The federal government has abolished a $1 billion green fund operated by Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) due to egregious violations of conflict-of-interest policies.
Since SDTC was created in 2001 with a mandate to spur the development of sustainable technologies by Canadian companies, they’ve contributed hundreds of millions to sustainable technology development and delivery. In 2021, the SDTC entered into an agreement with the Department of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development (ISED), with the aim of funding a mass of green technology projects. The deal was worth $1 billion.
According to the auditor general, during the last several years, SDTC has violated several of its crucial conflict of interest policies. It was found that SDTC violated these policies no less than 90 times.
They also awarded over $59 million to 10 separate projects that were never eligible to begin with. The auditor general also found that Sustainable Development Technology Canada often misrepresented or overstated the environmental benefits that a certain project would bring.
Over the past 6 years, the SDTC approved 226 projects worth $836 million. When analyzed, the auditor general reported that projects totalling $51 million “did not support the development or demonstration of a new technology, or the projected environmental benefits were unreasonable.”
Many of the projects that were requesting funding blatantly overstated the environmental benefits they would create. It was found that out of the 18 completed projects, 12 did not meet the projected reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases. Of those 12, on average, only half of the greenhouse gas emissions as promised were achieved.
Green Fund Transferred from SDTC to NRC
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Shortly after this scathing report was released, the federal government transferred funds from SDTC to the National Research Council of Canada (NRC). The NRC is directly accountable to the minister of innovation, whereas the SDTC was operating at arm’s length.
The NRC is subject to rigorous oversight of its finances, which will help rebuild public trust while ensuring that funding for green technology is properly and fairly allocated.
Although the SDTC will still work in combination with the Department of Innovation, Science, and Economic Development to provide funding for green technologies, the funding process will now be overseen by the NRC to try to put an end to any conflicts of interest and ensure funds are allocated properly. Although the green fund will not disappear, how funds are allocated will certainly change.
