In 2003, the Government of Canada announced increased funding to revitalize and transform the operations of the Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC). The objectives of this project, known as the Transition Project, were to help the MSC become a more sustainable organization, to advance science- and weather-related services, and to help Canadians adapt in ways that safeguard security, health and safety, economic prosperity and environmental quality. An evaluation of the progress made to modernize Environment Canada’s weather services over the 2003–2004 to 2007–2008 period was required by Treasury Board. The importance of evaluating this significant and transformative measure was also endorsed by Environment Canada’s Audit and Evaluation Committee.3 The conduct of an evaluation was included in the department’s 2007–2008 Audit and Evaluation Plan, which was approved by Environment Canada’s Departmental Audit and Evaluation Committee on April 18, 2007.
An evaluation committee was created to facilitate and guide the evaluation process from start to finish. Members included representatives appointed by the Assistant Deputy Minister of the MSC and the Audit and Evaluation Branch. This evaluation followed the terms of reference set out in the evaluation plan approved in September 2007 by the evaluation committee4 and this document is the result.
This document presents the findings and recommendations of the evaluation of the MSC Transition Project and is organized in the following way: section 2 presents the background and context for the evaluation; section 3 presents the purpose and scope of the evaluation and the approach and methodology used to conduct the evaluation; section 4 presents the evaluation’s findings; and sections 5 and 6 lay out, respectively, the conclusions and recommendations. Supporting information is presented in the annexes to the report.
3 In 2007, the Departmental Audit and Evaluation Committee was split into two components. The component that deals with evaluation is now known as the Departmental Evaluation Committee.
4 Evaluation Plan for the Evaluation of the Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC) Transition, Environment Canada, September 2007.