Extend and fund NHCP
Petitioners ask the government to extend and retarget the NHCP Land Trusts Fund as a Southern Landscapes Fund with $25 million/year for five years and a $150 million conservation endowment. The government responds that it has extended NHCP funding and committed a renewed $250 million NHCP plus a $150 million endowment.
Why we would sign this petition
- Funds would help land trusts buy and protect scarce southern private lands, directly advancing Canada’s 30% by 2030 biodiversity target.
- Extending NHCP support beyond March 2026 prevents a funding gap so local trusts can secure lands before development raises costs.
- A $150M endowment would create a predictable, long-term revenue stream to maintain conserved lands and strengthen trust capacity.
Why we wouldn’t sign this petition
- The proposal requires substantial federal spending ($25M/year plus a $150M endowment), which may conflict with other budget priorities.
- Focusing investments on southern landscapes could leave other regions or conservation priorities underfunded or neglected.
- Redesigning the fund risks overlap with existing programs and partners; governance, accountability and efficient use of funds need clarification.
The summary and both sets of reasons are AI-generated from the petition and given equal weight. Claims are the petitioners’ own; consult the official record for the full text.
Official petition
Petition to the Government of Canada Canada has committed to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework’s 23 targets and released Canada’s 2030 Nature Strategy to advance these targets; Canada has pledged to protect 30% of Canada’s land and waters by 2030; Canada has already protected significant tracts of ecologically sensitive land through the Natural Heritage Conservation Program (NHCP), but has not yet met its targets; Funding for the NHCP comes to an end in March 2026; Nature loss is most acute in the southern parts of the country, where development pressures render ecologically-intact land increasingly scarce and costly; 150 local and regional land trusts protect hundreds of thousands of hectares of Canada’s most endangered landscapes, particularly in the south; and Local and regional land trusts are deeply rooted in their communities, providing connections between people, communities, and nature. We, the undersigned, residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to increase support to local and regional land trusts by: 1. Extending the NHCP - Land Trusts Conservation Fund beyond 2026; 2. Renaming and redesigning the NHCP - Land Trusts Conservation Fund to a Southern Landscapes Fund and investing $25 million per year for five years to support local and regional land trusts in southern Canada in acquiring private land and implementing projects that address multiple, interconnected biodiversity priorities; and 3. Creating a $150 million endowment fund, the Canada Conservation Investment Fund, that will create a long-term funding stream to strengthen the capacity of local and regional land trusts to care for natural spaces in perpetuity.
Government response
Response by the Minister of the Environment, Climate Change and Nature Signed by The Honourable Julie Dabrusin The Government of Canada remains committed to protecting 30% of lands and 30% of waters by 2030 and recognizes that every sector of society must be involved in building the solutions that will achieve ambitious outcomes for nature and people. In December 2022, the Government of Canada announced an investment of up to $90 million until March 31, 2026, to extend the Natural Heritage Conservation Program under the Enhanced Nature Legacy to secure an additional 180,000 hectares of ecologically sensitive land and establish new protected and conserved areas across the country. Under the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, Wildlife Habitat Canada administers the Land Trust Conservation Fund, supporting local and regional land trust to secure land. To date, the Government of Canada has invested $500 million in the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, and is predecessor the Natural Area Conservation Program, which has been matched with more than $1 billion in contributions raised by Nature Conservancy of Canada, Ducks Unlimited Canada and the country’s land trust community leading to the protection and conservation of over 860,000 hectares of ecologically sensitive lands. In the Speech from the Throne in May 2025, the Government of Canada made a commitment to protect more of Canada’s nature than ever before through the creation of new national parks, national urban parks, marine protected areas, and other conservation initiatives. The Government of Canada further reiterated its commitment to working effectively with partners with a commitment to streamline its nature programming to simplify engagement with stakeholders and reduce administrative burden in its November 2025 Canada Strong Budget. Environment and Climate Change Canada values the important work of conservation organizations such as land trusts in conserving nature, especially in biodiversity rich southern Canada, along with the associated benefits to Canadian communities. The Minister responded, on December 1, 2025 to the Alliance of Canadian Land Trusts collective letter urging the Government of Canada to strengthen its investment for nature conservation through a renewed $250 million Natural Heritage Conservation Program and a new $150 million investment for the creation of an endowment fund.