Natural Resources Canada
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan; ), also known as the Department of Natural Resources, is the department of the federal Government of Canada responsible for natural resources, energy, minerals and metals, forests, earth sciences, mapping, and remote sensing. It was created in 1995 by amalgamating the now-defunct Department of Energy, Mines and Resources with the Department of Forestry. The current minister of natural resources is Jonathan Wilkinson. Natural Resources Canada works to ensure the responsible development of Canada's natural resources, including energy, forests, minerals and metals. NRCan also uses its expertise in earth sciences to build and  maintain an up-to-date knowledge base of our landmass and resources. To promote internal collaboration, NRCan has implemented a departmental wide wiki based on MediaWiki. Natural Resources Canada also collaborates with American and Mexican government scientists, along with the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, to produce the North American Environmental Atlas, which is used to depict and track environmental issues for a continental perspective. Under the "Constitution Act, 1867", responsibility for natural resources belongs to the provinces, not the federal government. However, the federal government has jurisdiction over off-shore resources, trade and commerce in natural resources, statistics, international relations , and boundaries. The department is governed by the "Resources and Technical Surveys Act", R.S.C., c.R-7 and the "Department of Natural Resources Act", S.C. 1994, c. 41. Structure. The department currently has these sectors: The following sub-agencies are attached to the department: Related legislation. Acts for which Natural Resources Canada has responsibility