Tweeters,

On December 12, the Species At Risk Act (Bill C-5) received Royal
Assent, the final step in its passage through the Canadian Parliament.
This symbolic step-- the approval of the legislation by the
Governor-General (the Queen's representative in Canada)-- takes place
only after legislation has been passed by both houses of Parliament
(the House of Commons and the Senate).

Until now, Canada has had no federal legislation to protect threatened
and endangered animals and plants. The Species At Risk Act (SARA) is
similar in intent to the U.S. Endangered Species Act, though it is
considered weaker in some respects. However, this is still a huge step
forward for bird conservation in Canada and North America.

The next step is the development of regulations that specify how the
act will be implemented, and their approval by the federal Cabinet. It
is expected that regulations will be approved and the Act will come
into force sometime in 2003.

For the full news release issued by Environment Canada, click on the
following URL:

http://www.ec.gc.ca/press/2002/021212_n_e.htm .

There are several links at the end of the press release that provide
further information for those who are interested.

Wayne C. Weber
Kamloops, BC, Canada
contopus at shaw.ca