized.
- CBC reported that Natural Resources Canada revised its 2021 count of trees planted by adding trees planted through partner programs such as the Low Carbon Economy Fund.
In nature's name
Promised
- “The 2 Billion Trees Program was first announced in the 2019 Speech from the Throne; its overall goal is planting 2 billion incremental trees by 2031.” — Government of Canada, as described in the Commissioner's Report 1 (2019) Office of the Auditor General of Canada
Money moved in nature's name
| What | Kind | Amount | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Billion Trees Program: planned federal investment in tree planting Government of Canada Office of the Auditor General of Canada | Budget | 3.2bn CAD | 2021–2031 |
What was measured
The Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development's Report 1 is an official audit. It compared planting results and projections with the program's estimates and targets. The programme's own planting counts are not an independent measurement of benefit; the department had not determined how it would monitor survival of planted trees.
Findings on record
- Official audit Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (2023-04-20) · Report 1—Forests and Climate Change: “it is unlikely that the 2 Billion Trees Program will meet its objectives unless significant changes are made” Office of the Auditor General of Canada
Who gained
Reached nature or the ground
Gained elsewhere
Responses on record
- government-of-canada (2023-04-20): Natural Resources Canada responded "Agreed" to the recommendations on planting objectives and long-term monitoring, and "Partially agreed" to the recommendation on biodiversity criteria for monoculture planting, as recorded in the report's recommendations and responses table. · Office of the Auditor General of Canada
In court and with insurers
Lawsuits and rulings
Insurers
What nature saw
Nature's report opens this page. Below: further outcomes measured on the ground.
What we don't know
Nature
- Not measured Harm to nature: The record holds no measurement of harm to nature.
Court
- None on record No court case on record.
Accounts
- Disputed Whether trees planted under other federal programs count toward the 2 Billion Trees goal
Record
- Disputed Disputed: whether trees planted through other federal programs, such as the Low Carbon Economy Fund, should count toward the 2 Billion Trees goal; see disputes.
Did the harm stop?
Not applicable: no harm to nature is recorded in the sources reviewed.
Who paid?
The Government of Canada plans to invest up to $3.2 billion from 2021 to 2031, mainly through cost-shared partnerships, according to the Commissioner's report.
Sources
Government and regulators
- Report 1—Forests and Climate Change (2023 Reports of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development to the Parliament of Canada)Office of the Auditor General of Canada · 2023-04-20
- Report 1—Forests and Climate Change (full report, PDF)Office of the Auditor General of Canada · 2023-04-20
Press and investigations
Connected cases
- Canada's Emissions Reduction Fund, Onshore Program for oil and gas: audit by the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development Canada · 2020–2021
- Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development (Canada) (Public authority) — here: Report 1, "Forests and Climate Change", April 2023; there: Auditor; author of the November 2021 report
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Fund examined in the audit
- About 100 tonnes of iron released off Haida Gwaii in 2012 ocean experiment Canada · 2012–2013
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Environment ministry searched in 2013; no charges recorded
- Alberta and Ottawa tie new oil pipeline to Pathways carbon capture plan Canada · 2025
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Party to the November 2025 agreement; federal tax credit
- Alberta orphan wells and mine liabilities Canada · 2002
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Source of federal funding (2020) and loans
- Alberta orphan wells, closure liabilities and the Redwater ruling Canada · 2002
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Source of federal funding (2020) and loans
- Canada narrowed federal environmental reviews in 2012 and again in 2025 Canada · 2012–2025
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Federal government; subject of the 2012 assessment law and Bill C-5
- Canada's Giant Mine arsenic cleanup cost rises to CAD 4.38 billion Canada · 1948–2038
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Federal government funding the remediation
- Giant Mine cleanup cost in Yellowknife rose to 4.38 billion Canadian dollars Canada · 1999–2022
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Bears the federal cost of the cleanup
- Lac-Mégantic rail disaster (Quebec) Canada · 2012–2026
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Contributed C$75 million to the settlement fund
- Québec caribou emergency order and the 17 percent protection target Canada · 2020–2026
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Began the emergency-order process
- Ruby River seeks $588m-$1bn from Canada over rejected Québec LNG plant Canada · 2021
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: respondent
- Soviet nuclear satellite Cosmos 954 crashes in Canada; USSR pays C$3m in 1981 Canada · 1978–1981
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Claimant for damage from Cosmos 954
- Trans Mountain pipeline insurers (Canada) Canada · 2018–2024
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: Owner since 2018; guarantor of the credit facility
- Westmoreland's claim over Alberta coal exit dismissed; company ordered to pay costs Canada · 2024
- Government of Canada (Government) — here: Programme audited; there: respondent