Study finds most at-risk species face years-long delays for federal protection

Most species designated as at risk in Canada are waiting years for the federal government to decide whether to legally protect them, a new study shows. The research examined 288 species assessed as at risk since 2017 and found only 17 had moved through the process within the recommended timeline. More than half, or 153 species, were overdue for a final cabinet decision as of late January 2025. The backlog includes endangered or threatened populations of caribou, beluga whales and lake sturgeon. Researchers attribute the delays to a gap in the Species at Risk Act that lacks a statutory deadline for a key procedural step.

"The government recommended one to two years, and they are consistently failing to meet that," said Peter Thompson, a postdoctoral researcher in biology at Simon Fraser University and the study's lead author. The Saskatchewan-Nelson River lake sturgeon population, assessed as endangered in 2017, missed a recommended federal deadline in January 2020 and was still awaiting a decision five years later. Thompson said hydroelectric dams have fragmented the waterways these ancient fish need to survive. "It's preventing these species from going where they need to go to survive," he said.

A formal listing under SARA triggers prohibitions against harming a species and requires a recovery strategy that identifies critical habitat. These protections are particularly significant for aquatic species, as the law's core prohibitions apply to them across Canada. Drew Yewchuk, a lawyer and doctoral researcher at the University of British Columbia's law school, said habitat protection is one of the act's most important tools. "If the animals don't have habitat to live on, they don't live," he said.

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The act sets a 90-day deadline for the environment minister to publish a response to a scientific assessment and gives the cabinet nine months to decide once it receives the file. However, there is no legal timeline for transferring the assessment from the minister to the cabinet. "It could just sit there forever because there's no timeline for the step," Yewchuk said. The study found none of the 15 marine mammals or 49 marine fish assessed during the period had been forwarded to the cabinet by January 2025.

Andrea Reid, a citizen of the Nisga'a Nation and a Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Fisheries Science at UBC, said the loss of these species threatens more than biodiversity. "Because these fish are so deeply connected to who we are," Reid said. "It's not just food, it's all systems of tradition and culture and language." The study noted Indigenous consultation was cited in some delay explanations, but Reid cautioned against framing consultation as an obstacle. She said listing decisions can be complex for Indigenous communities, as protections may affect cultural access.

The most common official reasons for delays were ongoing information collection and analysis. For 20 percent of delayed species where the government provided an explanation, no specific reason was given. Thompson said the vague or absent explanations point to a transparency problem. "It certainly seems like there is, at the very least, a lack of transparency in what is happening," he said. Yewchuk argued the procedural gap allows governments to avoid difficult public choices between conservation and economic interests. "It takes the pressure off of them to make hard calls about species conservation and allows them to just let the issue slide away," he said. Environment and Climate Change Canada acknowledged the legislative gap identified in the study. The research found 90 percent of terrestrial mammals and 79 percent of freshwater fish assessed were also still awaiting a cabinet decision. Thirty-eight Pacific salmon populations were among those delayed while the government continued to collect or analyze information.

With files from The Canadian Press and CBC News